These are skills such as problem solving, team work, communication, critical thinking, financial and digital literacy and presentation skills, and these skills should have been acquired during the schooling years.

Which is why I am pleased that the NSW Chamber has spent the last year talking with students, teachers, parents, academics and business and has just released a major report looking at the school system and how we can improve it.

The report is titled ‘Old School/New School – transforming school education for the 21st century’. While we’ve all seen regular global studies that rate the school system, and jointly bemoan Australia’s comparatively poor performance, the general feeling is that we are beginning from a position of relative strength.

However everyone we’ve spoken to also agrees there is definitely room for improvement. We want to take the best of our old school system while identifying positive ways to transform and build the new school of the future. This means reshaping our system, methods, schools and classrooms to meet realities of the 21^st century and the digital era.

Young people were at the forefront of our discussions for the Old School/New School project, as they should be in any conversation about school education. We heard directly from them that kids want greater ownership and control over their learning experience, as well as help to experience and select the education and career pathways that matches their capabilities, passions and interests.

A great example of an innovative program that provides a more tailored, experiential learning opportunity and direction for kids is the ‘Big Picture’ initiative, which brings together schools, industry and students across Australia, including at Canobolas Rural Technology High School.

Big Picture helps recapture kids who are at risk of becoming disengaged from their schooling by helping them to identify their passions. We know that kids learn more effectively when they’re interested in what they’re learning.

Big Picture then develops a personalised learning plan that focuses on the students’ key interests. At the end of their schooling graduates produce a portfolio of work to secure jobs and, if they want to go on to higher education, entry to university.

On a broader level, we need our education authorities to explore a curriculum that helps students better prepare for work by integrating enterprise skills from year 9 on.

A young person with enterprise skills is able to contribute from day one on the job, even if they lack work experience or technical skills in their industry.

Transforming an entire school education system – one of the largest in the world – is a challenge that cannot be achieved overnight. There is no silver bullet. At the same time, there needs to be the political and community will to make rapid, incremental changes now.

That way, we will set our kids on the right path to leave school not just as productive workers and students, but as whole human beings ready to contribute to contemporary Australian society.