Why entrepreneurship education is important

The word "entrepreneur" comes from the French term "entrepreneur," which means to undertake or initiate something. Economist Richard Cantillon was the first to use the term "business entrepreneurship" in economics. The term was popularised by French philosopher Jean-Baptiste Say in the early 1800s, who described the entrepreneur as an economic agent. Entrepreneurship in business refers to taking bold steps to establish a business, accepting the possibility of loss in the hope of profit, and successfully managing the business. A business entrepreneur is someone who takes the initiative in creating and running a business. While entrepreneurship can apply to many areas, business entrepreneurship specifically involves investing money and labour to generate profit.

In general, any initiative or effort can be considered entrepreneurial. For instance, a compassionate person may establish a hospital or school for the welfare of the community, particularly for the poor. By using personal resources to fund the hospital and hire staff, this individual demonstrates entrepreneurship. Thus, all philanthropic efforts can be seen as products of entrepreneurship.

Entrepreneurship involves innovation, creativity, and long-term vision. While everyone may possess entrepreneurial traits, not everyone becomes an entrepreneur. True entrepreneurs bring their hidden qualities to life, realising their dreams through courage, determination, and planning. Entrepreneurs are often independent-minded and do not wish to be influenced by others. A number of positive changes can be expected from entrepreneurship, including the creation of wealth and capital. Business entrepreneurship can also contribute to a country's economy by increasing national income and addressing unemployment. Furthermore, entrepreneurship fosters social responsibility, encouraging entrepreneurs to participate in developmental activities while also seeking profit.

Many people believe entrepreneurs are born, not made—meaning they are inherently gifted with qualities that help them gain recognition as entrepreneurs. However, entrepreneurship can be developed through education, training, and access to resources. Key qualities of an entrepreneur include confidence, an independent spirit, enthusiasm, courage, perseverance, inclusiveness, flexibility, creativity, innovative ability, a strong work ethic, risk-taking capability, leadership, capital-raising skills, and a desire to achieve.

There is a clear distinction between entrepreneurship and self-employment. Self-employment primarily seeks to create work for oneself, while entrepreneurship aims to generate income for the entrepreneur and create jobs for others. Entrepreneurship can be seen as a more advanced and sophisticated form of self-employment, incorporating creative thinking and a sense of responsibility, which is crucial for student development.

Entrepreneurship education refers to the development of knowledge, skills, and an entrepreneurial mindset necessary to succeed in one's field. It includes various activities aimed at fostering an entrepreneurial mindset, innovation, and job creation. This education can be delivered through workshops, seminars, boot camps, online courses, and mentorship programmes across all educational levels, from primary to higher education. Its primary aim is to motivate individuals by uncovering their creative potential, innovative ability, and courage to face challenges.

Entrepreneurs take risks in venturing into an uncertain future, often facing long periods of struggle before achieving success. This journey requires immense patience and confidence. The success or failure of any venture is closely linked to its environment, which in turn is shaped by natural, social, political, cultural, and technological factors. Entrepreneurship cannot thrive without support from these environmental elements.

In Bangladesh, secondary-level business education has introduced students to the concepts of entrepreneurship. They are familiar with the basics, such as the definition of entrepreneurship, the characteristics of entrepreneurs, and more. Entrepreneurship education in secondary schools should aim to promote qualities and skills relevant to entrepreneurial initiatives. Teachers must embody the attributes they wish to instil in students. For example, to effectively teach entrepreneurship, teachers should demonstrate key entrepreneurial skills and attributes, serving as role models and mentors for their students.

Entrepreneurship education is vital not only to shape students' mindsets but also to equip them with the knowledge and skills that are integral to fostering an entrepreneurial culture. It provides a supportive teaching framework and environment, where teachers can experiment with various teaching strategies and refine their pedagogical skills. Teachers also have opportunities to improve their own business and entrepreneurial abilities, which helps them become more confident and effective in teaching secondary students.

Active teacher involvement is at the core of all teaching and learning approaches in entrepreneurship education. Studying entrepreneurs and their ventures highlights how entrepreneurial behaviour can positively impact society. Entrepreneurs provide students with inspiring models to follow.

To encourage entrepreneurship, the curriculum, syllabus, teaching methods, and assessment systems should be aligned with short-, medium-, and long-term goals. These should aim to make students more enterprising, work-oriented, creative, and hardworking. Schools should encourage participatory teaching and learning through methods such as class discussions, group activities, presentations, and case studies.

Entrepreneurship education is equally important for all secondary students and teachers. Initially, it is crucial to motivate students and teachers alike. It is important to recognise that entrepreneurship education is not solely for business students—entrepreneurial qualities are present in all individuals. Entrepreneurship education should be incorporated into compulsory subjects, including Bengali, English, and Bangladesh and World Identity. The curricula of the past 50 years, though theoretical, have been burdensome and disconnected from real life. A balance between theory and practical, hands-on learning is essential for sustainable, quality education. Students should record their hands-on experiences in notebooks, and public exams should not just measure academic performance (GPA) but also assess life skills. Only then can we create self-reliant entrepreneurs instead of passive exam-takers.

Our education system still relies on rote learning and coaching, with "good" students often detached from everyday life, spending their time preparing for exams rather than engaging in practical work. This system fails to develop skills necessary for life and work. The curriculum and assessment methods must be revamped to create students who are enterprising and capable of contributing to society through entrepreneurship.

Currently, about 500,000 highly educated youth in Bangladesh, aged between 25 and 30, are unemployed. This is concerning, as many of these individuals hold degrees but lack the skills necessary for employment. The current education system relies too heavily on written exams, with students memorising information to perform well in tests. As a result, only a small percentage of graduates secure well-paying jobs, while the majority end up in low-paying positions. If education were more skills-based and focused on work competencies, more students would become entrepreneurs, creating jobs rather than seeking them.

Interestingly, many students who drop out of formal education for various reasons are becoming successful self-employed entrepreneurs. These individuals are contributing significantly to the country's economy, proving that entrepreneurship can thrive outside the traditional educational system.

Our students are full of potential and creativity. The day they acquire the skills, qualifications, and entrepreneurial mindset needed to create jobs for others, rather than seeking employment, Bangladesh will be a self-reliant nation. Our economic progress will depend on the ability of students to become entrepreneurs, not just job seekers. We eagerly await the day when entrepreneurship education transforms our youth into self-reliant creators, shaping a prosperous future for Bangladesh.

The author is a professor of education at Government Teachers' Training College, Dhaka 

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are that of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and views of The Business Standard.