Teaching of 
the 21st Century Skills 
Kyiv 2014
What Is 21st Century Education? 
(video)
21 Signs You’re a 21st Century Teacher 
Are you a 21st Century Teacher? 
Find out! 
And add to this list…
21st Century Support Systems 
1. 21st Century Standards 
2. Assessment of 21st Century Skills 
3. 21st Century Curriculum and 
Instruction 
4. 21st Century Professional Development 
5. 21st Century Learning Environment
21st Century Learning 
Environment 
 Creates learning practices, human support and physical 
environments that will support the teaching and learning 
of 21st century skill outcomes 
 Supports professional learning communities that enable 
educators to collaborate, share best practices and 
integrate 21st century skills into classroom practice 
 Enables students to learn in relevant, real world 21st 
century contexts (e.g., through project-based or other 
applied work)
21st Century Learning Environment 
 Allows equitable access to quality learning 
tools, technologies and resources 
Provides 21st century architectural and interior 
designs for group, team and individual learning. 
Supports expanded community and international 
involvement in learning, both face-to-face and 
online
How to teach 21st century skills 
 Make it relevant 
To be effective, any curriculum must be relevant 
to students’ lives. 
Teach through the disciplines 
Learning through disciplines entails learning not 
only the knowledge of the discipline but also the 
skills associated with the production of 
knowledge within the discipline
How to teach 21st century skills 
Simultaneously Develop Lower--‐and 
Higher--Order Thinking Skills 
Lower-order exercises are fairly common in 
existing curricula, while higher-order thinking 
activities are much less common 
Encourage Transfer of Learning 
Students must apply the skills and knowledge 
they gain in one discipline to another. They must 
also apply what they learn in school to other 
areas of their lives.
How to teach 21st century skills 
Teach Students to Learn to Learn 
Build metacognition (“one’s knowledge 
concerning one’s own cognitive processes or 
anything related to them...”Flavell, 1976) 
Address Misunderstandings Directly 
Teachers face the important challenge of 
identifying misunderstandings and giving 
students opportunities to learn the facts for 
themselves
How to teach 21st century skills 
Understand That Teamwork Is an 
Outcome and Promotes Learning 
Collaboration is not only a desirable outcome; it 
is also an important condition for 
optimal learning 
Exploit Technology to Support 
Learning 
There is broad consensus that technology holds 
great promise for education
How to teach 21st century skills 
Foster Students’ Creativity 
Creativity is prized because it sparks innovations 
that can create jobs, address challenges, and 
motivate social and individual progress
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192

  • 1.
    Teaching of the21st Century Skills Kyiv 2014
  • 2.
    What Is 21stCentury Education? (video)
  • 5.
    21 Signs You’rea 21st Century Teacher Are you a 21st Century Teacher? Find out! And add to this list…
  • 6.
    21st Century SupportSystems 1. 21st Century Standards 2. Assessment of 21st Century Skills 3. 21st Century Curriculum and Instruction 4. 21st Century Professional Development 5. 21st Century Learning Environment
  • 7.
    21st Century Learning Environment  Creates learning practices, human support and physical environments that will support the teaching and learning of 21st century skill outcomes  Supports professional learning communities that enable educators to collaborate, share best practices and integrate 21st century skills into classroom practice  Enables students to learn in relevant, real world 21st century contexts (e.g., through project-based or other applied work)
  • 8.
    21st Century LearningEnvironment  Allows equitable access to quality learning tools, technologies and resources Provides 21st century architectural and interior designs for group, team and individual learning. Supports expanded community and international involvement in learning, both face-to-face and online
  • 9.
    How to teach21st century skills  Make it relevant To be effective, any curriculum must be relevant to students’ lives. Teach through the disciplines Learning through disciplines entails learning not only the knowledge of the discipline but also the skills associated with the production of knowledge within the discipline
  • 10.
    How to teach21st century skills Simultaneously Develop Lower--‐and Higher--Order Thinking Skills Lower-order exercises are fairly common in existing curricula, while higher-order thinking activities are much less common Encourage Transfer of Learning Students must apply the skills and knowledge they gain in one discipline to another. They must also apply what they learn in school to other areas of their lives.
  • 11.
    How to teach21st century skills Teach Students to Learn to Learn Build metacognition (“one’s knowledge concerning one’s own cognitive processes or anything related to them...”Flavell, 1976) Address Misunderstandings Directly Teachers face the important challenge of identifying misunderstandings and giving students opportunities to learn the facts for themselves
  • 12.
    How to teach21st century skills Understand That Teamwork Is an Outcome and Promotes Learning Collaboration is not only a desirable outcome; it is also an important condition for optimal learning Exploit Technology to Support Learning There is broad consensus that technology holds great promise for education
  • 13.
    How to teach21st century skills Foster Students’ Creativity Creativity is prized because it sparks innovations that can create jobs, address challenges, and motivate social and individual progress