Examine 21st century learning environments
Educators are in a unique position to influence and shape the world through future generations. Nelson Mandela famously said, "Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world." To effect change, we must consider:
- How do children learn in today's world?
- Have our education systems kept current with the types of skills required to thrive in a modern society?
- What digital tools will help our children make sense of the world around them?
- What is the future of education?
Many of today's learning environments were designed during the industrial revolution. Life was more predictable back then, and the purpose of school was to prepare children for life as factory workers. The society the industrial education system served looked very different from today's society. We must therefore consider how we might change our education systems to better meet the needs of the globalized society of the 21st century.
In the mid-20th century, the Industrial Age was replaced by the Information Age. The internet has played a key role in expanding the amounts of new information and knowledge produced daily. Today’s young people must learn how to access, interpret, analyze, and evaluate this vast amount of information to make sense of the world they live in.
Besides the information explosion, our world currently faces many major challenges such as climate change; food, energy, and water shortages; and ethnic tensions in many parts of the world. This ever-changing world requires our children to solve complex problems, but the answers to these problems can’t be found in a textbook. We therefore need to ensure that our young people become resilient, lifelong learners with the ability to adapt in a dynamic, fast-paced world. We need to shift our learners' focus from merely memorizing information to collaborating to solve real-world problems.
Another driver for educational transformation is the world of work. Technology is reducing the need for manual and routine labor, leading to increasing unemployment in many sectors. Companies today expect young people to have a range of skills including:
- Critical thinking
- Skilled communication
- Creative problem solving
- Strong interpersonal skills
Today’s young people also need to be able to solve complex, multidisciplinary, and open-ended problems which requires active and continuous learning throughout their careers.
To prepare our learners to thrive in this increasingly complex world, schools must re-imagine learning environments. Our school systems need to move away from a model of individuality to one of collaborative inquiry. Educators must design learning activities that develop vital 21st century skills while teaching learners to use digital tools that have become a requisite for success in all areas of life.
In the white paper Dancing with robots: Human scales for computerized work, Frank Levy and Richard Mornane describe the ways in which technology is transforming labor markets and the skills young people need to succeed in the 21st century. They prompt us to consider:
- How is the workplace changing in the 21st century?
- What are the key capabilities employers look for in today's workforce?
To meet the challenges of a complex, connected world, 21st century learning environments should be predominantly inquiry-based. In an inquiry-based environment, learners are actively involved in the learning process, such as deciding how they'll spend their time in class. In this type of environment, learners take ownership of their education and become self-directed decision makers with the ability to manage priorities both in and out of school. Allowing our young people to own their education cultivates a passion for academic excellence and a habit of lifelong learning.
To support our learners, educators must create an environment that:
- Guides and supports self-directed learning
- Fosters effective relationships
- Supports differentiated instruction
In this new paradigm, educators must embrace change and flexibility and shift from simply being fountains of knowledge to being co-constructors of knowledge with a collaborative approach. They must engage in professional development with site-based research and reflective practice. And they must be receptive to feedback from learners, parents, and other stakeholders to evaluate and analyze change over time.
Teaching in the 21st century requires committed professionals who are constantly updating their own knowledge and skills. 21st century educators must accept that change is constant and be open to:
- New technologies
- New learning theories
- New assessment techniques
In short, educators who view themselves as learners are at the heart of learning in the 21st century.