21st CENTURY COMPETENCIES: 20 QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION

Education leaders at all levels can reflect on and address some, or all, of these questions: 

1. Why are 21st century skills/competencies important?
2. What arguments guide the discussion about the need for 21st century skills/competencies?
3. What is the research and evidence base around 21^st century learning? Are there different approaches or models?
4. Which 21^st century skills/competencies are evident in the various approaches?
5. How are 21^st century skills/competences defined? Do these encompass knowledge, skills, dispositions, other?
6. How are these approaches similar or different? What are the strengths and weaknesses of the different approaches?
7. Is there any research on how students grow or develop in relation to these skills?
8. How do the approaches address implications for: development of the curriculum? Delivery of the curriculum? Formal and informal learning?
9. How can 21^st century skills be taught? What instructional approaches are more appropriate for 21^st century skills?
10. How can 21^st century skills be assessed? What type(s) of assessment are more appropriate for 21st century skills? Are new forms of assessment needed and why?
11. What strategies could support the implementation of 21st century skills?
12. How can ICT support the implementation of 21^st century skills?
13. What real examples exist of these approaches in the development and/or implementation of curriculum?
14. How can different educational contexts -beyond the formal education system- support the acquisition of 21st century skills?
15. How do we design and deliver, assess and report the intended skills/competencies without losing critical discipline rigor (content and literacies) and without overcrowding the curriculum?
16. What does the implementation of 21st century skills demand from teachers, students, administrators and educational leaders?
17. What competencies and types of support do teachers need to implement 21st century skills?
18. What specific types of support do teachers and schools need to facilitate the acquisition of 21st century skills?
19. What competencies and types of support do teachers need to implement 21st century skills?
20. What should be the characteristics of professional development programs to support the implementation of 21st century skills?