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21st Century Skills: Learning for Life in Our TimesPART 1: What is 21st Century Learning?Chapter 1: Learning Past and FutureChapter One begins by introducing the Industrial Age and the transition into the Knowledge Age. The authors reflect on the different careers at the beginning of the 21st century and how the new roles of education and learning are now. “Education becomes the key to economic survival in the 21st century” (Trilling & Fadel 2009). Education is seen as the training into the job world. There are two essential skills sets that Trilling and Fadel mention that remain at the top of the list of job requirements for this century’s work; these include “the ability to quickly acquire and apply new knowledge” and “the know-how to apply essential 21st century skills- problem solving, communication, teamwork, technology use, innovation, and the rest- to each and every project, the primary unity of 21st century work”. In order to be aware of the importance of learning and education, our society has to look at how roles of education has been played in the past and where learning is heading in the future. Every age has had different roles and goals of education, but in the Knowledge Age, “brainpower replaces brawnpower”, so our goals are designed around our new powerful technologies that we have for learning and working with others (Trilling & Fadel 2009). This chapter also compared the differences of the ages in contributing to work and society, fulfilling personal talents, fulfilling civic responsibilities, and carrying forward traditions and values. According to the authors, our world is growing in diversity, values, traditions, technologies, and much more and it is our challenge “to build and maintain our own identity from our given traditions and from the wide variety of traditions all around us” to learn to tolerate and have compassion for the values of others. Chapter 2: The Perfect Learning Storm The “perfect learning storm” and four powerful converging forces are knowledge work, thinking tools, digital lifestyles, and learning research all coming together, which is the main focus of this chapter. These forces are what we as students, citizens, teachers, and workers need to learn and assist in how we will learn to be successful persons in the 21st century. In this chapter, the authors state that “pressure is increasing on education systems around the world to teach in ways that will produce the knowledge workers and innovators businesses need to be successful in the 21st century knowledge economy”. This is where Thinking Tools come into play. These digital devices and services help us learn, work and be creative; they help us keep up with the demands of our time efficiently. When it comes to education, these tools are needed to create new ways to make learning personalized, creative, and interactive to assure that students are being engaged and actively learning. There is a new balance in the education system today that contains the right range of practices that are more beneficial for students. The chapter wraps up by stating that “education’s big goal, preparing students to contribute to the world of work and civic life, has become one of our century’s biggest challenges” and that our society needs to rise to meet these challenges in order to see a bright future. PART 2: What are 21st Century Skills?Chapter 3: Learning and Innovation SkillsThis chapter focuses on learning frameworks in the classroom. The framework has grown into a 21st Century Knowledge-and-Skills Rainbow that includes core subjects and interdisciplinary themes, learning and innovation skills, information, media, and technology skills, and life and career skills. Critical thinking, communication and collaboration, and creativity and innovation are the “keys to unlocking a lifetime of learning and creative work” (Trilling & Fadel 2009). Covering all of these skills in the educational setting is helping us to meet out new demands of this century. However, these skills not only need to be met, they are what it takes to develop into a lifelong learner. The authors mention that the “Taxonomy for Learning” has changed to incorporate terms such as remember, understand, apply, analyze, evaluate, and create. Helping students develop creativity is a vital part of their education, but focusing on facts, memorization and test taking does not benefit them. Creativity needs to be practiced over time to be developed and learning environments must promote fresh ideas, loyalty, learning from mistakes, and questioning. Chapter 4: Digital Literacy Skills In this chapter, the authors focus on ‘info-savvy, media-fluent, and tech-tuned skills’. With the current and future digital tools, the net generation students have the influence to strengthen their ability to learn, communicate, create, and think. Our society will be increasing demands on our capability to “access information efficiently and effectively, evaluate information critically and competently, and use information accurately and creatively” (Trilling & Fadel 2009). Our current students are very knowledgeable on digital tools for fun, but they need to also understand how to apply these tools to learning in order to create effective communication products. This chapter also covers what is called ICTs, which stands for Information and Communication Technologies. The authors propose that these technologies are continuously evolving and are needed to expand the tools of information, communication, and media. The ICT literary skills need to apply technology effectively such as using technology as a tool to research, communicate, organize, and evaluate. Chapter 5: Career and Life SkillsChapter 5 is all about career and life skills. The ones described in this chapter are imperative for work and learning in the 21st century. Although they have been around for a long time, digital tools that are now available give them a new importance. The first career and life skills discussed are flexibility and adaptability. “Adjusting and adapting strategies to accommodate new circumstances is an essential ‘flex-ability’ that everyone must develop in fast-changing times” (Trilling & Fadel 2009). These skills can be learned by working on complex projects that challenge students to “change course” when things are not going well. It is important that students learn to adapt to change and be flexible when learning. The next career and life skills discussed are initiative and self-direction. In today’s career world, workers need to be motivated, ready to get things done, and be self-reliant in their work, which are things students should be made aware of. Teachers are familiar with having freedom in their classrooms, but helping students become more self-reliant can become a challenge. The growing technology is continuing to assist in providing ways to individually research and learn online. Other ways to help students is to provide a fitting level of freedom to apply self-direction and initiative. Overall, students should be able to manage goals and time, work independently, and be self-directed learners. The following career and life skills that the authors cover are social and cross-cultural interaction. An essential life skill in the 21st