Module 1 – 21st Century Education

Learning Outcomes:
1. Define 21st Century education
2. Describe the 21st Century teacher and the needed innovative tools for learning
3. Examine the critical attributes of 21st Century education

Concept Exploration:
This modern society is ushered in by a dramatic technological revolution. It is an
increasingly diverse globalized and complex media –saturated society. According to Dr.
Douglas Kellner, this technological revolution bears a greater impact on society than the
transition from an oral to print culture.

Education prepares students for life in this world. Amidst emerging social issues and
concerns, there is a need for students to be able to communicate, function and create change
personally, socially, economically and politically at the local, national and global levels by
participating in real-life and real-world service learning projects.

Emerging technologies and resulting globalization also provide unlimited possibilities for
exciting discoveries and developments.

21st Century Education Contexts.

21st Century Schools. Schools in the 21st century focus on a project-based curriculum
for life that would engage students in addressing real-world problems and humanity concerns
and issues.

This has become an innovation in education, from textbook-driven, teacher-centered,

paper-and-pencil schooling into a better understanding of the concept knowledge and a new
definition and the educated person. Therefore, it makes a new way of designing and delivering
the curriculum.

Schools will go from “buildings” to “nerve centers”, with open walls and are roofless
while connecting teachers, students and the community to the breadth of knowledge in the
world.
 Teachers will transform their role from being dispensers of information to becoming
facilitators of learning and help students translate information into knowledge and knowledge
into wisdom.

Therefore, the 21st century will require knowledge generation, not just information
delivery, and schools will need to create a “culture of inquiry”.

Learners will become adaptive to changes. In the past, learners spent a required
amount of time in respective courses, received passing grades and graduated. Today, learners
are viewed in a new context

These changes have implications for teachers: (1) Teachers must discover student
interest by helping them see what and how they are learning to prepare them for life in the real
world; (2) They must instill curiosity, which is fundamental to lifelong learning; (3) They must be
flexible in how they teach; and (4) They must excite to learn outside formal school.

21st Century learning demands a school that excites students for school. There
Is a little or no discipline problem because of strong student engagement. Likewise, parents
are informed about positive changes in their children. As a result, students manifest significant
improvement in basic skills of reading, writing, speaking, listening, researching, scientific
explorations, math, multimedia skills and others.

The 21st Century Curriculum. The 21st Century Curriculum has critical attributes that
are interdisciplinary, project-based and research-driven. It is connected to local, national and
global communities, in which students may collaborate with people around the world in various
projects. The curriculum also integrates higher-order thinking skills, multiple intelligences,
technology and multimedia, multiple literacies and authentic assessments, including service-
learning.

The classroom is filled with self-directed students, who work independently and
interdependently. The curriculum and instruction and instruction are designed imbued with the
concept of differentiation. Thus, instead of focusing on textbook-driven or fragmented
instruction, instruction turns to be more thematic, project-based and integrated with skills and
through research and concept application in projects and outputs.

The 21st Century Learning Environment. Typically, a 21st Century classroom is not
confined to a literal classroom building but a learning environment where students collaborate
with their peers, exchange insights, coach and mentor one another and share talents and skills
with other students. Cooperative learning is also in which students work in teams because
cooperation is given more emphasis than competition, and collaborative learning more than
isolated learning. They use technologies, including internet systems and other platforms.

An ideal learning environment also considers the kind of spaces needed by the students
and teachers in conducting investigations and projects by diverse groups for independent
work. An ideal learning environment has plenty of wall space and other areas for displaying
student work that includes a place where the parents and the community can gather to watch
student performances, as well as a place where they can meet for discussions.

Technology in the 21st Century Pedagogy. Technologies are not ends in themselves
but these are tools students use to create knowledge for personal and social change.

