Invest in Transformation, Not Temporary Tools

This may be an unpopular opinion, but here goes: if we are going to prepare students to thrive in the midst of uncertainty, schools need to prioritize the teaching of skills over content.

First, let me clarify—this doesn’t mean content is ignored. It means skills take precedence. When planning lessons, creating scope and sequence, and allocating resources, we must ask, “What skills are students building here?”

If businesses and universities are demanding “durable” skills, K-12 schools must get serious about fostering them intentionally and systematically. While we’ve addressed these skills in education for decades, we must do more to integrate their development into the heart of our educational processes.

Through my work leading Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy’s entrepreneurship program and helping other schools launch their own, I’ve seen firsthand the transformative power of teaching four key durable skills through the lens of the entrepreneurial mindset: collaboration, communication, creative problem solving, and adaptability.

Each one of these particular skills, and its relationship to entrepreneurial education, will be explored in future newsletters, but for now suffice to say the future demands more than mastery of content—it demands mastery of durable skills. 

Collaboration, effective communication, creative problem solving, and adaptability will empower students to face uncertainty with confidence and competence. Prioritizing skills over content is not about choosing one at the expense of the other. It is about recognizing that in an ever-changing world, the ability to learn, adapt, and connect is far more valuable than the accumulation of content. It is about creating environments where students develop the durable skills to not just survive but thrive in the future. 

It is about preparing them for the challenges ahead while giving them the tools to transform the world around them.

And the entrepreneurial mindset is all about transformation.

Let’s Connect around Thriving Students and Flourishing Communities

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