Education in the 21st century

What is education in the 21st century? Alvin Toffler, an American writer, futurist, and businessman says “the illiterate of the 21^st century will not be those who cannot read and write but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn”.  Thus, we will succeed only if we have the knowledge and skills to negotiate constant change. And such knowledge and skills must be used to reinvent ourselves for new situations.

Thus, as educationists, we must invest in education and provide 21st-century skills to students. These skills are fundamental components to achieve the nation’s continued growth and prosperity. To make this happen, we as teachers have to become facilitators. Hence, our role must shift from instructing students to helping them ‘construct’ their own learning. We should be able to keep the spark of curiosity, creativity, and learning alive in each child. This will enable our children to discover their talents, develop their passions, and deepen their understanding. Thereupon, they can apply their skills to build a better life and world for all of us.

The factory model of education is wrong for the 21^st century. We have to give opportunities to students with broader interests. We cannot encourage innovation and creativity in various fields if national curriculum and standards are enforced. A ‘one-size-fits-all’ kind of approach to education will not suit. That is the reason why many students are struggling to learn, getting disengaged, and lacking motivation. Also, most of what they learn in schools and colleges is not what they actually do at the workplace. If we keep clinging to obsolete methods we are failing to teach our students to respond to rapid changes.

Importance of 21^st century education:

Today, the world is much more complex than it was before. In such a situation we have got to be more creative to meet the challenges. This grim reality has become more evident to us due to the Covid-19 pandemic. We faced many challenges both in the education sector and in the workplace. Our education system was not able to adjust its methods and goals to meet the challenges.

Most of the 21st-century students are:

• Generation Z: These are children born between 1995 and 2009. They have used gadgets such as smartphones, iPads, smartboards and other devices from childhood.
• Generation Alpha: These are children born since 2010. They are younger than smartphones, iPad, 3D television, Instagram, and so on. This is the first generation which is likely to see the 22nd century in large numbers.

Some of the essential rules of 21st-century learning are:

• Student-centric education
• Learning should have context
• Integration of schools with society

Our 21st-century students are very well-informed and well-connected. This is due to their exposure to the digital world. They are comfortable with global and intercultural communication. We must make our students use all such information in very smart ways. Therefore, the skills required for this are the 4 C’s:

• Creativity
• Critical thinking
• Communication
• Collaboration

We must use these themes across all curriculum mapping and strategic planning processes. We must also make these themes a part of every lesson just as we do with literacy and numeracy.

To know more about 21st-century skills you can visit www.gyangunacademy.com. You can also visit https://gyangunacademy.com/shop-courses/ for additional information.

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