Future Skills in Education: Psychologists’ Views on the Skills of the Future from the Perspective of Individual Well-Being
One of the most important tasks of teachers is to prepare their students for a successful, satisfied and balanced adult life. However, this is also a major challenge in a rapidly changing cultural and technological environment, where it is increasingly difficult to know what kind of society and jobs today’s learners will have to cope with in 15–20 years’ time, and what expectations they will have to meet in their professional and personal lives. Teacher train-
ing is in an even more difficult position and should therefore look even further ahead, as it must take all this into account when preparing the teachers of the future. To put it a little more bluntly, training should prepare students to deal with problems that are currently almost out of the reach of teachers.
In recent years, rapid social and technological change – and in particular, the transformations brought about by the dominant presence of the digital environment – has already had an impact on education, raising the need for teacher education not only to follow this change, but also to anticipate and prepare future teachers to adapt rapidly.
DEVELOPING TRANSVERSAL SKILLS IN PRIMARY EDUCATION: A COMPARATIVE INTERNATIONAL STUDY
One of the central questions in global education systems is how students can be adequately prepared for the rapidly evolving social and economic landscape. Contemporary educational paradigms increasingly emphasize the development of transversal skills, which enable lifelong learning, complex problem-solving, conscious use of digital technologies, and effective collaboration. Policy documents from the European Union and the OECD underscore that the integration of these skills into educationis fundamental for students to thrive in the labour market and broader society.
The development of transversal skills is particularly crucial in primary education, as this period lays the foundation for cognitive, emotional, and social competencies that significantly influence students’ long-term academic performance and personal growth. However, teachers frequently encounter challenges in fostering these skills, including limited instructional time, inadequate methodological tools, and low student motivation.
THE SPIRIT FRAMEWORK COMPREHENSIVE HANDBOOK FOR TEACHERS
The term ‘Transversal skills’ entered the educational and professional debate around the 1970s, when the US Department of Defence began to distinguish technical skills, necessary to perform a specific task, from relational and transversal skills, which support effectiveness and adaptability in complex contexts. In recent decades, the importance of soft skills has grown exponentially, fuelled by an increasingly fluid, interconnected social and economic reality characterised by rapid technological change.
In a world where robotisation, artificial intelligence and global transformations reshape professions and human interactions, skills such as effective communication, empathy, resilience, creativity, critical thinking and collaboration have become crucial for personal and collective success. These are not just skills useful for work: soft skills influence emotional and social well-being, a sense of belonging and the development of active and responsible citizenship.
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