Sports are believed to contribute to personality development. The inclusion of sports in school physical education is also based on this premise. The reason why the world agreed with this idea was the model of British public schools. The idea of turning boys from the nobility and middle class into full-fledged men (gentlemen) was highly valued in Victorian England. At that time, public schools used sports such as rugby as teaching materials to make boys experience hardship and turn them into full-fledged men. This British philosophy also influenced university sports in Japan. And now, interest is growing in the involvement of sports in developing non-cognitive abilities.
Companies are also beginning to understand that non-cognitive abilities affect the improvement of business performance. It has been found that non-cognitive abilities improve the results of management and investment. One of these is the attitude of learning from failure and trial and error. By repeating these things, non-cognitive abilities can be gradually acquired. The hint seems to be in this gradual point. Your own prescription for a method does not have to be the best. It requires an attitude of gradually approaching the best over time. It is important to study methods that suit you little by little and improve through trial and error. In a sense, curiosity, inquisitiveness, perseverance, and an attitude of learning from failure without fear of failure are required. Previous academic ability tests (targeting cognitive ability) had a format that there was only one correct answer. However, in acquiring non-cognitive abilities, even if you reach the correct answer, it seems that the attitude of continuing to seek the next correct answer is important. Providing a place for such trial and error is the role of sports.
There is growing interest in the collaboration between non-cognitive abilities and AI. Depending on how it is used, AI can be very useful. And an environment in which it can be used easily is beginning to be established. What will be needed from now on is the ability to master AI. It has already been proven in the fields of chess and Go that humans and AI teaming up produces more results than AI alone. We are currently in an era where it is difficult to predict the future (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity). In this environment, the ability that is attracting attention is the much-talked-about “non-cognitive ability.” These abilities are different from general IQ and academic ability in entrance exams. They are motivation, cooperation, tenacity, perseverance, planning, self-control, creativity, communication skills, etc. The combination of these non-cognitive abilities and AI has the potential to produce results in various fields.
