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Abstract
Education in the 21st century requires the adoption and integration of modern competencies to
achieve the teaching and learning objectives. 21st century competencies include skills that
promote critical thinking, learner-centred approach, problem solving, creativity and productivity
in learning. The study examines the integration of 21st century competencies in the teaching
and learning of Biology in tertiary institution. Data were collected through structured
questionnaires administered to fifty respondents consisting of Biology lecturers from selected
tertiary institutions in Nigeria. However, only thirty two were retrieved and valid. The results
show that the respondents had a good knowledge of 21st century competencies, and the extent
of integration in the teaching and learning process was high as shown by a mean score of
24.59±2.05. The findings also indicate no significant difference in respondent’s knowledge of
21st century skills as moderated by gender, qualifications and teaching experience. The study
concluded that the integration of 21st century competencies be encouraged among educators to
prepare learners for a digital future.
update their competencies in line with emerging trends. Learning in the 21st century has to be
so patterned in such a way that it deals with challenges confronting learners
(Hadinugrahaningsih et al, 2017). Twenty-first century competencies is seen as a driver for
modern day and future innovation, powered by technology, bringing about differences in our
lives and translating to a change on how we behave in our places of work. They also come with
attendant novel skills which open up to new ways of thinking, working and living in our world
(Binkley et al, 2012). The 21st century skills or competencies has skills like the collaborative,
digital, thinking and problem solving that are essentials for making students relevant in their
own environment (Partnership, 2008). This also calls for innovation on the part of the teachers
in terms of integrating these competencies into their teaching and this adjudge the reason 21st
century skills or competencies are of paramount importance (Karmijn & Joke, 2017).
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Ogbonnaya, U.N. et al (2020). Integration of 21st Century Competencies in Teaching and Learning of Biology. CCU Journal
of Science, 1 (1), 32-45.
Literature Review
The increasing use of technology in education have modified teachers’ method from traditional
approach that often place them as dispensers of knowledge to a more flexible approach where
they act more as facilitators, mentors and motivators to inspire students to participate and learn
(Onyema et al, 2019a). Teachers’ competencies are being enhanced through technology.
Competency is more than just knowledge or skills; it entails the ability to solve complex issues
by stating and mobilizing psychosocial resources (including skills and attitudes) in a particular
context (OECD, 2003). For example, the ability to communicate in an effective manner is a
competence that can be traced based on individual’s knowledge of language, practical IT skills
and attitudes towards those with whom he or she is communicating (OECD, 2003). The
European Commission’s Cedefop glossary (Cedefop, 2014) gave definitions for skills and
competence as follows: a skill is seen as the ability to perform tasks and solve problems while
competency is regarded as having the ability to apply learning outcomes adequately in a defined
context (education, work, personal or professional development). Competency is not restricted
to cognitive elements (involving the use of theory, concepts); it also comprises functional
aspects (involving technical skills) as well as interpersonal attributes (social or organizational
skills) and ethical values and this places competency as a broader concept that may actually
encompass skills as well as attitudes and knowledge (Cedefop, 2014). Communication,
collaboration, productivity and content creation are key paramount to integration of 21st century
competencies (Cynthia, 2015).
A study by Jacquelyn et al (2017) examined ascertain how 21st century skills for pre-service
teachers are being modeled by teacher education institutions. Their findings indicated that
teachers need to be strong advocate for the integration of the 21st century skills in their teaching
and learning endeavors. Lobo (2016) examined 21st century competencies and ICT integration
in the classroom as it pertained to preparing students for careers in the current and future
employment market. The findings show that teachers integrated 21st century competences into
their teaching and as well supported themselves with other professional materials. This supports
the demand for teacher competence and productivity in education.
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Ogbonnaya, U.N. et al (2020). Integration of 21st Century Competencies in Teaching and Learning of Biology. CCU Journal
of Science, 1 (1), 32-45.
Theoretical Framework
Cognitivism Learning Theory
Cognitivism focuses on relationship that exists between mental composition and the information
that is being processed (Neisser, 1967). When individuals learn, they put into consideration and
engage their cognitive abilities which aid their comprehension (McEntire, 1992). It deals with
students learning as it involves their thought processes, understanding and problem solving
abilities and how they are combined to form knowledge (Zaibon and Shiratuddin, 2010). The
implication of this theory is that it emphasizes the need for teachers to be competent enough to
facilitate learning that enhance critical thinking and problem solving as required in the 21 st
century.
Results/Findings
Research Qtn 1: Do Biology lecturers have the knowledge of 21st century competencies?
Test Value = 0
T Df Sig. (2- Mean 95% Confidence Interval of the
tailed) Difference Difference
Lower Upper
Knowledge 48.847 31 .000 66.656 63.87 69.44
Table 2: One Sample Test for Biology Lecturers’ Knowledge of the 21st Century Competencies
One sample test was conducted for Biology lecturers’ knowledge of the 21st century skills as
seen in table 2. it indicates that there is a significant difference in Biology lecturers’ knowledge
of the 21st century competencies (df31=48.9, P <0.05). This further confirms that there is a
significant difference in the opinions of the Biology lecturers about knowledge of the 21st
century skills.
