Why human language should be a school subject

Shopify is a commerce platform that allows anyone to set up an online store and sell their products. It's also a company with a Chief Technology Officer who sees the disconnect between the education system and the workplace when it comes to people working together.

Chatting with Joel Beasley in the Modern CTO podcast, Jean-Michel Lemieux shares his observations on how hard it is to be human in the workplace. "A lot of a person's potential is locked in self-confidence. We aren't taught in school how to be human, how to communicate or how to overcome imposter syndrome. The human language is difficult to understand."

His questions give plenty food for thought about the impact of our education systems on the modern workplace. Like how can we expect people to work together under pressure after working very much alone in school exams? Or how can we expect someone to be comfortable sharing a minimal viable product when showing your half-baked homework ahead of time was punished in class?

Skip to 29 mins for the reflections on communication and collaboration.