essay on 21st century education

Transforming lives through education

Transforming education to change our world

UNESCO provides global and regional leadership on all aspects of education from pre-school to higher education and throughout life. It works through its Member States and brings together governments, the private sector and civil society to strengthen education systems worldwide in order to deliver quality education for all. As a thought leader it publishes landmark reports and data for policy-makers, implements programmes on the ground from teacher training to emergency responses and establishes and monitors norms and standards for all to guide educational developments.  

Right to education in a ruined world

Southern Italy, 1950. Three children are huddled around a makeshift desk made out of reclaimed wood, scribbling in their notebooks. The classroom has an earthen floor and roughly clad walls. The children’s clothes are ragged. They are wearing home-made slippers because shoes and the money to buy them are rare commodities in the war-ravaged south. 

Although World War II ended five years earlier, the scars of conflict are still visible in this black and white photo from a report commissioned by UNESCO from legendary photojournalist David Seymour. 

At the time when the photograph was taken, less than half of Italy’s population could read and write and just a third completed primary school. 70 years later, these children’s grandchildren enjoy an over 99% literacy rate. In the wake of the war, UNESCO led a major education campaign in Europe to respond to the education crisis, to rebuild links between people and to strengthen democracy and cultural identities after years of conflict. The emphasis then was on the fundamental learning skill of literacy.  

Immediately after World War two UNESCO led a major education campaign in Europe to respond to the education crisis, fix and rebuild links between people and strengthen cultural identities after years of conflict. David Seymour’s images show the extent of the fight against illiteracy led by the post-war Italian government and non-governmental organisations backed by UNESCO. 

Looking back at the deprived surroundings Seymour captured in his photo essay, one can see the extent of success. Seventy-one years later, those children’s grandchildren enjoy a 99.16 per cent literacy rate. 

Similar programmes were held across the globe, for instance in devastated Korea where UNESCO led a major education textbook production programme in the 1950s. Several decades after, the former Secretary-General of the United Nations and Korean citizen Ban Ki-Moon expressed the importance of such a programme for the country's development: 

The flowering of literacy

In a Korea devastated by war and where UNESCO led a major education textbook production programme in the 1950s, one student, Ban Ki-Moon, now Former Secretary-General of the United Nations, saw the world open up to him through the pages of a UNESCO textbook. Several decades after, he expressed the importance of such a programme for his country's development on the world stage.

Reaching the remote villages perched atop the Andes in Peru during the early 1960s wasn’t without its challenges for UNESCO’s technical assistance programme to bring literacy to disadvantaged communities. While Peru’s economy was experiencing a prolonged period of expansion, not all Peruvians were able to benefit from this growth which was limited to the industrialised coast. Instead, Andes communities were grappling with poverty, illiteracy and depopulation. 

Today, the number of non-literate youths and adults around the world has decreased dramatically, while the global literacy rate for young people aged 15-24 years has reached 92 %. These astonishing successes reflect improved access to schooling for younger generations.

Photojournalist Paul Almasy has left us the poignant image of a barefoot older man while he’s deciphering a newspaper thanks to his newfound literacy skills.

The classroom at the UNESCO mission in Chinchera, in the Andean highlands of Peru, had allowed the old man to discover the world beyond his tiny village.

However, there are still huge obstacles to overcome. Data from the UNESCO Institute for Statistics shows that 617 million children and adolescents worldwide are not achieving minimum proficiency levels in reading and mathematics. Since the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals in 2015 it is still the case that globally more than 450 million children - six out of 10 - have failed to gain basic literacy skills by the age of 10. And beyond literacy programmes, massive investments in skills for work and life, teacher training, and education policies are needed in a world that is changing ever faster. 

Global priorities

Africa, home to the world’s youngest population, is not on track to achieve the targets of SDG 4. Sub-Saharan Africa alone is expected to account for 25% of the school-age population by 2030, up from 12% in 1990, yet it remains the region with the highest out-of-school rates. Girls are more likely to be permanently excluded from education than boys. The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated inequalities, with 89% of learners not having access to computers and 82% lacking internet access to benefit from distance learning. The lack of trained teachers further jeopardizes progress towards SDG4: pre-pandemic only 64% of whom were trained at the primary level and 58% at the lower secondary level.

As part of its Priority Africa Flagship 2022 – 2029 , UNESCO has launched Campus Africa: Reinforcing Higher Education in Africa with the objective to build integrated, inclusive, and quality tertiary education systems and institutions, for the development of inclusive and equitable societies on the continent.

Gender    

There are immense gender gaps when it comes to access, learning achievement and education, most often at the expense of girls and women. It is estimated that some 127 million girls are out of school around the world. For many girls and women around the world, the classroom remains an elusive, often forbidden space. UNESCO monitors the educational rights of girls and women around the world and shares information on the legal progress toward securing the right to education for women in all countries. Despite important progress in recent decades, the right to education is still far from being a reality for many girls and women. Discriminatory practices stand in the way of girls and women fully exercising their right to participate in, complete, and benefit from education. And while girls have difficulty with access, boys face increasing challenges, and particularly disengagement , from education at later stages. Globally only 88 men are enrolled in tertiary education for every 100 women. In 73 countries, fewer boys than girls are enrolled in upper-secondary education.

UNESCO's Her Atlas analyzes the legal frameworks of nearly 200 states to track which laws are enabling---or inhibiting---the right to education for girls and women. This interactive world map uses a color-coded scoring system to monitor 12 indicators of legal progress towards gender equality in the right to education.

Monitoring the right to education for girls and women

What makes me proud is that soon I will finish building a new house. I have already been able to buy a cow and I will soon be able to have another pond

Madagascar’s coastal Atsinanana region is known for its lush rainforests and fish breeding.

The country has a young population, but only one out of three children can complete primary education. Among those who are able to finish primary school, only 17% have minimum reading skills, while just a fifth of them have basic maths competencies. Once they leave school, children face a precarious labour market and unstable jobs, just like their parents.

