You may have heard of the four C's for 21st century learning:
Critical Thinking
Communication
Collaboration and
Creativity.
But how do these skills affect your teaching practice and student learning,
and how does technology play a role in building these skills?
Let's take a step back.
In 2002, the partnership for 21st century skills,
a coalition between the business community,
education leaders, and policy makers
created the framework for 21st century learning.
This framework presents a holistic view
of 21st century teaching and learning.
Within the context of core knowledge instruction,
students must learn the four C's.
These competencies are essential skills
for students to thrive in work and in life.
Let's take a closer look at how digital tools can
help foster these skills in students.
Critical thinking refers to students
abilities to analyze, interpret, evaluate,
make decisions, and solve problems.
For example, take a high school social studies class
in which students are comparing societies
use of fossil fuels in the past and in the present.
In addition to online research,
students can use video conferencing to conduct
firsthand interviews with field experts.
Students can use graphic organizers
to organize and illustrate their findings,
compare and contrast their data,
and share with one another.
Communication refers to student's ability
to share information while expressing their thoughts
and opinions clearly to others.
Communication also requires strong listening
and evaluation skills in order to aid in collaboration.
It includes verbal, written, and multimedia messages.
For example, consider a 5th grade class
in which students are learning about
forest fires in their region.
A local fire chief asks a question on a
community site about fire prevention efforts.
Students could post short written or audio responses
to the issue, thereby engaging in an online conversation.
Students learn to articulate their thoughts in a clear way,
while gaining a sense of agency for having a voice
around larger community issues.
Collaboration refers to students ability to work with others
to accomplish a goal, while being flexible
and sharing group responsibilities.
For example, an eighth grade science class
could work in small teams with other nearby middle school students
to investigate local environmental issues.
Students can assume different roles within their teams
depending on their talents and interests.
For instance, some can make observations,
some can record data,
and others can share out the results.
Creativity includes abilities such as brainstorming,
refining ideas,
being responsive to ideas from others,
and making ideas tangible and useful to others.
For example, a third-grade class
might work together to brainstorm innovative ways to address recycling.
Students decide to create a recycling campaign in the school,
including making a public service announcement video
for an upcoming assembly.
You can see from these examples that technology,
when used strategically, can really enhance how you
support the four C's in your classroom.
Digital tools can help students think critically,
communicate, collaborate, and be creative,
and we know that these skills help foster higher-order thinking,
which is crucial for 21st century learning.
So, what do the four C's look like for teaching and learning in your classroom?