Skills Necessary for Life in the 21st Century: An Introduction
Let us discuss the fundamental basis of any system for assessing the quality of education – the educational outcomes that are subject to evaluation (knowledge, skills, abilities, competencies, etc.). To begin with, let us consider the well-known skills of the 21st century, which have been widely discussed since 2015. At that time, for the first time in history, education became a major topic on the agenda of the World Economic Forum. A report entitled “A New Vision of Education” was presented, focusing on the skills necessary for living and working in the 21st century.
The report outlines a framework for skills that individuals need to possess in order to thrive in the modern world.
This framework includes three types of skills:
Fundamental (subject-specific) literacy
Complex and flexible competencies
Personal qualities
From the perspective of assessment tools in relation to these skills, the following should be noted: standardized testing instruments can be used to evaluate fundamental skills. Competency assessments are less frequently used and are somewhat different in structure, being more complexly designed. Non-standardized forms of assessment (including observations and expert evaluations) are more commonly employed. However, for personality qualities, it may be more appropriate to focus on creating an environment and situations that foster and manifest these qualities rather than evaluating them directly.
A brief overview of 21st-century skills:
Language literacy
Ability to read, comprehend, and utilize written language.
Numeracy
Capacity to employ numerical and other symbolic representations to comprehend and express quantitative relations.
Scientific literacy
Ability to apply scientific knowledge and methods to understand the natural world and test hypotheses.
Information and communication technology ((ICT) literacy)
Proficiency in using and creating content based on information technologies, including searching for and sharing information, asking questions, interacting with others, and programming.
Financial literacy
Understanding and applying financial concepts and numerical skills in real-world situations.
Cultural and civic literacy
Understanding, appreciating, analyzing, and applying knowledge related to humanities.
Critical thinking and problem-solving
Ability to identify, analyze, evaluate, and formulate responses to situations, ideas, and information in order to develop solutions.
Creativity
Coming up with new and innovative ways to solve problems or answer questions through applying, synthesizing, or reusing knowledge.
Communication
Ability to listen, comprehend, convey, and contextualize information using verbal, nonverbal, visual, and written modes.
Collaboration
Capacity to work collaboratively towards shared objectives, including the capability to prevent and manage conflicts.
Curiosity
Willingness and ability to ask questions, demonstrate open-mindedness, and pursue inquiry.
Initiative
Desire and ability to actively engage in new tasks and objectives.
Persistence/Grit
Persistence in maintaining interest and effort towards completing a task or achieving a goal.
Adaptability
Adaptability to modify plans, methods, perspectives, and goals in response to new information.
Leadership
Capability to effectively lead, mentor, and inspire others towards shared objectives.
Cultural and Social Awareness
Proficiency in interacting with others in a socially, culturally, and ethically appropriate manner.
Based on the information provided by the Telegram channel of the Eurasian Association for Quality Assessment of Education (EAOKE).
15.03.2024