Natacha Obienne is only 21 years old, but she is already in charge of a small fish farm, a career that is usually pursued by men. As one of the many out-of-school women in her area, she was able to set up her own business after vocational training taught her the basics of financial management and entrepreneurship, as well as the practicalities of breeding fish.

She understood that fish feeding depends on the temperature of the water. If it’s well managed, a higher number of fish is produced. ‘I immediately applied everything I learnt’ she says.

The classroom she attended changed the course of her life and she hopes other young people will follow in her footsteps.

I no longer depend on my parents and I am financially independent

She’s not alone. Around 3,000 youths in Madagascar have been trained since the start of the UNESCO-backed programme, some of whom have set up their own business and achieved financial independence. Education was the best way to ease people's emancipation.

Like Emma Claudia, 25, who after her vocational training started a restaurant with just a baking tray and a saucepan.

What does my family think? They are surprised and amazed by my evolution because I haven’t been able to complete my studies. I don’t have any school diplomas.

While Natacha and Emma Claudia have been able to transform their world through education, millions of children out of school around the world are still denied that dream.

Discrimination against girls remains widespread and nearly one billion adults, mostly women, are illiterate. The lack of qualified teachers and learning materials continues to be the reality in too many schools.

Challenging these obstacles is getting harder as the world grapples with the acceleration of climate change, the emergence of digitization and artificial intelligence, and the increasing exclusion and uncertainty brought by the Covid-19 pandemic.

We resumed school a while ago and it’s been stressful. We are trying to retrieve what we lost during quarantine, the worst thing about not being in school is the number of things you miss. Learning behind a screen and learning in person are incomparable.

Aicha is lucky to be able to continue her education. Her country has the highest rate of out-of-school children in the world – 10.5 million – and nearly two-thirds are women. To compound the problem, Nigeria’s northern states suffer from the violence that targets education.

In Russia, too, Alexander and his school friends had to cope with virtual learning and the lack of interactions.

All Russian students were moved to online studying. Needless to say, it was a rough year for all of us, several friends were struggling with depressive moods. They were missing their friends and teachers. So did I.

To protect their right to education during this unprecedented disruption and beyond, UNESCO has launched the Global Education Coalition , a platform for collaboration and exchange that brings together more than 175 countries from the UN family, civil society, academia and the private sector to ensure that learning never stops.

Building skills where they are most needed

Crouched over a pedal-powered sewing machine, Harikala Buda looks younger than her 30 years. Her slim fingers fold a cut of turquoise brocade before deftly pushing it under the needle mechanism.

Harikala lives in rural Nepal, where many villagers, particularly women, don’t have access to basic education. Women like Harikala rely on local community UNESCO-supported learning centres to receive literacy and tailoring skills. In a country where 32% of people over 15 are illiterate, particularly women and those living in rural areas, education is the only route to becoming self-reliant.

I have saved a small amount. My husband’s income goes towards running the house, mine is saved. We must save today to secure our children’s future

Having access to a classroom is the first step to creating a better world for the student, the student’s children and the student’s community. This is a lesson that matters a lot to

Kalasha Khadka Khatri, a 30-year-old Nepali mother. She grew up in a family of 21, with no option to go to school. Two of her children didn’t survive infancy because she was unable to pay for medical treatment. After acquiring sewing skills at her local community learning centre, Kalasha can now provide for her family.

Harikala and Kalasha were able to learn their skills through the support of the UNESCO’s Capacity Development for Education Programme (CapED), an initiative that operates in some 26 least-developed and fragile countries. 

Reimagining the future of education

As the world slowly recovers after the COVID-19 crisis, 244 million children and youth worldwide are still out of school. And a 2022 survey by UNESCO, UNICEF, World Bank and OECD finds that one quarter of countries have yet to collect information on children who have and have not returned to school since the pandemic started.

Rebuilding how and where we learn requires policy advice, stronger education legislation, funds mobilisation, advocacy, targeted programme implementation based on sound analysis, statistics and global information sharing. Quality education also calls for the teaching of skills far beyond literacy and maths, including critical thinking against fake news in the digital era, living in harmony with nature and the ethics of artificial intelligence, to name a few of the critical skills needed in the 21st century. 

UNESCO  captured the debate around the futures of education in its landmark report from 2022 entitled Reimagining our futures together: A new social contract for education.

The Transformative Education Summit , that took place during the United Nations General Assembly in September 2022, as well as the Pre-Summit hosted by UNESCO to forge new approaches to education after the COVID-19 crisis, address the toughest bottlenecks to achieving SDG 4 and inspire young people to lead a global movement for education. World leaders committed to put education at the top of the political agenda. UNESCO has been mobilizing and consulting all stakeholders and partners to galvanize the transformation of every aspect of learning. UNESCO launched a number of key initiatives such as expanding public digital learning, making education responsive to the climate and environmental emergency, and improving access for crisis-affected children and youth.

The two children sitting at their makeshift desk in Italy in 1950 could not have imagined what a modern learning space might look like or how a modern curriculum or the tools and teacher training to deliver it might have been thought out and shaped to offer them the most from education. They could not have imagined the global drive to ensure that everyone was given a chance to learn throughout life. The only thing that has not changed since the photo was taken is the fact that education remains a fundamental and universal human right that can change the course of a life. To the millions still living in conditions of poverty, exclusion displacement and violence it opens a door to a better future.

Explore all the work and expertise of UNESCO in education

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21st Century Education

At GEII we look at education for the 21 st century in the following ways:

See 21st Century Education in Action

Competencies in the Intrapersonal Domain

1) Intellectual Openness, including:

Flexibility, adaptability, artistic and cultural appreciation, personal and social responsibility, cultural awareness and competence, appreciation for diversity, adaptability, continuous learning, intellectual interest and curiosity

2) Work Ethic & Conscientiousness, including:

a. Initiative, self-direction, responsibility, perseverance, grit; productivity, type 1 self-regulation (metacognitive skills, including forethought, performance, and self-reflection), professionalism/ ethics; integrity; citizenship, career orientation

b. Positive Core Self-Evaluation, including: i. Type 2 self-regulation (self-monitoring, self-evaluation, self-reinforcement), physical and psychological health

For more about this domain, please see National Research Council. Education for Life and Work: Developing Transferable Knowledge and Skills in the 21st Century . Washington, DC: The National Academies Press, 2012. doi:10.17226/13398 .

