Historical approaches to teaching and learning in an academic setting have long been recognized as inadequate in a world where the value of what we know is increasingly diminished by what we can do with the massive volume of information that we are bombarded with relentlessly. What we think we know today can and usually will change by tomorrow and we all need to be able to adapt quickly and competently to the ever transforming landscape of the world around us.
Education leaders have struggled to define the changing needs of learners as they prepare to enter into a technological society that is characterized by rapidly accelerating change on a global scale.
Here is an overview of some of these skills as defined by the Partnership for 21st Century Learning (2017), a non-profit partnership of stakeholders in learning and education that includes educators, policy makers and public and private sector business.
Learning & Innovation: the 4 C’s
- Critical thinking & problem solving
- Creativity & innovation
- Communication
- Collaboration
Digital Literacy
- Information literacy
- Media literacy
- Information & Communication Technology (ICT) literacy
Career & Life
- Flexibility & adaptability
- Initiative & self-direction
- Social & cross-cultural interaction
- Productivity & accountability
- Leadership & responsibility