Education in the XXI century

It is not new to say that our society is in a constant cycle of decay, and that inevitably affects education. And being education the space where we are educated and where we build our first social conventions…what kind of kids are we “educating”? Or what is more…how will these kids behave in 20 years? We have to bear in mind that these kids who are being molded today are the ones who will take the lead.
The ex headmaster of the University of Buenos Aires, Guillermo Jaim Etcheverry, whose curriculum in the area of medicine, science and education is more than impressive; conducted a lecture a few days ago, where he consistently displayed a profound analysis concerning the social crisis in our society and the inevitable influence in education.
Whose society?
Our society, the one we all live in, is characterized in every aspect by the blaring of visual images, where the media has become the new queen of priority in such a way that is impossible to imagine that we could survive without it. No one can deny that the benefits of television and internet. Nevertheless, only a few are able to question the side effects of it. Is the cult of the image and youth, the ephemeral consistency of values, and the interchange of roles within the family, spreading out to the entire society. People are living in an attempt of utopia which does not exist, adding the fact that there is no responsibility in the real side effects of this behavior.
Society vs. Knowledge
Cambridge Dictionary defines Knowledge as the “understanding of or information about a subject which has been obtained by experience or study, and which is either in a person’s mind or possessed by people generally”. We should bring this definition into our times, in which the concept of knowledge has dramatically changed. We now manage more information than we did in the past, but yet knowledge is little by little left behind. How much do we really know about things? We “know” a lot about many things, and yet we know nothing. Children will be able to deal with a lot of things, that’s for sure…but what they will know? We are facing a twist in society where knowledge has nothing to do with it. Everything has to be fast, and effective in order to keep up. And we all are supposed to be fast and effective to be fast and effective for others, so us to be a fast and effective society…it reminds me to Huxley when in “Brave New World” he says “…everyone belongs to everyone…”. -Are we maybe pacing towards a society that will be lead by utilitarianism instead of real education, and where the individual will be left aside?-
Society and technology pushes us to deal with a lot of information at the same time. The society demands us to be able to manage every type of issue…for this, it gives us more and more tools, more and more alternatives. Why? Because nothing seems to comfort us, and it lefts us in the middle of a path where we find a society which had a brutal twist, and where our still innocent view of things collapse with reality. We cannot digest the worldwide events because of the speed at which they occur. Now, everything that has been said affects education and children. So, to whom education will lead from now on?

As you may infer, the lecture conducted by the renowned Jaim Etcheverry only left me with more questions and with a deep concern.