Competencies in the Interpersonal Domain

1) Teamwork & Collaboration, including:

Communication, collaboration, teamwork, cooperation, coordination, interpersonal skills, empathy/perspective taking, trust, service orientation, conflict resolution, negotiation

2) Leadership, including:

Leadership, responsibility, assertive communication, self-presentation, social influence with others

Competencies in the Cognitive Domain

1) Cognitive Processes & Strategies, including:

Critical thinking, problem solving, analysis, reasoning and argumentation, interpretation, decision making, adaptive learning, and executive function

2) Knowledge, including:

Information literacy, including research using evidence and recognizing bias in sources; information and communication technology literacy, oral and written communication, active listening

3) Creativity, including:

Creativity and innovation

Values and Attitudes

The values and attitudes cultivated in participants by each program will vary by country, region, philosophies, and other social and cultural factors. However, as values and attitudes are central to developing a person’s character and shaping the beliefs, attitudes, decisions and actions of a person, we felt it was important to ask each organization included on our website to explicitly name the particular values and attitudes they seek to nurture in their program participants.

There are many sources about what kind of values, and we note that they vary according to different contexts. One document might be a helpful resource among many is the following by Margaret Sinclair titled, “ Learning to Live Together: Building Skills, Values, and Attitudes for the 21st Century ” published in 2005 by the International Bureau of Education: 

Active, Engaging, and Empowering Pedagogy

21st Century pedagogy includes a focus on active, engaging, and empowering learning. Personalization, participation, and learning through authentic real-world contexts, solving problems creatively, developing projects from the beginning to the end, working collaboratively with peers and mentors, with a focus on developing metacognitive abilities, adapting and applying new knowledge while integrating it into existing conceptual frameworks are all examples of powerful pedagogy.

For more on this topic, please see this working paper from UNESCO (December, 2015) by Cynthia Luna Scott, titled, “ What Kind of Pedagogies for the 21st Century? ” among many others: 

• Who is doing it?
• How are they selected?

What is the role of teachers in preparing future generations?

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Claudia costin claudia costin visiting professor of practice in education - harvard graduate school of education, former secretary of education - municipality of rio de janeiro @claudiacostin.

August 3, 2017

• 10 min read

The following essay comes from “ Meaningful education in times of uncertainty ,” a collection of essays from the Center for Universal Education and top thought leaders in the fields of learning, innovation, and technology.

This is a very ambitious goal. In many parts of the developing world, too many are left behind by not having access to school or learning the basics. Of the 121 million out-of-school children and adolescents in low- and middle-income countries, one-sixth of children did not complete primary school and one-third of adolescents did not complete lower secondary. Thirty percent of countries still do not have gender parity in primary and 50 percent do not have it in secondary.

Worst of all, 250 million children cannot read, write, or do basic arithmetic, although many of them have been in school for some years. “Schooling Ain’t Learning” states the subtitle of the excellent book from Lant Pritchett, “ The Rebirth of Education ,” which analyzes the challenges the developing world faces to ensure improvements in literacy and numeracy. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has described it as the Global Learning Crisis.

To make matters worse, the demand for skills is migrating to non-routine cognitive and interpersonal skills, since many jobs are being lost to automation . Curricula in schools do not normally consider this change and education systems do not have the tools to address these more sophisticated skills.

Globalization has made these changes present in almost every country, adding to existing inequalities and contributing to the intergenerational transmission of poverty. In many low-income, and even middle-income countries, certified teachers (i.e. teachers who have received the formal education required by the country’s regulations) lack knowledge in some subjects such as mathematics, physics, and chemistry, lack adequate quantities of textbooks, and connectivity (and sometimes even electricity) is rare in school buildings. Yet, even in these cases, the demand for higher-level thinking skills is present in the labor market, imposing a double-challenge over an already overburdened school system.

In this context, what should be the role of the teacher? It would be easy to respond that if the basics do not exist, we should not expect anything more than the basics, thus allowing the next generation of students to be unskilled and unprepared for the future ahead.

In this short essay, I try to state the opposite: It is possible, with the appropriate support, to expect teachers to help students to be active citizens and professionals in these times of uncertainty.

The path to scale 21st century education in countries with struggling education ecosystems

These countries cannot make their school systems progress step-by-step, first covering the last mile in access, then promoting the outdated model of quality education for all, and finally ensuring that the system incorporates the development of a new set of skills. They will have to leapfrog and learn from countries that have previously improved their education systems.

For this to be feasible, some initial deficiencies will need to be addressed, such as a precarious pre-service and in-service education and inefficient teachers’ hiring processes. Pre-service education in the developing world tends to overemphasize the theory, at the expense of the practice of education. A curriculum reform in the tertiary institutions that prepare future teachers would be more than welcome. Only through a solid reflection on a teacher’s everyday practice could we advance towards a model where they could be seen less as a mere class provider and more as a mediator in the process of skills development—literacy and numeracy, higher order cognitive skills, or social and emotional skills. These skills are better developed through interactions, not speeches or copying from a blackboard, as most teachers do. Facilitating a class where consistent participation is expected is extremely difficult for novice teachers that were themselves taught through pedagogies that don’t demand students’ engagement.

Last year, the OECD delivered an interesting report on the strategies mathematics teachers from participating countries in PISA 2012 used to deliver their instruction. 4 The report grouped the strategies into three categories: active learning, where the emphasis is on promoting student engagement in their own learning, with support of ICT and lots of teamwork; cognitive activation, where students are challenged into a process that develops higher order thinking skills, especially problem solving and critical thinking; and teacher-directed instruction, that relies on the teacher ability to deliver good classes. According to the report, the strategies are not mutually exclusive, which demand the instructor a constant change in roles, to adjust to the kind of instruction being implemented.

