For a child today to have a successful career in the future – cognitive ability is paramount.
200 years ago, 90% of people in the US workforce were farmers.
100 years ago, this figure was down to 27%.
In 2018, farmers now make up less than 2% of the job market.
Why is this? Are the farmers working harder? Doing longer hours? Are they planting magical crops? No – the answer is continual improvement in science and technology.
Advancements in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics) fields, AI (Artificial Intelligence), smartphone apps and even Nano-technology all indicate one thing – if you can’t effectively use a computer, you’re going to be left behind.
“If you can use a computer, you’re at least in the game. If you can really use a computer, you’re hyper powerful. If you’re not literate enough to use a computer – you’re at 0.”
– Prof. Jordan Peterson
In previous years, having computer skills meant you were ahead of the curve.
Now you need a high level of proficiency just to keep up.
According to Forbes, technology has already replaced 90% of the jobs that were previously performed by humans. It’s clear that this trend will not only continue – it will accelerate.
In the US transport industry, 4 million people are employed as truck, taxi, Uber and bus drivers, auto-body repairers and in various traffic-related professions.
Over the next 10-20 years, self-driving vehicles are going to replace most, if not all of these existing jobs.
Although some jobs will go – new jobs will also be created. People will no longer earn an income from driving – but who will create the self-driving cars? Who will design and test new hardware? Who will write the computer code? Who will administer the legal and safety requirements of the future?
The children of today will help to create many of tomorrow’s job – some of which do not yet exist. Highly developed computer, science and critical thinking skills will be essential in order to achieve success in future job markets.
But what is the best way for children to develop these skills? By allowing them to learn and interact with technology during their crucial development stages.
During a child’s formative years, specific skills often become innate. This is true for languages, musical instruments, sporting ability and almost any other specialized skills. Learning to effectively use computers and technology is no different.
ROYBI is an AI-powered educational robot designed for children between the ages of 3 and 7. ROYBI can teach 15 different languages (including English, Spanish and Chinese), educate children with interactive games and stories, and even form personal relationships. During these activities, it then uses AI to measure learning and behavioural outcomes.
Classroom robots such as ROYBI use AI to teach young children ‘STEAM’ (the same as ‘STEM’ but also incorporating Arts) and are already generating excellent results.
ROYBI encourages children to develop critical thinking, inquiry and problem-solving skills – whilst exposing them to multiple languages. Children can experiment, investigate and answer questions, as well as develop an understanding of patterns and shapes.
Whilst these skills are basic in their nature – they foster the mental growth and understanding young children need to advance to higher levels of education.
By developing a child’s cognitive ability, their problem solving and computer skills become natural at a very young age. This builds a solid foundation upon which children can further grow and progress.
One of the main objectives of AI-based learning is also to make learning fun. ROYBI presents puzzles, games and challenges in an interactive and social way. This helps to build stronger engagement and make learning far more enjoyable.
ROYBI’s face-recognition technology also allows it to smile, laugh and even cry with the children. It becomes much more than just a learning aid – but a classroom friend.
Tomorrow’s careers will need fewer manual skills and more cognitive skills.
They will require highly-developed critical thinking, and an ability to understand and solve problems.
AI robots such as ROYBI are helping to create the problem-solvers of the future.
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