21st Century Skills are a set of knowledge, skills, and learning dispositions that prepare learners to succeed in a rapidly changing, digital world. Educators, business leaders, and academics worldwide have contributed to identifying, categorizing, and developing lists of these workspace skills.
They aren’t primarily based on content knowledge but on “deeper learning” skills (like critical thinking, problem-solving, and teamwork) and are comprised of a combination of soft and hard skills.
These skills are intended to help students keep up with the lightning pace of today’s modern markets. Each skill is unique in how it helps students, but they all have one quality in common – they’re essential in the internet age.
Following are the 12 skills that fall into 21st Century Skills that can be categorized into 3 broad categories to help us assess how students can stay competitive in the dynamic job market – Learning, Literacy, and Life Skills.
Learning Skills
These skills teach students about the mental processes required to adapt and improve a modern work environment. These skills include – Critical thinking, Creativity, Collaboration, and Communication. These are the most popular 21st-century skills and are universally needed for any career. However, their importance in a professional setting might vary based on an individual’s career aspirations.
Critical Thinking: Ability to find solutions to problems
Creativity: Ability to think outside the box
Collaboration: Ability to work well with others
Communication: Ability to talk to others
Critical thinking is one of the most important qualities for someone to possess in health sciences, whereas, in a business setting, it is essential for improvement. In addition, this skill can help you figure stuff out by yourself without guidance at your disposal.
Creativity is just as important as a means of adaptation. It is the skill that empowers students to see concepts in a different light, leading to innovation – a key to the adaptability and success of a company.
Collaboration might be one of the most concepts of learning skills. It could mean the ability to compromise, work together and get the best possible results from solving a problem. The critical element of this skill is willingness – to sacrifice parts of your own idea and adopt others for a “greater good.”
Finally, Communication is the glue that brings these educational qualities together. It is essential for you to learn how to convey ideas effectively among people. It is one of the most underrated soft skills, but without communication, projects fall apart.
Literacy Skills
These skills focus on how students perceive facts, publishing outlets, and the technology behind them. There’s a strong emphasis on determining trustworthy sources and factual information to separate it from the misinformation that floods the internet. These skills include – Information, Media, and Technology.
Information Literacy: Understanding facts, figures, statistics, and data
Media Literacy: Understanding the methods and outlets in which information is published
Technology Literacy: Understanding the machines that make the Information Age possible
Information Literacy is a foundational skill as it helps you understand facts, especially data points, that you’ll encounter online. More importantly. It teaches you how to separate fact from fiction.
Media literacy is identifying publishing methods, outlets, and sources while distinguishing between credible ones and those that aren’t. It helps find truth in a world that’s saturated with information. In addition, this skill teaches you how to find trustworthy sources of information in your lives. Without this, anything that looks credible becomes credible.
Last, technology literacy further teaches you about the machines involved in the Information Age. With the increased use of computers, cloud programming, and mobile devices, the world needs more people to understand those concepts.
Life Skills
Life skills comprise skills that pertain to someone’s personal life but also bleed into professional settings. These skills include – Flexibility, Leadership, Initiative, Productivity, and Social Skills.
Flexibility: Deviating from plans as needed
Leadership: Motivating a team to accomplish a goal
Initiative: Starting projects, strategies, and plan on one’s own
Productivity: Maintaining efficiency in an age of distractions
Social Skills: Meeting and networking with others for mutual benefit
Flexibility refers to your ability to adapt to changing circumstances. This is one of the most challenging qualities to learn for students because it’s based on two uncomfortable ideas:
Your way isn’t always the best way
You have to know and admit when you’re wrong
Flexibility requires you to show humility and accept that you’ll always have a lot to learn – even when you’re experienced. This is a skill that is crucial to long-term success in a career.
Leadership is someone’s inclination to set goals, walk a team through the steps required, and achieve those goals collaboratively. This is one skill that applies to the career of every entrepreneur – seasoned or fresh hire. This skill can give ambitious people the expertise they need to grow professionally and lead corporations.
True success also requires initiative, requiring students to be self-starters, and comes naturally to a handful of people. However, it is an attribute that earns rewards and indicates your character in terms of work ethic and professional progress.
Productivity refers to your ability to complete work in an appropriate amount of time, also known as “efficiency.” The common goal of professionals is to get more done in less time. You can discover your productivity or efficiency by understanding productivity strategies at every level and deciphering how you work best.
The last skill is the one that ties all other 21st-century skills together – Social Skills. Businesses are usually conducted through and within connections. The concept of networking might be more prevalent in some industries than others, but social skills are excellent tools for forging long-lasting professional networks. The rise of social media and instant communication has changed the nature of interactions among people. However, etiquette, manners, politeness, and small talk still play a major role in professional settings.
Importance of 21st-Century Skills
Higher education and business leaders cite soft skills as one of the most important drivers of success.
Career readiness means being equipped with skills that can prepare you for the unknown – like jobs that do not even exist yet.
The age of the internet has dramatically increased access to information. You need to learn how to process and analyze large amounts of information.
Knowledge from core subjects can only go so far; you need to know how to apply facts and ideas to complex problems.
The workforce of the new global economy is expected to have transferable skills, new knowledge, and competencies.
Sources
Stauffer, Bri. "What Are 21st Century Skills?" CTE Curriculum for Middle and High School Teachers. 08 Sept. 2022. Web. 28 Oct. 2022.
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