Integration of 21st Century Skills Into Teacher Education Curriculum

Introduction

Addressing complex academic and social challenges are at the heart of Agenda 2030 and therefore the focus of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). Specifically, SDG goal number 4 looks into strategies regarding inclusive and equitable quality education and promotion of lifelong learning opportunities for all (UNESCO, 2016). The SDGs address significant global concerns that require everyone to possess competencies needed to interact responsibly to achieve the required transformation (Chen, 2021). This transformation can be imparted formally, informally or through non-formal ways.

The classroom provides an environment where knowledge is acquired and skills developed. It is the space where learners observe the modeling of the skills by their teachers and in turn practice them. It is equally important in preparing and training teachers in not only the acquisition of 21st century skills but also the dissemination of these skills. It therefore critical that the 21st century skills are integrated into the classroom learning practices.

The current educational system is based on an industrial paradigm from the nineteenth century that is not very effective at helping pupils build new skills or get ready for an uncertain future (McPhail, 2020). There is a “global accomplishment gap” which renders learners unprepared for the 21st century as there seems to be a huge divide between what schools are teaching and what is necessary for meaningful societal involvement in a changing world (Wagner, 2014).

The school focus has been on how to produce citizens who can succeed in an economy driven by innovation and knowledge, in marketplaces engaged in intense competition, in a world of tremendous opportunities and risks, in a society facing complex business, political, scientific, technological, health, and environmental challenges, and in diverse workplaces and communities that hinge on collaborative relationships and social networking (Wan & Gut, 2011). As a result, education must be redesigned, organized and administered with a relentless focus on learners' performance in the classroom, the workplace, and in community life.

The economy has undergone fundamental changes which call for changes in the education system to reshape the way people work and live. There is fierce global competition that require students to keep up with their international peers, the technological and economic changes that require workers to have more responsibility and contribute more to productivity and innovation (Wan & Gut, 2011). The curriculum should be organized in such a way as to provide opportunities that employ innovative technologies and promote the use of sources outside school walls. It can thus be inferred that the new set of skills students require to survive in the twenty-first century will not be attained by maintaining the existing practices.

There is need to make the educational system more robust to equip learners to live, learn and work in dynamic social and cultural environments. This calls for an exposure of the learners to the set of competences known as “the 21st century skills” which are not based primarily on content knowledge but rather call for transformative abstract learning experiences that take place outside of the classroom (Wan & Gut, 2011). These competences are particularly crucial for success in academic and professional situations (Greiff, Niepel, & Wüstenberg, 2015).

To this end, this chapter looks at how these abstract skills can be brought into the classroom and be incorporated into the learning process. The chapter begins by identifying the 21st century skills and the efforts from various levels to bring these skills into the classroom. The author explores the ways in which these skills can be integrated into the curriculum as well as how educators can create learning environments that are relevant and meaningful to the learners.