CHANGING technology and labour market demand have created new attitudes towards education, according to retired professor Daw Yi Yi Myint.

Students are making different choices as to which field of study to focus on and teaching methods have also changed, said Daw Yi Yi Myint, formerly head of the Department of Management Studies at the Yangon Institute of Economics.

She said the labour market now demanded employees who had practical experience in their chosen field and not just a certificate from a university or vocational training institute.

Workplace dynamics have also changed with a move towards a more merit-based system of promotion and wages, which has also affected people’s views on education.

“Most businesses in the past practiced a career ladder system, which promoted an employee based on their level of experience and service. But businesses today increasingly opt to use an open system, which promotes an employee based on their skills and personality,” she said.

“Many people now realise that a degree alone does not guarantee its holder a good job and they are trying to develop other skills,” she said. “Employees must have good all round skills – this is very important to employers.”

She said training, retraining and professional development were especially important with the fast pace of technological change in the modern workplace.
Problem solving, critical thinking and decision-making skills have all become important skills in modern teaching methods.

“Classes today have become focused on discussions among students, such as case studies, especially in master of business administration (MBA) degree classes,” she said.

However, she stressed that understanding the theories was still important, despite the majority of modern classes focusing on practical elements.

She added some students opted to obtain professional qualifications rather than academic qualifications because of the demand for such people in the labour market.

But she said students should still choose their field of study based on their hobbies, interests and objectives and this was essential to enjoy a successful career.

Despite the new attitudes towards education and teaching methods, she said the value society placed on education was still the same.

“Education has been valued in all societies and ours is no exception. Education is regarded as important, so people are willing to invest their time and money in it,” she said.

Education will play an important role in the future too as the marketplace continues to change. The next generation should prepare their skills to face the challenges of their times, she said.

“Education will become even more important for the next generations so they should prepare themselves to be more proficient in technology as well as in their abilities by building up their self-confidence and learning from the experience of others.”