Republic of the Philippines

PALAWAN STATE UNIVERSITY

Puerto Princesa City

PSU BROOKE’S POINT

READING MATERIAL FOR

ED 3 BUILDING AND ENHANCING NEW LITERACIES
ACROSS THE CURRICULUM

Prepared by:

JERDEN A. MACOLOR
Instructor
 Material # 2

21ST Century Education

*Disclaimer
This material is for educational purposes only. This is to remind everyone that taking
screenshots on any of the posted materials without prior consent from your teachers
and thereafter posting it in social media is not allowed.
You might be infringing the intellectual property rights of your teacher which is
punishable under Philippine Law
OVERVIEW

A 21st century refers to a broad set of knowledge, skills, work, habits and

character traits that are deemed necessary in coping with today’s world and future

careers and workplaces. Thus, it can be applied in all academic subject areas and

educational settings throughout a student’s life.

In this material, the reader will be introduced to the 21st century skill set. This

material will also tackle the integration of the 21 st century skills in teaching-learning

process. Lastly, the material will also present the implications of the 21 st century skill

to the educators.

SPECIFIC LEARNING OUTCOMES:

At the end of the reading material, the students will be able to:

• Identify the categories of 21st century skills

• Apply the 21st century skills in preparing, planning and delivering a lesson

• Explain how 21st century skills can be integrated in the teaching-learning process
 21st Century Education
Materi al 1 |1

FRAMEWORK FOR 21st CENTURY

The 21st Century skills concept is grounded on the belief that students must be
educated in a more relevant, useful, in-demand and universally applicable manner.
Their idea simply lies in the fact that students need to be taught different skills and
reflect on the specific demands that will be placed upon them in a complex, competitive,
knowledge-base, information-age and technology-driven society. Therefore, 21st
century education addresses the whole
child or the whole person (AACTE,
2010).
The term “21st century skills”
refers to certain core competencies, such
as collaboration, digital literacy, critical
thinking, and problem solving that
schools need to teach the students for
them to thrive in today’s world.

LEARNING AND INNOVATION SKILLS

These are the primary skills orchestrated in the 21st century. They are attributes
that differentiate students who are prepared for a complex life and work environment
from those who are not. The skills are 1) Critical Thinking and Problem Solving; 2)
Creativity; 3) Collaboration, and: 4) Communication.

Critical Thinking and

Problem Solving
Skills needed to
develop:
1. Work together
effectively in team.
2. Reason effectively
3. Make judgments and
decisions
4. Solve problems.
 21st Century Education
Materi al 1 |2

Communication

This pertains to articulating thoughts and ideas effectively using oral and written
communication skills in a variety of forms and contexts.

1. Articulate thoughts and ideas effectively using oral, written and nonverbal
communication skills in a variety of forms and contexts.
2. Listen effectively to decipher
meaning, including knowledge,
values, attitudes and intentions.
3. Use communication for a range of
purposes (e.g. to inform, instruct,
motivate and persuade)
4. Use multiple media and
technologies, and judge their
effectiveness a priori, as well as
assess their impact
5. Communicate effectively in diverse environments (including multi-lingual).
6. Use technology as a tool to research, organize, evaluate and communicate
information.
7. Use digital technologies communications/ networking tools and social networks
appropriately to access.
8. Exercise flexibility and willingness in making necessary compromises to
accomplish a common goal.
9. Assume shared responsibility for collaborative work, and value the individual
contributions made by each team member.

Collaboration

• It entails demonstrating
ability to work effectively
and respectfully with
diverse teams.
 21st Century Education
Materi al 1 |3

Creativity and Innovation

It denotes use of wide range of

idea creation techniques to create
new and worthwhile ideas.

1. Think creatively
2. Work creatively with others
3. Implement innovations

INFORMATION, MEDIA AND TECHNOLOGICAL SKILLS

People in the 21st century live in technology and media saturated environment
marked by the following: 1) access to an abundance of information; 2) rapid changes
in technological tools; and 3) the ability to collaborate and make individuals
contributions on an unprecedented scale.
Therefore, to be
effective in the 21st
century, everyone must
be able to exhibit a range
of functional and critical
thinking skills related to
information, media and
technology.

Information Literacy
It refers to accessing and
evaluating information critically and
competently and managing the flow of
information from a wide variety of
sources.
• Access and evaluate information
• Use and manage information
 21st Century Education
Materi al 1 |4

Media Literacy Technology Literacy

LIFE AND CAREER SKILLS

Today’s life and work

environments both require more than
critical thinking skills and content
knowledge. Cultivating the ability to
navigate the complex life requires
students to develop the following life and
career skills.
 21st Century Education
Materi al 1 |5

INTEGRATING 21st CENTURY SKILLS IN TEACHING-LEARNING

PROCESS

The 21st Century Standards

Assessment of 21st Century Skills

• Support a balance of assessments, including high-quality standardized testing

along with effective formative and summative classroom assessments.
• Emphasizes useful feedback on student performance that is embedded into
everyday learning.
• Requires a balance of technology-enhanced, formative and summative
assessment that measures student mastery of 21st century skills.
• Enables development of portfolios of student work that demonstrate mastery of
21st century skills to educators and prospective employers.
• Enables a balanced portfolio of measures to assess the educational system’s
effectiveness in reaching high levels of student competency in 21st Century
skills.

