We’re doing 21st Century Learning. Is it working?
Article: Published September 10, 2019Identifying 21st Century skills is nothing new for educators. There are countless taxonomies of 21st Century skills and many schools have picked them up and run with them. The ACARA Australian Curriculum and VCAA Victorian Curriculum have shone light on the significance of embedding 21st Century skills through mandating the capabilities curriculum. Unquestionably schools are in consensus that critical thinking, problem solving, creativity, ethical capability, self-direction and collaboration are not only relevant, but essential to student learning. As educators, we know 21st Century skills are important, but is ‘knowing better’ the same as ‘doing better’?
“As educators, we know 21st Century skills are important, but is ‘knowing better’ the same as ‘doing better’?”
When it comes students possessing this crucial skillset, we need to know whether doing 21st Century learning focus is working. Here’s 5 things to consider when measuring the effectiveness of the impact of 21st Century skills;
1. Asking the WHY?
Too often pedagogical approaches are introduced to staff without co-constructing what it all means for them and why change is needed. Without unpacking the relevance and meaning of new pedagogies for educators and learners there is a gaping hole in understanding the true purpose behind new approaches. If you asked every teacher in the school why they are using 21st C frameworks, how would they respond? Try it.
2. Creating a common language
While most frameworks identify similar skills, they are often described differently. Does this even matter? The short answer is yes. Without a common language for 21st Century skills, educators can often ‘talk past each other’ when designing curriculum. John Hattie’s research indicates that collective teacher efficacy has the biggest impact on student learning of any other school factor. How can that be fostered? Creating a common language of pedagogy is great start.
3. What about character qualities?
Anyone who has tried using 21st Century learning has at one time or another walked away scratching their head as why it didn’t work. Despite the careful planning, creative resources and powerful technologies, the task can fall over. Often students are simply not ready for it. For example, to even access a high-level collaborative learning task, you need to first understand yourself as a learner, possess emotional intelligence and be adaptable to change (to name a few). Discussing the significance of character qualities that are conducive for learning and holding space for learners to identify and practice them means that they are set up for success for any 21st C focused task.
“Anyone who has tried using 21st Century learning has at one time or another walked away scratching their head as why it didn’t work. Despite the careful planning, creative resources and powerful technologies, the task can fall over.”
4. Making learning visible
Making explicit connections between new pedagogies and the assessment of student learning with lack of synergies between the two can be like fitting a ‘square peg in a round hole’ when aligning taxonomies with curriculum outcomes. Learner experience is often about doing the skills rather than demonstrating their capability. Educators need to think creatively in designing tasks that capture evidence of students capabilities for an open dialogue between teacher, peers and students about their learning progress towards attaining the valued 21st Century skillset.
“Making explicit connections between new pedagogies and the assessment of student learning with lack of synergies between the two can be like fitting a ‘square peg in a round hole’ when aligning taxonomies with curriculum outcomes.”
5. Enable learning progression
Imagine that students could map their progress towards attaining 21st Century skills? Its possible. By building in evidence of skills and capabilities into assessment, learners can identify their strengths and build on their weaknesses. Crucially, they won’t have a ‘one-sized fits all’ approach to be assessed against 21st Century skills and the opportunity to improve them from one year to the next.
Teaching 21st Century skills alone is not the panacea. While we know better, we definitely need to do better when designing a skills-based curriculum to provide clarity on how students are assessed on these critical skillsets. Keen to know how?