Pre-service education and hiring processes in the developing world should prepare professionals that are ready to manage these more sophisticated roles as they deal with their daily teaching of classes.

In addition to this important transformation, professional development should incorporate the notion that, in addition to being a mediator, a teacher is part of a team and teaching is not an isolated work. Teachers need to learn to collaborate, co-create, plan classes, and monitor their work together. This could be in the school they are working or within a school system. Good initiatives of pairing struggling schools with better performing ones in the same area—thus dealing with the same student population—have shown promising results globally.

The real challenge is that before the profession becomes more attractive, and the pre-service education more effective, these countries need to deal with a current cohort of teachers that often lack the skills and repertoire to face this complex reality. In these cases, a blend of more scripted teaching strategies with space for experimentation and support for innovation have shown to be effective. Studies have shown that unskilled teachers benefit greatly from additional support such as pre-formatted class plans, digital classes, and more detailed textbooks.

Despite this, learning—through collaboration or professional development courses—how to deliver classes that are more engaging and allow for the student’s space to develop higher order thinking skills, is feasible even under these difficult circumstances. It just demands more structured professional development and better-prepared instructors to address these teachers’ needs.

This demands mentoring and class observations, together with structured materials to support initial efforts from the novice teacher to prepare meaningful class-plans and deliver them. It also requires some additional time if the classes are—as in some developing countries—too short or based on a curriculum overloaded with unnecessary content.

Building Global Citizens at Uncertain Times

The demands put on schools are not restricted to preparing students for the increasing demands of the labor market. A child needs to grow to be an informed member of the society in which they live and to have the knowledge and capabilities to participate. In addition to acquiring basic cognitive and social and emotional skills, a solid Global Citizenship curriculum should be introduced in the school system even in the developing world. Understanding how his or her own country is organized, and how it connects to a globalized world, will be of great value for the student.

To foster the skills needed to become a global citizen, we should develop these skills in a structured way in the teachers’ workforce. This means in-service education through collaboration and group-discussions on empathy, cultural appreciation, ethnic and gender identities, and general knowledge of current world affairs and challenges. A teacher that believes she is part of humanity and not just of a region or a country tends to foster the same perception in her students.

Ultimately, if we want students to become citizens, we need to give them a voice. Very often, in school systems, we treat teenagers as children and don’t trust them to be responsible for their own student lives and choices. This means we must trust them to take part in important decisions about the school curriculum and we must discuss their behavior issues with them directly—not their parents. This would also require allowing some space for them to make mistakes and learning to correct them effectively. A global citizen, it must be understood, is first a citizen in his own school, community, and country. If we truly want to prepare them to become informed and active members in their countries, it is important to give them some space to exercise choices and activism at an early stage.

In Rio de Janeiro, where I was municipal secretary of education, we introduced a mandatory assignment at the beginning of 7th grade, for the adolescents to state in a structured way the life project—that meant putting their dreams into words and learning to plan their future lives. They did it at the beginning of the school year, in an activity conducted with the support of 9th graders that were trained specifically for the task. Only after the whole class arrived at an acceptable proposition for each kid did the teachers enter the classroom, at which point each student could choose a mentor teacher to continue discussing their projects. The results were impressive for both students and instructors.

Using Technology to Leapfrog

Although it might seem utopic, education in low- and middle-income countries can benefit from modern technology even when the basics are lacking, if a more contextualized approach to including such tools in the classroom is taken, as a support to teachers not as an additional subject.

In China, for example, the Ministry of Education offers schools options to use digital classes. In Rio de Janeiro, when I was secretary, we took a similar approach: offering all teachers the use of digital classes prepared by trained instructors. The use of the platform has shown positive impacts on learning. Yet to take full advantage of this tool, connectivity needs to exist. In the absence of this, pen-drives or offline options were provided. Using technology for remedial education was and is still done, even when connectivity is not available.

Other possibilities are the broadcasting of classes to support instruction where specific teachers are not available. An interesting example of this innovative practice was highlighted in the Millions Learning report from the Center for Universal Education at Brookings. The school system in the state of Amazonas in Brazil had the challenge of providing physics and chemistry classes in the Amazon jungle for high school students. The solution was to enlist a teacher to broadcast classes and provide schools with a generalist teacher to ensure class participation and student engagement.

The use of technology in these examples show the possible advantages of bringing resources and a knowledge base that is not yet available in every classroom. On the other hand, the fact that in the education ecosystem it exists somewhere and may be mobilized is of great help and doesn’t give teachers the sense of disempowerment, since it is prepared by teachers from within the Amazonas system or by members of the community and not by a distant company located in another country.

Conclusions

The SDG-4 demands an organized effort to ensure that every child and adolescent in the world has the means to complete quality primary and secondary school, as well as develop skills to live a healthy and productive life. Unfortunately, as uncertainty grows, this task seems almost impossible—even in high-income countries—as more complex skills are demanded by employers and globalization requiring individuals who understand the challenges the planet is facing and that can operate in different geographies.

What should be the role of teachers, in such an environment, especially in low- and middle-income countries? This is the question I have tried to answer here, providing some clues of what could be done to ensure that the United Nation’s goal can actually produce a more educated global society, and that a better world might emerge.

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How to Thrive in the 21st Century

• Posted November 22, 2016
• By Heather Beasley Doyle

When Fernando Reimers , a professor of international education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE), talks and writes about what he wants children around the world to learn, the conversation runs deep and reaches far. Individual success, he says, increasingly depends upon students’ interpersonal dexterity, creativity, and ability to innovate. And our collective success — our ability to navigate complexities and to build and sustain a peaceful world — also hinges on these kinds of skills. Together, these skills form the basis of an emerging set of core competencies that will influence education policy and practice around the world.