21st Century Curriculum and Instruction

• Teaches 21st Century skills discretely in the context of core subjects and 21st
century interdisciplinary themes.
 21st Century Education
Materi al 1 |6

• Focuses on providing opportunities for applying 21st century skills across

content areas and for a competency-based approach to learning.
• Enables innovative learning methods that integrate the use of supportive
technologies, inquiry- and problem-based approaches and higher-order thinking
skills.
• Encourages the integration of community resources beyond school walls.

The 21st Century Professional Development

• Highlights ways teachers can seize opportunities for integrating 21st Century
skills, tools and teaching strategies into their classroom practice and help them
identify what activities they can replace/de-emphasize.
• Balances direct instruction with project-oriented teaching methods
• Illustrates how a deeper understanding of subject matter can enhance problem-
solving, critical thinking, and other 21st century skills.
• Enables 21st century professional learning communities for teachers that model
the kinds of classroom learning that best promotes 21st century skills for
students
• Cultivates teachers’ ability to identify students’ particular learning styles,
intelligences, strengths and weaknesses
• Helps teachers develop their abilities to use various strategies (such as formative
assessments) to reach diverse students and create environments that support
differentiated teaching and learning.
• Supports the continuous evaluation of students’ 21st century skills development
• Encourages knowledge sharing among communities of practitioners using face-
to-face, virtual and blended communications
• Uses a scalable and sustainable model of professional development

The 21st Century Learning Environment

• Create learning practices, human support and physical environments that will
support the teaching and learning of 21st century skill outcomes.
• Support professional learning communities that enable educators to collaborate,
share best practices and integrate 21st century skills into classroom practice.
• Enable students to learn in relevant, real world 21st century context
 21st Century Education
Materi al 1 |7

• Allow equitable access to quality learning tools, technologies and resources

• Provide 21st century architectural and interior designs for group, team and
individual learning.
• Support expanded community and international involvement in learning, both
face to face and online.

IMPLICATION TO EDUCATORS

The advent of 21st Century skill enhancement among learners bring the
following implications to educators in:

1. Successfully complementing technologies to content and pedagogy and

developing the ability to creatively use technologies to meet specific learning
needs.
2. Aligning instruction with standards, particularly those that embody 21st century
knowledge and skills.
3. Balancing direct instruction strategically with project-oriented teaching
methods
4. Applying child and adolescent development knowledge to educator preparation
and education policy
5. Using a range of assessment strategies to evaluate student performance and
differentiate instruction
6. Participating actively in learning communities, tapping the expertise within a
school or school district through coaching, mentoring, knowledge-sharing and
team teaching
7. Acting as mentors and peer coaches with fellow educators
8. Using a range of strategies (such as formative assessments) to reach diverse
students and to create environments that support differentiated teaching and
learning.
9. Pursuing continuous learning opportunities and embracing career-long learning
as professional ethics
10. Establish a conducive learning environment where learners can freely express
themselves and explore their potentials and capacities
 21st Century Education
Materi al 1 |8

IMPLICATION TO PRE-SERVICE TEACHER PREPARATION

Instructional Models

Instructional Models are an important component of any teacher preparation

program. AACTE (2010) pointed out that the integration of innovative and research-
proven teaching strategies, modern
learning technologies and real-world
resources and contexts are all imperative
in:

1. Integrating “teach for

understanding” principles.
2. Creating rich practice teaching
experiences.
3. Creating dynamic learning
communities and peer
mentoring networks.
4. Examining the role of content,
pedagogy and technologies in
developing higher-order
thinking skills.

Learning Environments

The learning environment within the teacher preparation program is a key

component of any systemic reform initiative. Determine the enabling structures,
policies and strategies that can best support 21st Century skills acquisition among pre-
service teachers is a step towards creating a kind of environment that will promote 21st
century learning.

Initiatives in creating a 21st century teacher education learning environment:

1. Establish a 21st century vision for learning environments in the program and the
university.
2. Ensure the physical infrastructure supports 21st century knowledge and skills
 21st Century Education
Materi al 1 |9

3. Practice flexibility in time for project-based work and competency-based

assessment.
4. Ensure technical infrastructure that sufficiently supports learning and
5. Strengthen networking engagement in the learning environment.

Partnerships

Partnerships are extraordinarily important in the work of transforming 21st

century teacher preparation programs. Along the line, teamwork within the program
and the institution is imperative for sustainability and development. The partnership
forged with community leaders, business industry, professional associations,
government agencies, non-government organizations, other institutions, parents, other
stakeholders and the community creates high impact outcomes.
21st Century Education
M a t e r i a l 1 | 10