Learners will have to acquire a set of skills and adopt certain characteristics in order to become

successful in 21st century society:

Creativity and Innovation

“Creativity is as important in education as literacy and we should treat it with the same status.” – Sir Ken
Robinson, 2013

Today, creativity and innovation are critical skills for students to possess (Delp, 2011; NEA, 2012). Not
only are these capacities fundamental drivers in the global workforce, but they are rapidly becoming key
requirements for success personally and professionally (NEA, 2012). Both the National Education
Association (2012) and Andain and Murphy (2008) believe that if children are leaving school without
having this innovative capacity and not knowing how to be creative, they are at risk of being
underprepared for the workforce and challenges that society brings. Creative skills and innovation are
highly desired in the 21st century learner.

21st century children need to be able to think creatively, work creatively with others and also
implement innovation in their everyday lives (NEA, 2012; Partnership for 21st Century Skills, 2009). This
means that students need to be capable of developing creative solutions to the many problems and
challenges that they may face and that the 21st century brings (Delp, 2011). Children need to be able to
think creatively, develop new ideas that are entwined with originality and inventiveness and
demonstrate imagination and curiosity in their learning (NEA, 2012; P21CS, 2009). They can then
maximise their creative efforts, by elaborating and analysing their ideas for improvement (NEA, 2012).
The 21st century learner also works creatively with others, being able to develop and implement their
creative ideas through communication and collaboration with the group (NEA, 2012; P21CS, 2009). They
are able to act on their creativity and make creative contributions to areas where innovation occurs
(NEA, 2012; P21CS, 2009).

These aspects of creativity and innovation should be promoted in the classroom (NEA, 2012). Teachers
needs to foster and support the development of creative skills in children and give 21st century learners
the opportunities to pursue creativity and innovation (Andain & Murphy, 2008). They need to provide
children with an education that allows for them to take part in creative exploration and discovery
(Andain & Murphy, 2008; NEA, 2012). By giving children these challenging problems they are
encouraged to use more of their potential creativity, using innovation and to overcome these challenges
(NEA, 2012). 21st century learners view failures and mistakes as productive and as opportunities to learn
and enhance their creative thinking capability (Andain & Murphy, 2008; NEA, 2012).

Collaboration and Communication

The world children are growing up in today is a world where communication, collaboration and
teamwork is essential (Andain & Murphy, 2008). Due to the increasing improvement of technology and
economic globalization, these skills are now absolutely necessary, without them students would not
succeed in modern society (Delp, 2011;NEA, 2012).

Effective collaboration requires students to learn to respect each other’s differences and use their
different personalities (Delp, 2011; NEA, 2012). This allows children to collectively solve problems as a
team, creating and innovating original ideas (Delp, 2011). Learning to collaborate effectively will greatly
increase any given student’s employment opportunities in the future as the collaboration of knowledge
is a key factor in today’s global corporate world.

The ability to communicate effectively is an essential ingredient in any successful collaboration between
students. Students need to have the ability to present their ideas articulately through a range of oral,
written and non-verbal communication platforms (P21CS, 2009; NEA, 2012). In order to become an
effective communicator, students must first learn to listen effectively. Listening effectively will aid in the
development of communication within a team environment, where communication and collaboration is
used in a range of team and ‘pair-and-share activities, as well as in group and partner discussion (NEA,
2012). Using communication in a group context will enable students to teach one another, sharing skills
and knowledge to develop the group’s overall intelligence (NEA, 2012).

Once communication and collaboration is being used effectively, students must learn to adapt their skills
for a range of purposes in a variety of diverse environments (P21CS, 2009; NEA, 2012). Collaboration
and communication can be further developed through the use of multimedia and technology by
students to achieve collaborative and communicative outcomes (NEA, 2012).

The 21st century learner already has a collaborative advantage due to their increased exposure to
technology from a young age, allowing them to collaborate with a wide variety of peers across their
nation and globally (NEA, 2012). The technological advances 21st century learners have access to allow
them to learn and collaborate within different contexts and cultures, broadening their learning
experience beyond just the classroom (NEA, 2012).
Collaboration and communication are necessities in any 21st century classroom (Andain & Murphy,
2008; Delp, 2011). These skills need to be developed on a daily basis in order to prepare students for the
reality of today’s globalised society (Delp, 2011). In later life, students will need to work with diverse
cultures in an array of different contexts to achieve their personal and business objectives (NEA, 2012).
21st Century learners in essence cannot survive in today’s world without these two absolutely essential
skill sets, the ability to communicate and collaborate effectively drives creativity and innovation; skills
which modern society demands and practices globally on a daily basis (NEA, 2012).

