-Alvin Toffler, sociologist, futurist, and author.
Contemporary society has changed drastically in the past 20 years. The most significant of these changes, as it applies to the craft of teaching, are the technological developments that have affected the way that we communicate, collaborate, and do business.
In response to these changes, the Partnership for 21st Century Skills, an American group consisting of corporations and educators, has developed a mission statement outlining the needs of 21st-century learners.
But who are these 21st-century learners? What are some of their attributes? They are students who are natural technology users and whose lives outside of school are saturated with technology. They are comfortable with multitasking, they communicate across various forms of digital media, they are often curious, and they see the need to be ongoing learners.
The report by the Partnership of 21st Century Skills, as well as other reports by different organizations, approaches the issue of the education of the 21st-century learner from multiple dimensions. It emphasizes the importance of teaching the core subjects, but proposes that they be integrated within a 21st-century context (like writing for an online readership) and using 21st-century skills and tools (for example, by using Web 2.0 applications). Furthermore, students need to learn new 21st-century content, espeically as it relates to increasing global awareness in our increasingly interconnected world.
As educators, we have to remember that while our students are 'primed' for 21st-century learning as a result of their social milieu, we do need to help them develop and perfect these skills. Furthermore, we have to be on guard against any potential downsides of 21st-century tools, such as informational overload, distraction, and issues with attention. Ultimately, our mission is to ensure that our students can successfully navigate the still-stormy waters of an uncertain tomorrow, whose only certainty is that it will be different from anything that we can imagine today.