We are approaching the start of the scholastic year.  Later this month, thousands of children and youths up and down the country will return to their classrooms – be it at primary school, middle school, sixth form or even University.

There is a lot to be said about Malta’s education system. There are differing opinions on how things should be run, how the curriculum should be mapped out, how school infrastructure should be and a myriad of other subjects.

We hear from many stakeholders involved in the education sector about many different things, but this editorial will not focus on any of that.

Instead, it is a direct appeal to the most important stakeholders of all: the children and youths who make up the education system themselves.

With the scholastic year comes renewed academic pressure: you have to pass all your assignments, you have to pass all of your exams, God forbid you don’t study, and so on so forth.  You have to be a doctor, a lawyer, an engineer, an architect… many of those of a younger demographic especially will likely have heard this at some point or another.

However, you have to remember that what you are working towards is your life, and not anybody else’s.  Do not be afraid to follow your dreams.

Last Sunday, The Malta Independent on Sunday carried an interview with Jacqueline Grech Licari, who followed a dream she fostered when she was 12 years old and has now become a volcanologist, working in some of the most incredible natural landscapes on the planet.

She told this newspaper about how there were many who expressed doubts about her chosen career path, precisely because it is such an unconventional one to think about – particularly in Malta – but said that her one piece of advice is for people to follow their dreams and not give up.

It is valuable advice.  Our children should be encouraged to follow their dreams, rather than be pushed into a nine-to-five job which they likely will not particularly enjoy. 

Following one’s dreams still requires hard work.  It still requires sacrifices… perhaps in the case of some it will require more sacrifices than other more conventional career paths, as it may require having to relocate abroad – but ultimately it will be worth the effort if it is what truly brings happiness.

So let’s, for a moment, set aside any arguments between differing stakeholders over the educational system and remember that it’s also our responsibility to encourage the children and youths who make up that same system.

It has to be the correct encouragement: not encouragement simply to pass an exam or an assignment and be done with it, but encouragement to learn and to truly follow their dreams, whatever they may be.