ACTA SZEKSZARDIENSIUM - Pécsi Tudományegyetem Illyés Gyula ...

Maria Bajner
of and demand for foreign language competence in the light of global labor market,
while outlining some reforms established by politically involved high position decision
makers. Clarify the meaning. Below are a few common traits that define Generation Y.
What is Generation Y? Who belongs to this category? In short: they are the ambitious
youth of the 21st century, who are expected to change the world. In a wider sense: the
perspective influential segment of labor market, the “infoective” “digital natives” born
into the revolution of high-tech, who are at home in infocommunication and multimedia
environment and even the expanded virtual world of cybersphere where the whole globe
is just a click away.
Although there is no consensus on the clear categories concerning the age group of
Gen Y (in other word “echo boomers” or “millennials”, there are several definitions
(for the ones born 1977-2002, or 1979-1995, or 1982-2003, to mention just a few) the
fact is that the Y-s are going to take significant part of the active working population.
Deloitte Consulting, Financial Advisory Company classifies Gen Y as young people born
1982-1995, who are already in the front line at work. Analysts point out that Gen Y
is such a “considerable factor” one cannot ignore: they are more in number than the
boomers (born 1946-1964), and by 2025 they will take 60-75% of the world workforce.
Consequently, the future of several companies (and countries) may stand or fall on them
(Internet Ref. 1). In Hungary the picture is a bit more tinged as looking at the present
trend: it can be foreseen that the most pressing issue after the retirement of the X-Gens,
the Boomers and the Great Generation will not be the lack of graduates and senior
managers but the lack of tradesmen and skilled workers.
It is a goal oriented, spoilt generation that favors diversity and telework, and who
do not value title and position as much as their parents or grandparents did, says
Paul Redmond, the expert of Liverpool University Career Center. Then again, they
consider peer-friendship and fellowship as important as family bonds. For them lifelong
learning is a lifestyle, a way of life, the essence of which is the degree of adaptability
to the changing environment, and to what extent they can meet the challenges of the
macro-and micro-climate. As more sociologists point out, the present students also have
to reckon that by the time they graduate a few jobs, trades and professions existing today
will disappear, curricula and learning material will become useless and obsolete.
2. Lifelong learning (LLL)
The importance of lifelong learning is upgraded, the expression itself has outgrown the
category of hobby or recreation and is also different from spendig more and more time
behind school desk, neither does it mean collecting different certificates and degrees on
paper. Behind LLL there is much rather a vision of a future career with the mastery of
different skills and competences. In 21st century the acquisition of different skills requires
untraditional resources. Exchanging ideas and transferring thoughts with mentors
conducting practical training and tutors is more informal, group of students working on
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