The Knowledge Society

A A century ago, the overwhelming majority of people in developed countries worked with their hands: on farms, in domestic service, in small craft shops and in factories. There was not even a word for people who made their living other than by manual work. These days, the faster-growing group in the developed world is ‘knowledge workers’ – people whose jobs require formal and advanced schooling.

B At present, this term is widely used to describe people with considerable theoretical knowledge and learning: doctors, lawyers, teachers, accountants, chemical engineers. But the most striking growth in the coming years will be in ‘knowledge technologists’: computer technicians, software designers, analysts in clinical labs, manufacturing technologists, and so on. These people are as much manual workers as they are knowledge workers; in fact, they usually spend far more time working with their hands than with their brains. But their manual work is based on a substantial amount of theoretical knowledge which can be acquired only through formal education. They are not, as a rule, much better paid than traditional skilled workers, but they see themselves as professionals. Just as unskilled manual workers in manufacturing were the dominant social and political force in the twentieth century, knowledge technologists are likely to become the dominant social – and perhaps also political – force over the next decades.

C Such workers have two main needs: formal education that enables them to enter knowledge work in the first place, and continuing education throughout their working lives to keep their knowledge up to date. For the old high-knowledge professionals such as doctors, clerics and lawyers, formal education has been available for many centuries. But for knowledge technologists, only a few countries so far provide systematic and organised preparation. Over the next few decades, educational institutions to prepare knowledge technologists will grow rapidly in all developed and emerging countries, just as new institutions to meet new requirements have always appeared in the past.

D What is different this time is the need for the continuing education of already well-trained and highly knowledgeable adults. Schooling traditionally stopped when work began. In the knowledge society it never stops. Continuing education of already highly educated adults will therefore become a big growth area in the next society. But most of it will be delivered in non-traditional ways, ranging from weekend seminars to online training programmes, and in any number of places, from a traditional university to the student’s home. The information, which is expected to have an enormous impact on education and on traditional schools and universities, will probably have an even greater effect on the continuing education of knowledge workers, allowing knowledge to spread near-instantly, and making it accessible to everyone.

c) Reading comprehension: choose the correct letter A, B, C or D.

1. According to the writer, a hundred years ago in the developed world, manual workers

A were mainly located in rural areas.

B were not provided with sufficient education.

C were the largest single group of workers.

D were the fastest growing group in society.

2. The writer suggests that the most significant difference between knowledge technologists and manual workers is

A their educational background.

B the pay they can expect.

C their skill with their hands.

D their attitudes to society.

3. He predicts that in the coming years, knowledge technologists

A will have access to the same educational facilities as professional people.

B will have more employment opportunities in educational institutions.

C will require increasing mobility in order to find suitable education.

D will be provided with appropriate education for their needs.

4. According to the writer, the most important change in education this century will be

A the way in which people learn.

B the sorts of things people learn about.

C the use people make of their education.

D the type of people who provide education.

5. The writer says that changes in women’s roles

A mean women are now judged by higher standards.

B have led to greater equality with men in the workplace.

C are allowing women to use their traditional skills in new ways.

D may allow women to out-perform men for the first time.

Exercise 62 Give your opinion of the famous people’s sayings.

‘I was taught that the way of progress is neither swift nor easy’ (Marie Curie)

‘No machine can replace the human sparks: spirit, compassion, love and understanding’ (Louis V.Gerstner, Jr)

‘Ideas are like wandering sons. They show up when you least expect them’ (Bern Williams)