Research Qtn 2: Does gender affect knowledge of 21st century competencies among
Biology lecturers?
GENDER N Mean Std. Deviation Std. Error Mean
Table 3: Mean Score of Biology Lecturers Knowledge of the 21st Century Competencies by Gender
Table 3 shows the mean score of Biology lecturers’ knowledge of the 21st century skills by
gender. It shows that female Biology lecturers have mean score of 66.00 ± 8.01 while male
Biology lecturers have mean score of 66.47 ± 8.37. It shows that the male Biology lecturers
have higher mean scores when compared to the female.
Research Qtn 3: Does qualification affect knowledge of 21st century competencies among
Biology lecturers?
N Mean Std. Std. 95% Confidence Minimum Maximum
Deviation Error Interval for Mean
Lower Upper
Bound Bound
BSc/Bed 5 61.60 8.849 3.957 50.61 72.59 46 67
MSc/Med 14 66.07 8.398 2.245 61.22 70.92 49 80
PhD 12 69.67 5.789 1.671 65.99 73.34 62 79
Total 31 66.74 7.831 1.407 63.87 69.61 46 80
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Ogbonnaya, U.N. et al (2020). Integration of 21st Century Competencies in Teaching and Learning of Biology. CCU Journal
of Science, 1 (1), 32-45.
Table 4 shows the mean score of Biology lecturers by qualifications was carried out and it was
revealed that the mean scores for BSc/BEd, MSc/MEd and PhD are 61.60±8.85, 66.07±8.39 and
69.8±5.79 respectively. The result also shows that lecturers’ that has PhD possess the highest
level of knowledge of the 21st century competencies followed by Masters degree holders and
Bachelors degree holders respectively. This can be attributed to the fact that the more your
exposure to studies, the more your exposure to vast knowledge in the 21st century
competencies. For Bachelors degree holders that have the least mean scores, it could be due to
the fact that they were not exposed to more of the 21st century competencies.
Research Qtn 4: Does teaching experience affect knowledge of 21st century competencies?
N Mean Std. Std. 95% Confidence Minim Maxim
Deviatio Error Interval for Mean um um
n Lower Upper
Bound Bound
1-9 7 68.86 6.362 2.405 62.97 74.74 62 80
10-19 13 67.15 8.961 2.485 61.74 72.57 46 79
20-29 5 65.40 3.435 1.536 61.13 69.67 60 68
30 & above 3 57.33 7.638 4.410 38.36 76.31 49 64
Total 28 66.21 7.866 1.487 63.16 69.26 46 80
Table 5: Mean Scores of the effect of Teaching Experience on Knowledge of 21st Century Competencies .
The table 5 shows the mean scores of Biology lecturers according to their years of teaching
experience. The mean scores for lecturers who have spent 1-9, 10-19, 20-29 and 30 & above
years are 68.86±6.36, 67.15±8.96, 65.40±3.44 and 57.33±7.64 respectively. The result also
reveals that lecturers who have the highest number of years in teaching experience do not have
the adequate knowledge of the 21st century competencies. It can be deduced that the lecturers
with the least years of teaching experience have the best knowledge of the 21st century
competencies. This is followed closely by lecturers in 10-19 and 20-29 years categories.
37
Ogbonnaya, U.N. et al (2020). Integration of 21st Century Competencies in Teaching and Learning of Biology. CCU Journal
of Science, 1 (1), 32-45.
Figure 1 indicates that lecturers have good knowledge of 21st century competencies.
Research Qtn 5: To what extent do Biology lecturers integrate 21st century
competencies into the teaching and learning process?
Table 6 shows the computation of the mean scores of Biology lecturers’ level of integration of
the 21st century competencies into their teaching and learning processes. The mean score is
24.59±2.05. This shows that Biology lecturers’ level of integration of 21stcentury competencies
into their teaching and learning processes is high. It is high because the mean score is higher
than the median score of 22.5
Test Value = 0
Table 7: One Sample Test for Level of Integration of 21st Century Competencies by Biology lecturers.
One sample test was conducted on lecturers level of integration of the 21st century
competencies into their teaching and learning processes and the result showed there is
significant difference (df 31P<0.05) in the lecturers level of integration of the 21st century
competencies into their teaching and learning.
38
Ogbonnaya, U.N. et al (2020). Integration of 21st Century Competencies in Teaching and Learning of Biology. CCU Journal
of Science, 1 (1), 32-45.
Research Qtn 6: To what extent do male and female Biology lecturers integrate 21st
century competencies in teaching and learning process?
Table 9: Mean Score of Male and Female Biology Lecturers Level of Integration of 21st
Century Competencies into their Teaching and Learning Processes
Table 9 shows the mean score of male and female Biology lecturers level of integration of 21st
century competencies into their teaching and learning processes was computed and it shows that
the mean score for female is 24.6±1.81 and that of male is 24.3±2.34. The result shows that
female Biology lecturers have higher level of integration of the 21st century competencies into
the teaching and learning processes when compared to their male counterparts.
