From critical thinking to curiosity, discover the life competencies children need to thrive at work and in life.
The latest global statistics do not paint a hopeful picture when it comes to the employment prospects of today’s young people. Across EU countries, over 2.9 million young people are unemployed. In the UK, a recent report shows almost one million people between 16 and 24 not in education, employment or training.
To help young people thrive in this challenging environment, schools must go beyond knowledge and academics. Education must also support students to build the life skills and mindset needed to enter their chosen career and, crucially, to adapt throughout their life. These skills are sometimes referred to as ‘soft skills’, in comparison to the ‘hard skills’ or technical knowledge required for certain career paths.
At International Schools Partnership, we call these skills Life Competencies. Based on research from global organisations including McKinsey & Company and the Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa), we’ve identified 15 life competencies that give our students the best possible chance at success, whichever path they take after they leave school.
This five-part blog series for parents and carers explains why we focus on each of the 15 skills, and how we help students develop those skills at ISP schools.
What are ISP’s 15 life competencies?
The 15 skills we focus on fall into five categories:
- Cognitive
- Digital
- Interpersonal
- Global
- Self-leadership
In this first blog piece, we’re focusing on cognitive skills. Cognitive skills in the ISP Life Competencies model include critical thinking, creativity and curiosity. Let’s take a look at each of these in detail to understand why they’re so important for today’s young people.
Critical thinking – problem-solving and making good decisions
The World Economic Forum (WEF) Future of Jobs Report 2025 notes the importance of “having an agile, innovative and collaborative workforce, where both problem-solving abilities and personal resilience are critical for success.” When data, news and fast-moving events are flowing at speed, humans need to know how to ask the right questions, examine evidence and make thoughtful decisions. This is where critical thinking comes in.
In the report, 7 out of 10 employer respondents highlighted analytical thinking, which is closely linked to critical thinking, as the top core skill they are looking for when hiring new talent. At ISP, we define critical thinking as analysing and evaluating information to solve problems or make good decisions.
The same WEF report highlights that tasks requiring nuanced judgement are among the tasks that generative AI currently has limited capacity to undertake, according to research by Indeed. For those concerned about displacement of human skills and roles by technology, critical thinking is a good starting point and a skill that can be practised across many scenarios.
At ISP schools, our Learning.First.™ approach means that students are encouraged to lead their own learning journey, always reflecting on what’s working for them and why. This means that even from a young age, ISP students begin to think critically. For example, see the case study below from Lady Elizabeth School, an ISP school in Alicante, Spain.
Building critical thinking skills from age four at Lady Elizabeth School in Alicante, Spain
About the research
In 2024/25, ISP led research into life competencies alongside Camtree based at Hughes Hall, The University of Cambridge. As part of this, teachers at Lady Elizabeth School tested how students aged four to five can best build critical thinking skills in the classroom.
What we did
Students were given age-appropriate problems to solve such as repairing a doll’s cot, making moulds and planting seeds. Teachers reflected on how well students adapted their strategies and used critical thinking skills to solve the challenges.
The outcome
The research found that critical thinking can be intentionally developed from a young age when children are given meaningful, play-based opportunities to solve problems, test out ideas, make choices, and adapt their strategies. With minimal adult intervention, well-timed open-ended questioning and access to varied resources, young learners can become increasingly confident, resilient and independent in finding their own ways forward when faced with challenges.
What it means for students at ISP
By nurturing analytical and critical thinking skills, ISP schools help students break down complicated situations, understand different perspectives and make informed choices. Students can then lean on these experiences throughout their school education, at university, in their careers and in their personal lives when they face similar scenarios.
Creativity – developing innovative solutions
Creative thinking helps children explore new possibilities and come up with original ideas. Both Harvard University and World Economic Forum research cite creativity as a highly important skill for the workplace.
Creativity is a life competency that extends beyond the arts into STEM careers too. It plays a role in science, engineering, entrepreneurship and many other fields. When children practise creativity, they learn how to approach problems from different angles and develop innovative solutions.
At a younger age, strong creative skills mean that children can imagine and articulate their ideas with confidence. As children get older, creativity can be about developing and refining ideas after experimenting and evaluating different approaches.
ISP International Opportunities are an excellent chance for children to test and build their creativity, often while making positive impact on the real world. For example, in 2025/26, over 12,000 ISP students acted on their ideas for social and environmental change through our ISP Changemakers programme. Across just three months, students from around the globe prevented over 20,000 kg of CO2 emissions, the equivalent to driving a petrol car 80-100,000 miles. car 80-100,000 miles.
Curiosity – the key to lifelong learning
Curiosity is so important to us at ISP that it is built into our mission statement: “Growing the world’s most curious, confident minds”. We believe that curiosity is the spark that ignites a passion for learning – a spark that when nurtured, translates into well-rounded individuals who are always learning.
By focusing on learning as a process rather than the end result, ISP schools help children to see that learning is not only for their time at school, but a lifelong journey.
Research from Harvard University ranks active learning as one of the most important skills for today’s professionals. It says that “employers are always looking for people who will continue to prioritize professional growth.”
The importance of curiosity in career development was recently highlighted by Steven Schultz, Global Account Manager at Amazon Web Services during ISP’s A to Z Speaker Series. Speaking about his career journey, Steven shared how one of Amazon’s leadership principles ‘learn and be curious’, helped him to navigate one of the biggest pivots of his career.
By nurturing our students’ curiosity, ISP schools instil a love of learning. We help young people stay curious throughout life, so they want to expand their knowledge and learn new skills.
How schools and families can build life competencies
Schools and families both play an important role in helping children prepare for life beyond school.
As well as building knowledge and academic skills, the best international schools in the world nurture the life skills and mindset needed to adapt as industries evolve and new ones emerge. Parents and carers can support and reinforce these life skills through open conversations, encouragement and modelling the skills themselves. Read more about how parents can support children to develop life skills at home in our blog.
Cognitive skills help children think deeply, ask why and continue growing. Those who build such skills are primed to respond to challenges, recognise opportunities and make a positive contribution as global citizens. Read our Life Competencies Report to find out more about how ISP students develop these skills.
Stay tuned for parts two to five of this blog series.
FAQs
What are life skills?
Life skills refer to the personal qualities or behaviours that define how we act and respond at work, such as collaboration, adaptability and leadership skills. At ISP, we call these skills life competencies.
How can parents support their children to build critical thinking skills?
Critical thinking can be developed both inside and outside the classroom.
Parents can encourage age- and stage-appropriate reflection. At younger ages, this could include questions such as ‘And why do you think that is?’. As children grow, parents can help them reflect on the positives and negatives of certain outcomes or decisions, supporting them to make nuanced judgements as they learn more about certain topics.
At school, activities such as debating can help children to build critical thinking skills while articulating their opinion with confidence.
What are cognitive skills for children?
In ISP’s Life Competencies model, the cognitive skills are critical thinking, creativity and curiosity.
