The 21 ST Century Teacher

-Brenda B. Corpuz, Ph.D.

-Gloria G. Salandanan, Ph.D.
“If we teach today as we taught yesterday werobourchildrenoftomorrow.”
-John Dewey

The 21st Century Skills

To remain century relevant skills. The and 21%interesting, century the skills teacher can be must
categorized possess into four(4), namely:1)communication skills, 2) learning and innovation skills, 3)
information, media and technology skills, and 4) life and career skills. A teacher must possess them in
order to survive in this21st century and be able to contribute to the development of 21 st century
learners.

Under each of these four (4) clusters of 21 st century skills are specific skills. Effective
communication skills include 1) teaming, 2) collaboration, 3) interpersonal skills 4) local, national and
global orientedness); and 5) interactive communication.

The learning and Innovation skills are the 3 Cs namely: 1) creativity, 2)curiosity, 3) critical
thinking problem solving skills, and 4) risk taking.

Life and career skills embrace 1) flexibility and adaptability, 2) leadership and responsibility, 3)
social and cross-cultural skills, 4)initiativeand self-direction, 5) productivity and accountability, and 6)
ethical, moral and spiritual values.

Information, media and technology skills are 1) visual and information literacies, 2) media
literacy, 3) basic,scientific, economic and technological literacies, and 4) multicultural literacy.

The first three (3) categories oflife skills are selfexplanatory. The last category (information,
media andtechnology skills) needs further explanation. They are explained below:

Visual literacy is the ability to interpret, make meaning from information presented in the form
ofan image.Itisalsothe ability to evaluate, apply, or create conceptual visual representations. (http://
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visual_literacy)

Information literacy is the ability to identify what information is needed, identify the best
sources of information for a given need, locate those sources, evaluate the sources critically, and share
that information. Information literacy is most essential in the conduct of research.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Information_literacy)

Media literacy is the ability to critically analyze the messages that inform, entertain and sell to
us every day. It’s the ability to bring critical thinking skills to bear on all forms of media asking pertinent
questions about what’s there and noticing what’s not there. It is the ability to question what lies behind
media productions- the motives, the money, the values and the ownership- and to be aware of how
these factors influence content of media productions .. (http://
www.media-awareness.ca/english/teachers/media_literacy/what_is_media_ literacy.cfm)

Scientific literacy encompasses written, numerical, and digital literacy as they pertain to
understanding science, its methodology, observations, and theories. Scientific literacy is the knowledge
and understanding of scientific concepts and processes required for personal decision making,
participation in civic and cultural affairs, and economic productivity.
(http://www.literacynet.org/science/ scientificliteracy.html)

Economic literacy is the ability to apply basic economic concepts in situations relevant to one’s
life. It is about cultivating a working knowledge of the economic way of thinking – understanding
tradeoffs, recognizing the importance of incentives. It encompasses a familiarity with fundamental
economic concepts such as market forces or how the monetary system works.
(http://www.econliteracy. Org/)

What is technological literacy? The US Department of Education (1996) defined technological

literacy as “computer skills and the ability to use computers and other technology to improve learning,
productivity, and performance.” (http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/
areas/issues/methods/technlgy/te4lk7.htm)
 Technological literacy is the ability to responsibly use appropriate technology to:

 Communicate
 solve problems
 access, manage, integrate, evaluate, design and create information to improve learning
in all subject areas
 acquire lifelong knowledge and skills in the 21st century
(http:uwww.colpradotechliteracy.org/org/documentation/mod-
ulel/defipition.htm
Another way of grouping the 21 century skills is shown below:
 Ways of thinking. Creativity, critical thinking, problemsolving, decision-
making and learning
 Ways of working. Communication and collaboration
 Tools for working. Information and communications technology (ICT) and information literacy
 Skills for living in the world. Citizenship, life and career, and personal
and social responsibility (http://atc2 1 s.org/ index.php/about/what-are-
21 st-century-skil Is/)
Relate these 21st century skills to the characteristics of the 21 st century educator presented in the
graphic organizer below.

Effective Learning and

Communication Innovation Skills
Skills

Info, Media and Technology Skills Life and Career Skills

Are all 21st century skills reflected by the characteristics of the 21 st century teacher? If not, feel free to
add to the graphic organizer.

Summary

The 21? Century teacher isone who is adequately equipped with 1) communication skills, 2)
learning and innovation skills, 3) information, media and technology skills, and 4) life and career skills.
He/she collaborates and interrelates with others from all walks of life. He/she is innovative and embarks
on lifelong learning. He/she uses technology to the maximum and to the optimum to improve his/her
learning and productivity. He/she critically analyzes and evaluates information derived from various
sources and is able to read message from media whether directly given or given in a subtle manner.

The 21? century teacher Is highly collaborative, a lifelong learner, is accountable for results and
is information, media and technology literate.

Synapse Strengtheners:

1. By means of a graphic organizer, describe the 21 st century teacher by completely presenting the
21st century skills.
2. Develop a questionnaire that makes use of a Likert scale to determine the extent to which a
teacher possesses the 21st century skills. The first is done for you.

Direction: To what extent do you do the each of the following? Check the column that corresponds
to your answer.

Legend: 1-never

2-rarely
 3-sometimes

4-often

5-always

21st Century 1 2 3 4 5
Skill
1.Use the
computer
with ease
when I lecture

3. Use the computer with ease when lecture 3. Use the questionnaire for you, to determine the
extent to which you possess the 21” century skills.