21st Century learning recognizes full access to technology. Therefore a better bandwidth
if Wifi access should be available along areas of the school for the students to access their
files and supplement their learning inside the classroom. Various laboratories and learning
centers are set up in such a way that they allow a space needed for students’ simulation and
manipulative works. All classrooms should have televisions to watch broadcasts created by the
school and other schools around. Other resources in the school can also be utilized by
students in creating opportunities for their knowledge explorations.

Understanding 21st Century Learners. Today’s students are referred to as “digital

natives”, while educators as “digital immigrants” (Prensky, 2001). Most likely, digital natives
usually react, are random, holistic and non-linear. Their predominant senses are motion and
touch. They learn through experiences and learn differently. Digital immigrants often reflect,
are sequential, and linear. Their predominant senses are hearing and seeing. They tend to
intellectualize and believe that learning is constant (Hawkins and Graham, 1994).

Students’ entire lives have been immersed in the 21st Century media culture. They take
in the world via the filter of computing devices, such as cellular phones, handheld gaming
devices, PDAs and laptops plus the computers, TVs, and game consoles at home.

21st Century Skills Outcome and the Demands in the Job Market. The 21st Century
Skills are a set of abilities that students need to develop to succeed in the information age. The
Partnership for 21st Century Skills lists three types, namely: (1) Learning Skills which
compromise critical thinking, creative thinking, collaborating, and communicating; (2) Literacy
Skills which is composed of information literacy, media literacy, and technology literacy; (3)
Life Skills that include flexibility, initiative, social skills, productivity and leadership. These skills
have always been important in an information-based economy.
 The 21st Century Learning Implications. 21st Century skills are viewed as relevant to
all academic areas and the skills may be taught in a wide variety of both in campus and
community settings.

Teachers should practice teaching cross-disciplinary skills in related courses, such as

integrating research methods in various disciplines ; articulating technical scientific concepts in
verbal, written, and graphic forms; presenting laboratory reports to a pool of specialists, or use
emerging technologies, software programs and multimedia applications as an extension of an
assigned project.

A Paradigm Shift for 21st Century Education

Before 21st Century Education 21st Century Education
Time Based Outcome-Based
Focus: Memorization of discrete facts Focus: What students know, can do and are
like after all the details are forgotten.
Lower order thinking skills in Bloom’s Higher thinking order skills (metacognition),
Taxonomy, such as knowledge and such as application, analysis, synthesis, and
comprehension evaluation
Textbook-driven Research-driven
Passive learning Active Learning
Learners work in isolation and in confined in Learners work collaboratively with
the classroom (walled classroom) classmates and others around the world
(global classroom)
Teacher-centered: teacher is dispenser of Student-centered: teacher is facilitator/coach
knowledge, information and attention of students’ learning
Little to no student freedom Great deal of student freedom
“Discipline problems” – no trust between No “discipline problems” – Students and
educators and students. Little student teachers have mutual respect and
motivation relationship as co-learners. High student
motivation
Fragmented curriculum Integrated and interdisciplinary curriculum
Grades taken from formal assessment Grades are based on student’s performance
measures entered in the class record for as evidence of learning outcome
reporting purposes
Assessment is for marking purposes and Assessment is important aspect of instruction
placed as part of the lesson plan structure to gauge learning outcome
Low expectations. What students receive is High expectations that students succeed in
what they get learning to high extent
Teacher is the judge. No one else sees Self, peer and others serve as evaluators of
student work. Outputs are assessed using student learning using wide range
structured metrics.
Curriculum is irrelevant and meaningless to Curriculum is connected students’ interests,
the students. experiences, talents and the real world
Print is the primary vehicle of learning and Performances, projects and multiple forms of
assessment. media are used for learning and assessment
Student diversity is ignored Curriculum and instruction address students
diversity
Students just follow orders and instructions Students are empowered to lead and initiate
while listening to the teacher's lecture. while creating solutions and solving problems
Literacy is the 3 R’s (reading, writing, and Multiple literacies of the 21st Century aligned
‘rithmethic) to living and working in a globalized new
society
Factory model, based upon the needs of Global model based upon the needs of a
employers for the Industrial Age of the 19th globalized high-tech society.
Century