Research Qtn 7: From what sources do Biology lecturers acquire their of 21st
century competencies ?
S/N SOURCES OF KNOWLEDGE FREQ (%) YES FREQ (%) NO
1 Online social network 16 (50) 16 (50)
2. Books on the subject 24 (75) 8 (25)
3. Technology class 20 (62.5) 12 (37.5)
4. Grade level team/subject level team 12 (37.5) 20 (62.5)
5. Friend outside of profession 1 (3.1) 31 (96.9)
6. Internet 30 (93.8) 2 (6.3)
7. Technology specialist/support 22 (68.8) 10 (31.3)
8. Colleague not specifically designated technology specialist 3 (9.4) 29 (90.6)
Table 10: Sources of Biology lecturers’ knowledge on how to incorporate 21st century competencies
Table 10 shows the sources Biology lecturers’ of knowledge on how to incorporate 21st century
competencies into their teaching and learning processes. The result shows that the internet
(93.8%) serves as the highest source of knowledge consulted by Biology lecturers when they
want to learn how to incorporate 21st century competencies into their teaching and learning
processes. Books on the subject were the second highest source (75%) followed by Technology
specialist/support (68.8%), Technology class (62.5%), Online social network (50%), fellow
teacher not specifically designated technology support or specialist (9.4%) and friends outside
of profession (3.1%) respectively.
39
Ogbonnaya, U.N. et al (2020). Integration of 21st Century Competencies in Teaching and Learning of Biology. CCU Journal
of Science, 1 (1), 32-45.
Table 11: Independent Samples Test for Biology Lecturers Knowledge of 21st Century Competencies by Gender.
The independent samples test of Biology lecturers’ knowledge of the 21st century skills based
on gender was carried out. The result shows that there is no significant difference (df26,25.7 =
0.977, P >0.05) in Biology lecturers’ knowledge of 21st century competencies as moderated by
gender. This further revealed that gender do not have any effect on Biology lecturers’
knowledge of the 21st century competencies.
Table 12: Analysis of Variance for Biology Lecturers’ knowledge of the 21st century competencies by
Qualifications
Table 12 reveals a test for analysis of variance for Biology lecturers knowledge of the 21 st
century competencies by qualifications. The result showed that there is no significant difference
(df2,28, P=0.14 > 0.05) in Biology lecturers’ knowledge of the 21st century competencies when
compared with their qualifications. This further reveals that qualification does not have any
effect on teachers’ knowledge despite the differences in their mean scores as shown in table 4.4.
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Ogbonnaya, U.N. et al (2020). Integration of 21st Century Competencies in Teaching and Learning of Biology. CCU Journal
of Science, 1 (1), 32-45.
Table 13: Analysis of Variance for Biology Lecturers Knowledge of the 21st Century Competencies by
Years of Teaching Experience
Table 13 shows the analysis of variance for Biology lecturers knowledge of the 21st century
competencies by years of teaching experience was computed and it reveals that there is no
significant difference (df3, 24, P= .0183 > 0.05) in Biology lecturers’ knowledge of 21st century
competencies despite the differences in the mean scores shown in table 4.2.6. This shows that
years of teaching experience does not have significant effect on lecturers’ knowledge of the 21st
century competencies.
Table 14 shows that despite the differences in the mean score of male and female Biology
lecturers level of integration in Table 4.7, there is no significant difference in the level of
integration of 21st century competencies into the teaching and learning processes by male and
female Biology lecturers. This shows that gender does not have any effect in biology lecturers’
level of integration of the 21st century competencies into their teaching and learning processes.
41
Ogbonnaya, U.N. et al (2020). Integration of 21st Century Competencies in Teaching and Learning of Biology. CCU Journal
of Science, 1 (1), 32-45.
Discussion
<
42
Ogbonnaya, U.N. et al (2020). Integration of 21st Century Competencies in Teaching and Learning of Biology. CCU Journal
of Science, 1 (1), 32-45.
however encouraged to increase their knowledge of the 21st century skills by studying at higher
level.
43
Ogbonnaya, U.N. et al (2020). Integration of 21st Century Competencies in Teaching and Learning of Biology. CCU Journal
of Science, 1 (1), 32-45.
who observed that there was no significant difference between male and female Biology pre-
service teachers readiness to implement ICT skills in teaching and learning processes. This was
their observations after exposing 123 pre-service teachers to questionnaires to elicit responses
on their readiness to implement ICT in their teaching and learning processes.
Conclusion
The study establishes the need for integration of 21st century competencies in biology education.
It underscores the critical role of teacher competence for productivity in education. Also, it
recognizes the growing importance of technology in education and the need for teachers to
continuously update their competencies particularly as it relates to digital skills. It is
recommended that educational institutions should provide good internet connections, facilities
and other supports that enhance staff development to update their competencies.
Future work
Future work will focus on the hindrances to the integration of 21 st century competencies and its
effect on the quality of education. We are also looking at how emerging technologies could be
used to enhance inclusive biology education.
Competing Interests
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