In Teaching and Learning for the Twenty-First Century , Reimers and his co-editor, HGSE lecturer Connie K. Chung , explore how school systems in six countries are defining and supporting these global competencies. Their aim is to develop a shared framework for promoting the skills students will need in order to thrive as global citizens in a sustainable world in the decades ahead.

“Young people are in a context where they’re saturated and inundated with issues from around the world,” says Chung. Between new technologies, multiplying media, and layers of intercontinental connection, “global citizenship education is a ‘must have’ and not a ‘nice to have’ — for everyone,” says Chung.

Reimers and Chung used the National Research Council’s 2012 report, Education for Life and Work: Developing Transferable Knowledge and Skills in the 21st Century , as a jumping off point for their investigation of policies and curricula that are best positioned to nurture global citizens. That report (read the research brief here) identifies three broad domains of competence: cognitive, intrapersonal, and interpersonal. “This is not just talking about knowledge,” says Chung. Rather, it includes such strengths as intercultural literacy, self-discipline, and flexibility in social and work domains.

The Cognitive Competencies

As Chung suggests, the 21st-century global citizen’s cognitive skill set includes traditional, testable basics such as math and literacy, but extends beyond that to encompass a particularly strong emphasis on the world in which we live. “Current events highlight some of the fears around otherness,” she says. The key to informed citizenship is getting to know other cultures — and valuing them.

In addition to rounding out kids’ knowledge base to include a nuanced understanding of world geography and cultures , schools must teach them the skills to use this knowledge as active and engaged citizens.

That means being able to:

• Communicate effectively and listen actively
• Use evidence and assess information
• Speak at least one language beyond one’s native tongue
• Think critically and analyze local and global issues, challenges, and opportunities
• Reason logically and interpret clearly
• Become and remain digitally literate, including the ability to “weigh and judge the validity of the content that’s in front of you,” Chung says.

In some ways, digital literacy is a linchpin of the other competencies. “Technology gives us humans the possibility to collaborate in ways that are unprecedented, to think and produce things no one could produce individually,” Reimers says.

The Interpersonal Competencies

Empathy is a cornerstone 21st-century global competency. We’re all familiar with empathy between individuals: someone’s hurt, and another person deeply understands the pain. But Reimers and Chung envision the concept on a global scale. Empathy resides in the ability to consider the complexity of issues , Chung says — in an interconnected worldview that recognizes that “what we do impacts someone else.”

Anchored in tolerance and respect for other people, interpersonal intelligence breaks down into several overlapping skills, including:

• Collaboration
• Teamwork and cooperation
• Leadership and responsibility
• Assertive communication
• Social influence

As Reimers says, “We need to make sure that we can get along, and that we can see our differences as an opportunity, as a source of strength.” Both regionally and nationally, students need the skills to transcend the limits of fragmentation, “where people can only relate to those who they perceive to be like them.”

The Intrapersonal Competencies

A particular blend of honed personal characteristics underpins the cognitive and intrapersonal competencies. Reimers points to an ethical orientation and strong work and mind habits, including self-regulation and intellectual openness , as traits that 21st-century educators must nurture in their students.

The world is less predictable than it used to be: “People know that half of the jobs that are going to be around 10 years from now have not been invented,” Reimers says. That means teaching young people in such a way that makes them flexible and adaptable . It means enabling them to think of themselves as creators and inventors who feel comfortable taking the initiative and persevering — the skills necessary for starting one’s own business, for example.

Instilling in students the value of thinking beyond the short term will give them the best chance to tackle some of the world’s most daunting challenges, including climate change. For example, educators in Singapore were challenged to imagine their country not five, 10, or 15 years down the road, but 30 years in the future, Chung says. Encouraging students to think on that kind of a time scale helps them to grasp the reverberations of their actions and decisions.

Values, Attitudes, and Moving to Pedagogy

In Teaching and Learning for the Twenty-First Century  (which has been published in Chinese, Portuguese, and Spanish editions as well), Reimers, Chung, and global colleagues interviewed education researchers and stakeholders in Chile (in a chapter by Cristián Bellei and Liliana Morawietz), China (by Yan Wang), India (by Aditya Natraj, Monal Jayaram, Jahnavi Contractor, and Payal Agrawal), Mexico (by Sergio Cárdenas), Singapore (by Oon-Seng Tan and Ee-Ling Low), and the United States (by Chung and Reimers). They explored curriculum frameworks, seeking to understand how values and attitudes unique to each country and region were informing policy goals and ultimately shaping students’ learning opportunities.

Drawing on that survey of 21st-century competencies and the frameworks for their support, Reimers, Chung, and their digitally connected global network of educators are now teasing out a pedagogy for educators everywhere. Reimers and Chung co-authored (with Vidur Chopra, Julia Higdon, and E.B. O’Donnell) another new book, Empowering Global Citizens, which lays out a K–12 curriculum for global citizenship education called The World Course. Its aim is to position students and communities to thrive amid globalization — to lead, to steward, and to safeguard this complex world in the current century and beyond.

Additional Resources

• The Think Tank on Global Education , a professional education program with Fernando Reimers that invites teachers to experiment with a new curriulum on empowering global citizens
• The Global Education Innovation Initiative , a multi-country exploration of education for the 21st century, led by Reimers
• The introduction [PDF] of Teaching and Learning in the 21st Century , which describes the rationale for the book’s comparative study
• Fifteen Letters on Education in Singapore , in which U.S. educators visit Singapore to learn how that country’s education innovations have fueled a prosperous knowledge economy — and what lessons may apply. (Available as a f ree Kindle book .)
• Reflections on turning students into global citizens
• Creating a Course for the World  (a Harvard EdCast exploring the new global curriculum)

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EDUCATION IN THE 21st CENTURY

07 Sep EDUCATION IN THE 21st CENTURY

The value of a 21st century education.

