Innovation
Inspiring and preparing all students to learn and innovate can help countries and regions stay competitive in the global marketplace.
There is a widening gap between the knowledge required to be successful in society and that provided by education institutions. Students across all geographies may question whether this disconnect between existing process and desired outcome is a simple question of engagement or a profound question of future economic survival. We believe that the economic competitiveness of every geographic area depends, in large measure, on how effectively their education institutions engage, inspire, and prepare all students to learn and innovate. Policymakers can play a key role in matching their education institutions to the specific societal needs of their geography - in essence, using policy to close the gap between existing processes and desired outcomes.
Workforce Development
The need for a more digitally literate workforce places a greater emphasis on education and training strategies with a focus on employability.
Developing workplace skills through education
Microsoft provides students, educators and adults with the technology and training needed to build skills for success in tomorrow’s workplace. With close to 11,000 Microsoft IT Academy members in more than 160 countries, the Microsoft IT Academy program helps drive employability, digital literacy, and 21st-century workforce development through IT training and certification for students and educators.
Skills development for youth/adult employment
Keeping up in today’s world requires the right skills, education, and experiences in order to be prepared for new jobs and opportunities. Empowering young people includes providing access to technology skills training, and Microsoft Certifications can help students differentiate themselves in today’s competitive job market. The IT industry is one of the few industries where there is growth not only in technology but also in jobs. There is a dire need for a technically skilled workforce and Microsoft Certifications provide the validation of skills that can help students get a job in IT.
Applying ICT for better quality teaching and learning
Microsoft partners with education communities globally to create and deliver an ecosystem of resources to help drive real impact, real learning, and real innovation.
Microsoft created the Partners in Learning (PiL) program to help educators and school leaders around the world connect, collaborate, create, and share. PiL helps educators and governments enhance student learning through digital inclusion and innovative teaching practices to help students build skills they need for the future.
Programs such as Live@Edu, DreamSpark, Office Live Workspace, and Windows Live Skydrive help teachers find and share resources to streamline content creation, support student assessments, and differentiate curriculum. And Microsoft Office 365 for education delivers the power of cloud productivity to educational institutions, helping to save time and money while increasing student and faculty productivity. Office 365 is simple to use, secure, and reliable, and from Summer 2012 will be available free to all educators and students – extending learning possibilities to students while helping them master technology they will use in future careers.
Supporting Public Private Partnerships and policy development
Many of our efforts are in partnership with governments and combine Microsoft products and services with years of citizenship, government, and education expertise, along with broad Public Private Partnership experience.
We are focused on helping countries accelerate economic growth by expanding technology access and inclusion and by developing workforce skills for the 21st century to improve job readiness and placement. We are currently working with governments on bringing education policy and programs into the 21st century in developing countries. We aim to help countries address societal challenges and build healthy communities by expanding educational and employment opportunities for all.
We also invest in partnerships, deploy our own employees, and leverage our technology to support skills development.
Research
Microsoft is helping to create the next generation of scientific discovery, to benefit the global society.
Microsoft is working with universities, companies, foundations, and non-profit organizations to create the next generation of scientific discovery. Through research, e-science, and collaboration, we believe we can help improve the knowledge, decision-making skills, and actions related to the key issues of a populated and resource-hungry global society.
Educator Development
We believe that the development of educators to use and teach with information and communications technology (ICT) is critical for communities, countries, and regions to create a sustainable advantage in the global economy.
Developing a high-quality pool of teachers is a critical need for countries around the world. We believe that the development of educators to integrate information and communication technologies (ICTs) in classroom curriculum is critical for building the next generation of information workers. This will help communities, countries, and regions to create a sustainable advantage in the global economy.
Strategic Planning
Strategic planning and aligning policy stakeholders with a transformative vision of education can be key drivers of economic success.
During times of scarce resources and increased accountability, leadership must strike a balance between operational excellence and strategic relevance - it is no longer acceptable to be “good enough” with the resources at hand. We believe that education institutions need to demonstrate to all stakeholders that the ideal future is a more engaging, efficient, and prosperous one. This is the future that policymakers are betting on with their scarce resources. Strategic planning that aligns policy stakeholders with this transformative vision of education can be a key driver of future economic success.
Digital Access
Countries and regions must view the capacity of their citizens to use ICT as central to their economic policies.
We believe that any country or region wishing to be a material participant in the global economy must view its citizens’ capacity to learn, use, and understand information and communications technology (ICT) as a central tenet of its economic policies. This perspective on universal access to digital learning may well be essential for any country wishing to move from an industrial economy to a knowledge economy. Leveraging education to maximize ICT capacity can provide a considerable advantage in the 21st century. Of course, the mere presence of digital learning does not guarantee future economic success. Citizens must develop their capacity for learning, using, and understanding technology to deliver economic return.
