The Incontestable Relationship between Studies and the Construction of the Life Project

As an Early-Stage Researcher on the SCENT project, I'm encouraged to elaborate dissemination and communication initiatives directed at the general public with the primary goal to create awareness of the importance of research to society and to raise awareness of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions, based on the principle "public engagement" of the 'European Charter for Researchers.'

It was in this context, with the support of professors from the State School Prof. João Batista Curado (located in the city of Jundiai, state of São Paulo, Brazil), I taught a lecture on July 1, 2021, on The Incontestable Relationship between Studies and the Construction of the Life Project. The lecture was dedicated to high school students.

Initially, the objective proposed for the lecture would be to provide a broad perspective of my education trajectory, which encompasses Elementary and Higher Education, Graduation, and Post-Graduation. Aiming to encourage among students the discussion about the importance of studies in the personal and professional trajectory and the relationship between studies and the life project. Fig.1 A shows the art created to publicize the lecture on social networks, and Fig.1 B shows the summarized information about my elementary period of education, one of the firsts slides (both cases, pieces of information in Portuguese).

Figure 1 A) shows the art created to publicize the lecture on social networks, and B) shows the summarized information about my elementary period of education, one of the firsts slides.

Although the lecture was carried out as expected in its first part, which then considered information about my education trajectory. From the moment we started an "open conversation" about the importance of studies in the personal and professional trajectory. The online meeting was transformed, and basically everyone present, both students and teachers, began to interact.

The discussions, i.e., questions, and answers were as diverse as possible, from issues related to the difficulties of remote study during the pandemic times as well as the challenges of living in another country with different cultures and languages. For many of the students present there, the option for or choosing to pursue a PhD was something unthinkable. Only connected to medicine studies. Among the various outstanding moments, I highlight the moment when a student formulated the following question:

"Let's assume that today, with the experiences you've gained over the past few years, but at seventeen years old, you have to choose your next course, whether it's a technical course or an undergraduate degree. Which would you choose, and why?"

I confess that it was perhaps one of the most complex questions to be answered in a short time. Initially, I highlighted how the concept of the ten emotional skills could be fundamental. Once properly assimilated at the appropriate time, which should undoubtedly be during Elementary and Higher Education, will be essential for future professionals to know how to deal with any conflict of interest.

However, I couldn't resist the temptation to encourage students, based on my experience, how enriching a career in the field of exact sciences can be. Among the various subjects highlighted by me are physics, control engineering and automation, electrical engineering, control systems, and programming language such as Python. I have also exhaustively mentioned the discussions held that most of the professions that will be present in our society in the coming decades have not yet been created. [1].

Figure 2 - The open conversation moment

I hadn't done an activity for the first time for a long time, and definitely, this was the case with this lecture. In total, 40 people were present, including teachers and students, and the lecture had an hour of content and half an hour of open conversation. With Professor Denito (highlighted in figure 2 in the center top), we are planning further activities with other schools in the Jundiai region.

References:

[1]. Carvalho, R. (January 8, 2019). 85% das profissões que existirão em 2030 ainda não foram criadas. https://www.projetodraft.com/. Retrieved from: https://www.projetodraft.com/85-das-profissoes-que-existirao-2030-ainda-nao-foram-criadas/ [July 1, 2021]