Publisher Home ↗ editor@randspublications.org
International Journal of Social Sciences, Language and Linguistics eISSN 2051-686X Submit Article
Research Articles Open access

Beyond Employability: Re-Examining the Purpose of Education in Preparing Young People for an Uncertain Future

Published
Pages 88-98
Views 161
Downloads 227

Authors

  • Davendra Sharma Lecturer and PhD Scholar University of Fiji, Fiji Islands Author

DOI

https://doi.org/10.55640/ijssll-06-01-10 ↗

Abstract

Across the world, education systems are increasingly framed around employability, skills alignment, and labour market responsiveness. While these priorities reflect legitimate economic concerns, they risk narrowing the purpose of education to short-term workforce preparation at the expense of broader human, social, and civic development. This paper critically re-examines the dominant employability-driven paradigm in education and asks a fundamental question: beyond employability, what are we preparing young people for in an uncertain and rapidly changing future? Drawing on interdisciplinary scholarship from education policy, human capital theory, critical pedagogy, ethics, and futures studies, the paper argues that contemporary education systems are insufficiently equipped to prepare learners for the complexity, uncertainty, and moral challenges of the 21st century.

The analysis highlights how rapid technological change, artificial intelligence, automation, climate uncertainty, and shifting social relations are transforming not only labour markets but also the nature of citizenship, identity, and human interaction. In this context, an education model narrowly focused on skills acquisition and economic productivity is increasingly inadequate. Instead, the paper proposes a re-conceptualization of educational purpose that integrates employability with ethical reasoning, emotional intelligence, critical thinking, social responsibility, cultural understanding, and lifelong adaptability.

Using a conceptual and policy-oriented approach, the paper synthesises global education reform discourses with emerging critiques from the Global South and Indigenous contexts, where structural inequalities and uneven access to resources further complicate future readiness. The paper advances a human-centred framework for education that positions learners not merely as future workers, but as ethical agents, engaged citizens, and contributors to sustainable and inclusive societies. The study concludes by outlining key implications for education policy, curriculum design, teacher education, and institutional leadership, calling for a deliberate shift from instrumentalist models of education towards more holistic and future-responsive approaches.

Keywords

Employability , Purpose of Education , Future Readiness , Education Policy , Human-Centred Education , Critical Thinking , Ethics and Values , Emotional Intelligence , 21st-Century Education , Global Education Reform

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

1. Aoun, J. E. (2017). Robot-proof: Higher education in the age of artificial intelligence. MIT Press.

2. Arendt, H. (1954). The crisis in education. Partisan Review, 25(4), 493–513.

3. Biesta, G. (2009). Good education in an age of measurement: On the need to reconnect with the question of purpose in education. Educational Assessment, Evaluation and Accountability, 21(1), 33–46. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11092-008-9064-9

4. Biesta, G. (2015). Good education in an age of measurement: Ethics, politics, democracy. Routledge.

5. Biesta, G. (2021). World-centred education: A view for the present. Educational Philosophy and Theory, 53(9), 876–889. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131857.2020.1834692

6. Bowen, G. A. (2009). Document analysis as a qualitative research method. Qualitative Research Journal, 9(2), 27–40. https://doi.org/10.3316/QRJ0902027

7. Brookfield, S. D. (2017). Becoming a critically reflective teacher (2nd ed.). Jossey-Bass.

8. Brown, P., Lauder, H., & Ashton, D. (2011). The global auction: The broken promises of education, jobs, and incomes. Oxford University Press.

9. Cedefop. (2020). Empowering adults through upskilling and reskilling pathways. Publications Office of the European Union.

10. Delors, J. (1996). Learning: The treasure within. UNESCO.

11. Dewey, J. (1916). Democracy and education. Macmillan.

12. Dewey, J. (1938). Experience and education. Collier Books.

13. Fiji Ministry of Education. (2023). Education sector strategic plan 2023–2028. Suva, Fiji: Government of Fiji.

14. Frey, C. B., & Osborne, M. A. (2017). The future of employment: How susceptible are jobs to computerisation? Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 114, 254–280. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2016.08.019

15. Giddens, A. (1991). Modernity and self-identity. Stanford University Press.

16. Giroux, H. A. (2014). Neoliberalism’s war on higher education. Haymarket Books.

17. Hanushek, E. A., & Woessmann, L. (2008). The role of cognitive skills in economic development. Journal of Economic Literature, 46(3), 607–668. https://doi.org/10.1257/jel.46.3.607

18. Hargreaves, A., & Fullan, M. (2012). Professional capital: Transforming teaching in every school. Teachers College Press.

19. Harari, Y. N. (2018). 21 lessons for the 21st century. Jonathan Cape.

20. Heckman, J. J., & Kautz, T. (2012). Hard evidence on soft skills. Labour Economics, 19(4), 451–464. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.labeco.2012.05.014

21. Illeris, K. (2018). Contemporary theories of learning (2nd ed.). Routledge.

22. International Labour Organization. (2019). Global employment trends for youth. ILO.

23. Klafki, W. (2000). Didactic analysis as the core of preparation of instruction. In I. Westbury et al. (Eds.), Teaching as a reflective practice (pp. 139–159). Lawrence Erlbaum.

24. Lal, B. V. (2020). Indigenous knowledge, education, and the Pacific: Culture, learning, and development. Pacific Studies Journal, 43(2), 15–35.

25. Marginson, S. (2016). Higher education and the common good. Higher Education, 72(4), 411–433. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-015-9944-1

26. Nussbaum, M. C. (2010). Not for profit: Why democracy needs the humanities. Princeton University Press.

27. OECD. (2018). The future of education and skills: Education 2030. OECD Publishing.

28. OECD. (2019). OECD learning compass 2030. OECD Publishing.

29. OECD. (2021). Beyond academic learning: First results from the survey of social and emotional skills. OECD Publishing.

30. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. (2023). Skills outlook 2023: Skills for a resilient green and digital transition. OECD Publishing.

31. Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat. (2020). Digital inclusion and education in the Pacific. Suva, Fiji: PIFS.

32. Palmer, P. J. (1998). The courage to teach. Jossey-Bass.

33. Robinson, K., & Aronica, L. (2015). Creative schools: The grassroots revolution that’s transforming education. Viking.

34. Schwab, K. (2016). The fourth industrial revolution. World Economic Forum.

35. Sen, A. (1999). Development as freedom. Oxford University Press.

36. Sharma, D. (2022). Equity and inclusivity in Pacific education systems: Challenges and pathways. International Journal of Educational Development, 86, 102526. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedudev.2021.102526

37. Sterling, S. (2011). Transformative learning and sustainability: Sketching the conceptual ground. Learning and Teaching in Higher Education, 5, 17–33.

38. UNESCO. (2015). Rethinking education: Towards a global common good? UNESCO Publishing.

39. UNESCO. (2021). Reimagining our futures together: A new social contract for education. UNESCO Publishing.

40. UNESCO. (2021). Pacific education report: Digital learning, equity, and inclusion. Paris, France: UNESCO.

41. World Economic Forum. (2020). The future of jobs report. WEF.

42. World Economic Forum. (2023). Global risks report. WEF.

43. Young, M. (2008). Bringing knowledge back in. Routledge.

Explore related research

Similar Articles

21-30 of 157
Continue exploring

Most read articles by the same author(s)

1 2 3 4 > >> 

Search the journal

Find articles by title, author or keyword.