Critical Thinking & Problem Solving

In a constantly changing world, students need the ability to think critically and solve any problem which
may occur in their lives (P21CS, 2009; NEA, 2012; Pacific Policy Research Centre, 2010). Constant
technological advancements mean that students need to be prepared to adapt to any change and
continue to perform at their potential, both in their education and future employment (NEA, 2012). To
be able to adapt to change effectively, students need to have the ability to make connections between
information and arguments, interpret information to draw conclusions and reflect critically on learning
experiences and processes (P21CS, 2009; PPRC, 2010). To adapt, students need to have the ability to
solve problems in both a conventional manner and through the use of innovation. This ability will allow
students to adapt to any changes in future employment, allowing them to continue as an effective team
member.

In addition to this, students need to make judgements and decisions, based on effectively analysing and
evaluating evidence, arguments, claims and beliefs (P21CS, 2009; PPRC, 2010). Making these decisions
will give students the ability to innovate in order to problem solve, allowing them to adapt to changing
social and technological factors in both their current and future lines of employment (NEA, 2012).

Whilst these skills are all quite traditionally based, 21st century learning changes their level of
importance as advanced technology is now available for acquiring, creating, changing, maintaining,
storing, communicating and analysing various different types of information (PPRC, 2010). Teaching
critical thinking and problem solving to 21st century students is essential, as it leads students to develop
other more important skills, such as high levels of concentration, increased ability to analyse
information, and an improvement in the way students process thoughts and information (NEA, 2012;
PPRC, 2010).

Global Citizens

As today’s world economy rapidly globalising, so too do our student’s learning needs. 21st Century
learners need to be effective as global citizens, in order to be prepared for this, they need to be
educated about the different cultures and lifestyles of the world (PPRC, 2010). Students need the ability
to interact with people from various different cultural and linguistic origins (Davy, 2011; NEA, 2012).

Becoming a global citizen complements the skills of collaboration and communication, as it allows
students to effectively learn from and work collaboratively with a host of different individuals from
diverse cultures, religions and lifestyles (Davy; 2011). This encourages a classroom and work
environment of open mindedness and mutual respect for one another (PPRC, 2010). To be successful in
developing this environment, students need to become internationally minded citizens, considering
other cultures, nations and lifestyles in each decision they make, as well as learning to effectively
collaborate with a variety of people from different backgrounds (NEA, 2012; PPRC, 2010). Students can
utilise their 21st century learning skills to understand and engage with global issues and diverse learning
communities, better preparing them for the global workforce of tomorrow (Davy, 2011; NEA, 2012).

Technology Literacy

In the 21st century, technology has completely revolutionised the way we live our lives. It has
reinvented the way we work, learn, shop and how we are entertained (Andain & Murphy, 2008).
Advanced technology and all forms of digital media are completely integrated into modern society and
are an integral aspect of a 21st century learner’s life, whether it be in how they learn, work or even
socialise (Andain & Murphy, 2008). With instant access to a vast array of information via the internet,
smart phones and other devices, today’s students are digital learners and will adapt to technological
change far easier than any generation beforehand (PPRC, 2010). 21st century students are accustomed
to frequent changes in technology and welcome any technological innovations as they occur (PPRC,
2010).

The rapid advances of technology in modern society mean that students need to learn the skills
necessary to exceed in a technology rich environment (Cater, 2010). Students need the ability to access
information efficiently and effectively, navigating through ‘waste’ to find the correct and relevant
information for each situation (P21CS, 2009). This means using information accurately and creatively
whilst still managing the relevance of information coming from a wide variety of sources (P21CS, 2009;
PPRC, 2010). In addition to this, they need to then have the ability to critically and competently evaluate
any information they come across, learn what is relevant and what to discard so they can then present
this information to fellow classmates and co-workers as definitive research (Andain & Murphy, 2008).

In a world where virtual tools and open-source software eliminate learning boundaries for students, it is
important that they learn to use technology as an effective research tool to organise, evaluate and
communicate information to a wide range of different audiences (Berry, 2010; Andain & Murphy, 2008).
Lifelong Learners

21st century society is constantly evolving, as a result students need to have the ability to become
lifelong learners in order to adapt to changes and succeed in modern society (Mauch, et. al., 2001).
Globalisation and technological advancement are the key drivers for lifelong learning skills, and students
need to adapt to these skill sets otherwise they will not become successful in later life (Mauch, et. al.,
2001).

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