Success looks different now than it did in the past. High-achieving people are frequently choosing to opt out of the traditional job market and create their own jobs. Successful people increasingly expect to be able to:

• Live and work anywhere in the world
• Travel as often as they like, for as long as they like
• Change what they’re working on to keep up with their interests and abilities
• Enjoy earning potential that is not capped by a salary figure
• Work with peers across the globe
• Outsource things they don’t like doing
• Choose their own hours and office

For people who don’t live like this it can sound far-fetched, but this kind of lifestyle is growing rapidly. What does it take to access and thrive with this kind of freedom? The answer is surprisingly simple, and can be best summed up as ‘a 21st century education’.

20TH CENTURY EDUCATION

In the preface to the 2011 revised edition of his book ‘Out of Our Minds’, Sir Ken Robinson observes that ‘The more complex the world becomes, the more creative we need to be to meet its challenges’, and this is becoming increasingly clear in education and the workplace. People now need to be creative to be successful, but while the idea of success has changed, the education system has not always adjusted its methods or goals to meet it.

A 20th century education emphasised compliance and conformity over creativity, two skills that were necessary to do well in a professional or corporate environment and to hold down a good job for decades. Compliance and conformity are now a relic, but they are still key values in many schools, informing policy even when not being expressly promoted to students.

In his book ‘Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Dragon?’, educational thought leader Yong Zhao warns, “National standards and national curriculum, enforced by high-stakes testing, can at best teach students what is prescribed… As a result, students talented in other areas never have the opportunity to discover those talents. Students with broader interests are discouraged, not rewarded. The system results in a population with similar skills in a narrow spectrum of talents. But especially in today’s society, innovation and creativity are needed in many areas, some as yet undiscovered.”

Unfortunately, most students continue to be educated in the same way as they were in the past, being taught a standardised curriculum through rote learning and individualised testing, at a one-size-fits-all pace. Far too many students are struggling to learn because they are disengaged and lack motivation. Why go to school when you could learn the same information faster by watching a Youtube video or playing a computer game? Why memorise facts for a test when you have all the information in the palm of your hand anyway? Past methods make little sense to today’s students who learn and think differently, and they make little sense in relation to the changing workplace, where making use of information is now far more valuable than simply knowing things. Schools are failing to teach students to respond to rapid change and how to handle new information because they are clinging to obsolete methods.

21ST CENTURY STUDENTS

Generation Z – born between 1995 and 2009 – most do not remember life without the internet, and have had technology like smartphones, iPads, smartboards and other devices available throughout most of their schooling. Generation Alpha – born since 2010 – they are younger than smartphones, the iPad, 3D television, Instagram, and music streaming apps like Spotify. This is the first generation likely to see in the 22nd century in large numbers.

Growing up with this level of technology means growing up with a completely unprecedented amount of information at your fingertips. There are kids who have never been more than a few seconds away from the answers to their questions, with everything just a quick search away. They are able to teach themselves about any topic they are interested in without even leaving their bedroom.The current cohort of students come from Generation Z and Generation Alpha. These two generations have grown up with advanced technology as a given in their homes and classrooms. They are digital natives, as comfortable using apps and code as their grandparents were flipping pages.

Generations Z and Alpha are also the most internationally connected in history. They encounter people online from all over the world, and can easily make friends on the other side of the planet before they have even left their home state. Schools and parents are also increasingly offering children and young people the opportunity to travel, creating a truly borderless experience of learning.

The students in our schools today are intelligent, independent and extremely capable. They are skilled with technology and comfortable with global and intercultural communication. We can expect that future generations are going to have even more experience in these areas.

A 21ST CENTURY EDUCATION

A 21st century education is about giving students the skills they need to succeed in this new world, and helping them grow the confidence to practice those skills. With so much information readily available to them, 21st century skills focus more on making sense of that information, sharing and using it in smart ways.

The coalition P21 (Partnership for 21st Century Learning) has identified four ‘Skills for Today’ :

• Critical thinking
• Communication
• Collaboration

These four themes are not to be understood as units or even subjects, but as themes that should be overlaid across all curriculum mapping and strategic planning. They should be part of every lesson in the same way as literacy and numeracy.

Creativity is about thinking through information in new ways, making new connections and coming up with innovative solutions to problems. Critical thinking is about analysing information and critiquing claims. Communication is understanding things well enough to share them clearly with other people. Collaboration is about teamwork and the collective genius of a group that is more than the sum of its parts.

There are other skills that are important, which fall within these four areas. Entrepreneurship can be considered a skill of its own. Inquiry and problem solving are key. Emotional intelligence (EQ) is one of the most important keys to successful work and relationships. The bottom line? Education needs to be all about empowering students with transferable skills that will hold up to a rapidly changing world, not prescribed content that has been chosen for its past relevance.

DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY

While digital integration is also fundamental to a thorough 21st century education, it is not enough to simply add technology to existing teaching methods. Technology must be used strategically to benefit students. Students are increasingly advanced users of technology even as they enter school for the first time, so this can often mean being open to the possibilities presented rather than attempting to teach and prescribe the use of certain programs. Many a classroom ‘technology class’ has baffled children by attempting to teach them about programs, websites and hardware that are no longer relevant or that they understand far better than the teacher does.

INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION

21st century schools are also responding to demand by moving into international education. ISC Research have tracked these changes in their research. In the past, international schools were primarily for the families of military personnel and diplomats. In the year 2000 there were 2,500 international schools globally with fewer than one million students attending, but in December 2016 there were over 8,600 international schools with almost 4.5 million students. The vast majority of these students are now local children hoping to attend university in the West. Schools which aren’t traditional ‘international schools’ are also striving to create an internationally connected education through travel opportunities, exchange programs, school partnerships, international school leadership, and online communication. Learning to be a global citizen is crucial in a world where technology is erasing borders, and you don’t necessarily need an international education masters degree to incorporate this into your teaching.

21st century teachers need to serve as a guide or mentor for their students, not as the all-knowing sage providing them with all their information. With so much access to resources of all kinds, children are invariably going to know more than teachers on different topics, and be a step ahead of the technology in use. Teachers need to be empowered as facilitators and motivators for learning, so that they can empower their students in turn.