The paradigm shift from the 20th to the 21st Century, shows that the structure and
modalities of education have evolved. Students become the center of the teaching-learning
process in the 21st Century using a wide array of technological tools to assist them in exploring
knowledge and information needed in surviving the test of time and preparing for future career
endeavors. Assessment has been made varied to address multiple literacy development in
diverse contexts. Teachers turn to become facilitators rather than lecturers and dispensers of
information. As such, the curriculum is designed in a way that it connects to life in the real
world, interconnects with other disciplines and reshapes the students’ holistic perspectives.

The Critical Attributes of 21st Century Education. Education continuously changes

dramatically throughout time. There is a paradigm shift in the way teaching and learning is
delivered. Therefore the 21st Century teacher needs to develop essential knowledge, skills and
values in order to cope with these changes and address students’ needs.

The following are eight attributes of 21st Century education and their implications:
1. Integrated and Interdisciplinary. Education in the 21st Century is characterized by
interfacing various disciplines in an integrated manner rather than
compartmentalizing its subsequent parts. This critical attribute implies the need to
review the curriculum and create strategies infusing different subjects toward
enhancing the learning experiences of students.
2. Technologies and Multimedia. Education in the 21st Century makes optimum use
of available Information and Communication Technology (ICT), as well as
 multimedia to improve the teaching and learning process, including online
applications and technology platforms. It implies a need to acquire and use
computers and multimedia equipment and the design of a technology plan to
enhance learning at its best.
3. Global Classrooms. Education in the 21st Century aims to produce global citizens
by exposing students to the issues and concerns in the local, national and global
societies. This critical attribute implies the need to include current global
issues/concerns, such as peace and respect for cultural diversity, climate change
and global warming in the classroom discussions.
4. Creating/Adapting to Constant Personal and Social Change and Lifelong
Learning. Education in the 21st Century subscribes to the belief that learning does
not end within the four walls of the classroom. Instead, it can take place anywhere,
anytime regardless of age. This means that teachers should facilitate students’
learning even beyond academics. Therefore, it should not end with requirement
compliance and passing the exams, but also for transferring and applying knowledge
to a new context or real-life situations. As such, the curriculum should be planned in
such a way that students will continue to learn even outside the school for life.
5. Student-Centered. Education in the 21st Century is focused on the students as
learners while addressing their needs. Differentiated instruction is relevant in the 21st
Century classrooms, where diversity factors and issues are taken into account and
addressed when planning and delivering instruction, including their learning styles,
interests, needs and abilities.
6. 21st Century Skills. Education in the 21st Century demonstrates the skills needed in
becoming productive members of society. Beyond learning the basic skills of
reading, writing and numeracy, students should also develop life and work skills in
the 21st Century communities, such as critical and creative thinking, problem-solving
and decision-making and ICT literacy and skills. Therefore, it implies that teachers
should possess these skills first before their students.
7. Project-Based and Research-Driven. 21st Century education emphasizes data,
information and evidence-based decision-making through student activities that
encourage active learning. This implies the need for knowledge and skills in
research, such as self-directed activities, learning projects, investigatory projects,
capstones and other research-based output.
8. Relevant, Rigorous and Real World. Education in the 21st Century is meaningful as
it connects to real-life experiences of learners. It implies the use of current and
relevant information linked to real-life situations and contexts.

