Blog #4 21st Century Skills & Lifelong Learning

In this 21st Century the core education values of the 19th and 20th Centuries remain essential necessities. However, designed for the industrial age they are no longer enough to succeed in this technological age. The majority of manufacturing has been relocated beyond the United States borders and the jobs of tomorrow will require additional skills that current education models do not confer.

The Partnership for 21st Century Skills, one of the top 25 education websites selected by the American Association of School Librarians, determines this 21st Century skill set to include the follow as listed on their site:

• Information and communication skills (information and media literacy skills; communication skills)

• Thinking and problem-solving (critical thinking and systems thinking; problem identification, formulation and solution; creativity and intellectual curiosity)

• Interpersonal and self-direction skills (interpersonal and collaborative skills; self-direction; accountability and adaptability; social responsibility)

• Global awareness

• Financial, economic and business literacy, and developing entrepreneurial skills to enhance workplace productivity and career options

• Civic literacy

Just a few weeks ago the site released 21st Century Skill maps for science and geography that offer a great deal of insight on just how to incorporate these essential skills into the classroom today (Partnership for 21st Century, 2004). The maps are great examples of "not just how to use [technology ]...but how to put it to use" (Anderson, 2005).

References

Anderson, M.A. (September/October 2005). The media center: Start the year right with digitally native teachers. Retrieved August 16, 2009, from http://homepage.mac.com/maryalicea/Sites/Anderson/MMS/digital_native_tchrs.0905.pdf

Partnership for 21st Century Skills. (2004-2009). retrieved August 16, 2009, from http://www.21stcenturyskills.org/index.php.