This shift is great news for teachers. Instead of struggling to give kids all the information they need to succeed in areas the teacher knows little about, they can support students as they make their own steps into different fields. It’s about preparing kids to go beyond their parents and teachers, making sure they have the skills to do it, and then helping along the way as they build confidence to achieve.

This means teachers need to be forward-thinking, curious and flexible. Teachers must be learners: learning new ways of teaching, and learning alongside their students. Simply asking questions like “what will my students need twenty or fifty years from now? How can I help give them those skills?” can change your mindset, make you a leader, and help you bring about change in your classroom, school and community.

Start today: Practical tips for a 21st century school Invite students to contribute to strategy meetings and decision making Create adaptable learning environments suited to different sorts of collaboration and group work Encourage students to take ownership of community service programs Find ways to connect students to people their age in other parts of the world Review your use of technology in the classroom: how can it be made more effective?

In a time when mental health and wellbeing is one of the biggest challenges facing young people, a 21st century education can give students the skills they need both for now and for the future. Skills like communication, critical thinking and EQ go beyond the workplace: they can help people through the most difficult times of their life. Finding your passion, doing it well, having a sense of purpose and focus, and being able to control your own work and life are all significant steps on the path to wellbeing.

RESULT The ability to think critically and creatively, to collaborate with others, and to communicate clearly sets students up for success in their careers, but also empowers them to lead happier, healthier lives.

Bringing your school into the 21st century requires taking the lead instead of trailing behind, actively seeking out new ways of doing things and staying in touch with the world outside of the education system. Change on a broad scale requires leadership in the classroom and across the school community, but every teacher can take steps immediately to help their students succeed.

For inspiration, empowerment, proven techniques and strategies in 21st century leadership check out my ONLINE COURSE: Leadership for the 21st Century.

WHAT PEOPLE SAY: Outstanding presenter. This online course is an outstanding collection of data, strategies and resources that will help empower aspiring leaders and refresh current leaders to take their school to a whole new level. The energy, knowledge, passion and belief of the presenter was infectious. The online course had an amazing impact on our leadership team. We felt inspired and empowered to create change at our school. Loads of tools and strategies to help me grow as a leader. An excellent learning tool. Highly recommend this leadership course –  relevant, authentic & very practical. Inspirational! Comprehensive, engaging and certainly relevant. Thank you so much for empowering me to realise and value what is vital and imperative to ensure you are the best leader within your capabilities to empower change and positivity within your working environment.

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Maxine Driscoll is the Founder and Visionary at  Think Strategic  &  Think Leadership . She has been innovating and leading high performance teams in Australia and internationally for 25+ years. Let her fast-track you, your team, business, organisation or school to an innovative pathway for success in uncertain times.

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How Do You Define 21st-Century Learning?

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The term “21st-century skills” is generally used to refer to certain core competencies such as collaboration, digital literacy, critical thinking, and problem-solving that advocates believe schools need to teach to help students thrive in today’s world. In a broader sense, however, the idea of what learning in the 21st century should look like is open to interpretation—and controversy.

To get a sense of how views on the subject align—and differ—we recently asked a range of education experts to define 21st-century learning from their own perspectives.

Richard Allington Professor of Education, University of Tennessee; Early-Reading Expert

I’m an old guy. I’ve never Tweeted, Skyped, Facebooked, or YouTubed. Oddly, I don’t feel the least bit disenfranchised by technology. I am preparing this response on my laptop, I use (though not much) my Blackberry every day, and I will e-mail this response. But I’m still stuck on fostering 18th-century literacy in citizens. As far as I can tell, illiterates rarely use 21st-century literacies if only because they never developed the 18th-century kind of literacy. I think we actually could teach everyone to read (the old way) and for the life of me I cannot understand why schools would spend funds on computers when their libraries are almost empty of things students might want to read. I cannot understand why classrooms have whiteboards but no classroom libraries. The research, to date, has provided no evidence that having either computers or whiteboards in schools has any positive effect on students’ reading and writing proficiencies. But school and classroom libraries are well established as essential if we plan to develop a literate citizenry. However, there is no buzz about books.

Barnett Berry Founder and CEO, Center for Teaching Quality

Twenty-first-century learning means that students master content while producing, synthesizing, and evaluating information from a wide variety of subjects and sources with an understanding of and respect for diverse cultures. Students demonstrate the three Rs, but also the three Cs: creativity, communication, and collaboration. They demonstrate digital literacy as well as civic responsibility. Virtual tools and open-source software create borderless learning territories for students of all ages, anytime and anywhere.

Powerful learning of this nature demands well-prepared teachers who draw on advances in cognitive science and are strategically organized in teams, in and out of cyberspace. Many will emerge as teacherpreneurs who work closely with students in their local communities while also serving as learning concierges, virtual network guides, gaming experts, community organizers, and policy researchers.

Sarah Brown Wessling 2010 National Teacher of the Year

Twenty-first-century learning embodies an approach to teaching that marries content to skill. Without skills, students are left to memorize facts, recall details for worksheets, and relegate their educational experience to passivity. Without content, students may engage in problem-solving or team-working experiences that fall into triviality, into relevance without rigor. Instead, the 21st-century learning paradigm offers an opportunity to synergize the margins of the content vs. skills debate and bring it into a framework that dispels these dichotomies. Twenty-first-century learning means hearkening to cornerstones of the past to help us navigate our future. Embracing a 21st-century learning model requires consideration of those elements that could comprise such a shift: creating learners who take intellectual risks, fostering learning dispositions, and nurturing school communities where everyone is a learner.

Karen Cator Director, Office of Educational Technology, U.S. Department of Education

Success in the 21st century requires knowing how to learn. Students today will likely have several careers in their lifetime. They must develop strong critical thinking and interpersonal communication skills in order to be successful in an increasingly fluid, interconnected, and complex world. Technology allows for 24/7 access to information, constant social interaction, and easily created and shared digital content. In this setting, educators can leverage technology to create an engaging and personalized environment to meet the emerging educational needs of this generation. No longer does learning have to be one-size-fits-all or confined to the classroom. The opportunities afforded by technology should be used to re-imagine 21st-century education, focusing on preparing students to be learners for life.