century is being able to work efficiently and resourcefully with classmates or teammates no matter what their cultural differences may be. To display social and cross-cultural skills, students should be able to interact effectively with others by knowing when it is appropriate to listen and speak and work effectively in diverse teams by respecting cultural differences and responding open mindedly to ideas.The last career and life skills discussed in this chapter are productivity and accountability and leadership and responsibility. Students should be able to manage projects and produce results. They should be able to guide and lead others by using problem-solving skills to guide others toward a goal and be responsible to others by being aware of the interest of a greater group. Part 3: 21st Century Learning in Practice Chapter 6: 21st Century Learning and Teaching Chapter 6 talks about the two of the most powerful learning tools- problems and questions. The authors suggest that “questions and problems are the foundations for the two most powerful approaches humankind has yet developed for gaining new knowledge and creating new ways of living: science and engineering” (Trilling & Fadel 2009). Scientists are motivated with questions and challenging problems motivates engineers; both of these tools are natural motivators for learning for everyone. Giving students stimulating questions and problems help them use their imagination to explore and learn. A main goal of most teachers is to engage their students as much as they can and using these powerful tools-problems and questions, assist in that challenge. Chapter 7: Powerful LearningThe authors start this chapter off by stating “learning is a lifelong journey, and on most journeys it is important to have a destination in mind and a reliable means of transport to get there”. The destination being discussed is students learning and the reliable means of transport is the Project Learning Bicycle. This bicycle has four project phases: define, plan, do, and review. These phases are considered the “wheels” of the bicycle. The entire learning project is considered the bicycle frame and the driving questions or problems that guide the project onward are the handlebars. The bicycle is not the only thing that is important; balance also plays a large role in this learning project. “If the bicycle leans too far to the left, the teacher may be over steering (applying too much direct instruction and control); too far to the right, and there may be too much collaborative creativity and independent construction of knowledge without enough teacher guidance to ensure the desired learning objectives are achieved” (Trilling & Fadel 2009). The main goal of this model is an enhanced learning experience that combines knowledge, understanding, and performance of 21st century skills. Overall, teacher must play the role of the learning coach while the students complete the mental work of the project. The type of learning discussed in this chapter engages students beyond memorization and helps students reach a large variety of learning backgrounds and styles. Chapter 8: Retooling SchoolingThe authors focus on reshaping support systems in this chapter. It starts off by discussing school systems. In order to have a 21st century school system, standards, assessments, curriculum and instruction, professional development, and learning environments must all work together. Six emerging principles that initiatives such as “Harnessing Technology: Next Generation Learning 2009-2014” and “Teach Less, Learn More” share are: vision, coordination, official policy, leadership, learning technology, and teacher learning. No matter how long a teacher has been in the field, they must continually keep up with their skills of using learning technologies to enhance their own understanding of 21st century skills. Students must also show these skills and teachers often assure their learning through standards being set. “Standards should focus on real world problems that promote learning across the disciplines using 21st century themes and interdisciplinary issues” (Trilling & Fadel 2009). Chapter eight also ties in learning environments to assist in 21st century learning. Elements that should be included in these environments include: scheduling, activities, culture, community involvement, leadership, and policies. Constructing 21st century “whole environments for the whole child” deals with alterations of the use of technology, time, and space. Chapter 9: Conclusion The authors did a wonderful job concluded their well-written book. They started this chapter with a quote by Peter Drucker that states, “Since we live in an age of innovation, a practical education must prepare a person for work that does not yet exist and cannot yet be clearly defined”. This quotes sums up one of the main subjects discussed in this book. How well we educate current and future students determines future wealth, health, and overall welfare of everyone. Due to the powerful 21st century technology tools, every country can play a part in building up global learning. Online services and a global learning network opens up a variety of opportunities for all children, regardless of their location, to have a 21st century education. Students can make a difference in our 21st century world and as more schools and programs improve their learning projects and focus on educators, parents, and leaders, students will become even more capable of “doing much more than anyone thought they ever could” (Trilling & Fadel 2009). Practice is all we need in the 21st century to overcome the challenges in front of us to build a better world. Summary21st Century Skills: Learning for Life in Our Times is a book written by Bernie Trilling and Charles Fadel that presents a framework for 21st century learning. There are three main categories to 21st Century Skills, which include learning and innovations skills, digital literacy skills, and life and career skills. These categories were discussed in detail, as were the transformations they have made in the last few decades. One of the main goals that I noticed throughout reading this book was its focus on students’ learning and how to enrich the way they are taught. It discusses future challenges that our world may face and how to prepare our children and students to overcome them. Teachers can be easily overwhelmed when it comes to the pressure of teaching their students perfectly, but Trilling and Fadel present their findings and share their ideas and suggestions that will benefit teachers and school programs. Learning projects are extremely important for teachers to stay up to date on, so the authors communicated to the reader the challenges that they may face and how to properly implement lessons and projects that most benefits their students. Young children and our current students are our future and with proper knowledge, resources, and practice, they will be able to put their 21st century skills and technology tools to use to enhance our future world. Works CitedTrilling, Bernie, and Charles Fadel. 21st Century Skills: Learning for Life in Our times. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2009. Print. ................
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