Characteristics of a 21st Century Teacher

1. Multi-literate. Teachers know how to use various technologies in teaching.
 2. Multi-specialist. Teachers are not only knowledgeable in the course subject
they teach but also in other areas so that they can help the learner build up
what they gain in the classroom and outside the school and make sense of
what was learned.
3. Multi-skilled. Teachers cope with the demand for widening learning
opportunities by being skillful not just in teaching but also in facilitating and
organizing groups and activities.
4. Self-directed. Teachers are responsible for various aspects of school life and
know how to initiate action to realize the learning goals of the students and
the educational goals of the country, at large.
5. Lifelong learner. Teachers embrace the ideal that learning never ends.
Therefore, teachers must be constantly updated on the latest information
related to their subject and pedagogic trends. They should also share what
they are learning with their students and colleagues with a high sense of
professionalism.
6. Flexible. Teachers are able to adapt to various learning styles and needs of
the learners. They can facilitate learner-centered teaching with the flexibility of
using alternative modes of delivery.
7. Creative problem solver. Teachers create innovative ideas and effective
solutions to the arising problems in the field, be it in the classroom, in the
school or the profession as a whole.
8. Critical thinker. Teachers are critical thinkers as they encourage students to
reflect on what they have learned, and rekindle in them the desire to ask
questions, reason out, probe, and establish their own knowledge and belief.
9. Has a passion for excellent teaching. Teachers possess passion but also
in the teaching profession to ensure that students are motivated to learn
under their guidance and care.
10. High Emotional Quotient (EQ). Teachers do not just have the head but also
the heart to teach. Teaching is emotionally taxing but an influential job as it
involves interaction with human beings.

Common 21st Century Technology tools for Learning

1. Affinity Groups. These are groups or communities that unite individuals with
common interests. Electronic spaces extend the range of possibilities for such
groups.
2. Blogs. Web logs or “blogs” are interactive websites, often open to the public
that can include Web links, photographs and audio and video elements.
3. E-portfolio. It refers to student’s works that are generated, selected,
organized, stored and revised digitally. Often, electronic portfolios are
accessible to multiple audiences and can be moved from one site to another
 easily. It can document the process of learning, promote integrative thinking,
display final work, and/or provide a space for reflective learning.
4. Hypertext. These are electronics texts that provide multiple links and allow
users to trace ideas in immediate and idiosyncratic directions. Hypermedia
adds sound, video, animation and/or virtual reality environments to the user’s
choices.
5. Podcasts. These are digitized audio files that are stored on the Internet and
downloaded to listeners’ computers or most likely to MP3 players. The term
“podcast” comes from Ipod, the popular MP3 player.
6. Web 2.0. This refers to a second generation of Web-based communities that
demonstrate the participatory literacies that students need for the 21st century.
7. Myspace. It is a social networking website that intentionally offers an
interactive user-submitted network of friends, personal profiles, blogs, groups,
photos, music and videos. Students can rate professors, discuss books, and
connect with high school and college classmates here.
8. Second Life. It is an Internet-based 3-D virtual world that uses avatars
(digital representations) to explore, socialize, participate in individual or group
activities, create and trade items (virtual property) and services.
9. Semantic Web. It is an extension of the current web that puts data into
common format so that instead of humans working with individual search
engines to locate information, the search engines themselves feed into a
single mechanism that provides this searching on its own.
10. Webkinz. It is an internet simulation wherein children pet care and other
skills.
11. Wiki. It refers to software that fosters collaboration and communication
online. Wiki enables users to create, comment upon, and revise collaborative
projects.
12. Youtube. It is a popular website for video sharing where users can upload,
view and share video footage, including movie clips, TV clips, and music
videos, even student-produced videos.
13. Google Docs. It allows students to collaborate with other people and the
document materials that need to be compiled, processed, transacted and
analyzed.
14. Prezi. It allows individuals to use pre-made, creative presentation templates.
15. Easybib. It allows individuals to use pre-made, creative presentation
templates.
16. Social media platforms. These are means to communicate and share ideas
among users.
17. Smartboards and audience response systems. These are replacement for
traditional chalkboards or whiteboards in classrooms.
18. ReadWriteThink.org. It is a repository of standards-based literacy lessons
that offer teachers instructional ideas for internet integration.
19. webQuest Page. It provides Webquests on an array of topics across content
areas with a template for creating one’s own.
20. Literary Web. It is an online portal that includes a large number of new
literacy’s resources for new literacies for teachers.