Milton Chen Senior Fellow & Executive Director, Emeritus, The George Lucas Educational Foundation; author of Education Nation: Six Leading Edges of Innovation in Our Schools

Twenty-first-century learning shouldn’t be controversial. It is simply an effort to define modern learning using modern tools. (The problem is that what’s modern in 2010 has accelerated far beyond 2000, a year which now seems “so last century.”)

Twenty-first-century learning builds upon such past conceptions of learning as “core knowledge in subject areas” and recasts them for today’s world, where a global perspective and collaboration skills are critical. It’s no longer enough to “know things.” It’s even more important to stay curious about finding out things.

The Internet, which has enabled instant global communication and access to information, likewise holds the key to enacting a new educational system, where students use information at their fingertips and work in teams to accomplish more than what one individual can alone, mirroring the 21st-century workplace. If 10 years from now we are still debating 21st-century learning, it would be a clear sign that a permanent myopia has clouded what should be 20/20 vision.

Steven Farr Chief Knowledge Officer, Teach For America; author of Teaching as Leadership: The Highly Effective Teacher’s Guide to Closing the Achievement Gap

Twenty-first-century learning must include the 20th-century ideals of Brown v. Board of Education . Sadly, we have failed to deliver on that promise. Our system perpetuates a racial and socioeconomic achievement gap that undermines our ideals of freedom, equality, and opportunity.

As we study what distinguishes highly effective teachers in our nation’s most challenging contexts, we see that education reform requires much more than lists of skills. We need classroom leaders setting an ambitious vision, rallying others to work hard to achieve it, planning and executing to ensure student learning, and defining the very notion of teaching as changing the life paths of students. What will make America a global leader in the 21st century is acting on what we know to educate all children, regardless of socioeconomic background.

Steve Hargadon Founder, Classroom 2.0; Social Learning Consultant, Elluminate

Twenty-first-century learning will ultimately be “learner-driven.” Our old stories of education (factory-model, top-down, compliance-driven) are breaking down or broken, and this is because the Internet is releasing intellectual energy that comes from our latent desires as human beings to have a voice, to create, and to participate. The knowledge-based results look a lot like free-market economies or democratic governments (think: Wikipedia ). Loosely governed and highly self-directed, these teaching and learning activities exist beyond the sanction or control of formal educational institutions. I believe the political and institutional responses will be to continue to promote stories about education that are highly-structured and defined from above, like national standards or (ironically) the teaching of 21st-century skills. These will, however, seem increasingly out-of-sync not just with parents, educators, and administrators watching the Internet Revolution, but with students, who themselves are largely prepared to drive their own educations.

Lynne Munson President and Executive Director, Common Core

I define 21st-century learning as 20th- (or even 19th!-) century learning but with better tools. Today’s students are fortunate to have powerful learning tools at their disposal that allow them to locate, acquire, and even create knowledge much more quickly than their predecessors. But being able to Google is no substitute for true understanding. Students still need to know and deeply understand the history that brought them and our nation to where we are today. They need to be able to enjoy man’s greatest artistic and scientific achievements and to speak a language besides their mother tongue. According to most 21st-century skills’ advocates, students needn’t actually walk around with such knowledge in their heads, they need only to have the skills to find it. I disagree. Twenty-first-century technology should be seen as an opportunity to acquire more knowledge, not an excuse to know less.

Keith Moore Director, Bureau of Indian Education, Department of Interior

Students in the 21st century learn in a global classroom and it’s not necessarily within four walls. They are more inclined to find information by accessing the Internet through cellphones and computers, or chatting with friends on a social networking site. Similarly, many teachers are monitoring and issuing assignments via virtual classrooms.

Many of our Bureau of Indian Education schools are located in disadvantaged rural and remote areas. The BIE is working with various stakeholders to ensure that our schools have a Common Operating Environment so that students and teachers can access information beyond the classroom.

Within the federal BIE school system, we must rely upon the vision and the ability of our tribal leadership, parents, teachers, and students to work with the federal leadership to keep education a top priority.

Diane Ravitch Education Historian; author of The Death and Life of the Great American School System

To be prepared for the 21st century, our children require the following skills and knowledge: an understanding of history, civics, geography, mathematics, and science, so they may comprehend unforeseen events and act wisely; the ability to speak, write, and read English well; mastery of a foreign language; engagement in the arts, to enrich their lives; close encounters with great literature, to gain insight into timeless dilemmas and the human condition; a love of learning, so they continue to develop their minds when their formal schooling ends; self-discipline, to pursue their goals to completion; ethical and moral character; the social skills to collaborate fruitfully with others; the ability to use technology wisely; the ability to make and repair useful objects, for personal independence; and the ability to play a musical instrument, for personal satisfaction.

Susan Rundell Singer Laurence McKinley Gould Professor of Natural Sciences, Carleton College

Adaptability, complex communication skills, non-routine problem solving, self-management, and systems-thinking are essential skills in the 21st-century workforce. From my perspective as a scientist and science educator, the most effective way to prepare students for the workforce and college is to implement and scale what is already known about effective learning and teaching. Content vs. process wars should be ancient history, based on the evidence from the learning sciences. Integrating core concepts with key skills will prepare students for the workplace and college. We need to move past mile-wide and inch-deep coverage of ever-expanding content in the classroom. Developing skills in the context of core concepts is simply good practice. It’s time to let go of polarizing debates, consider the evidence, and get to work.

A version of this article appeared in the October 12, 2010 edition of Teacher PD Sourcebook as How Do You Define 21st-Century Learning?

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Home — Essay Samples — Education — College Education — The Multifaceted Importance of College Education in the 21st Century

The Multifaceted Importance of College Education in The 21st Century

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Published: Mar 8, 2024

Words: 648 | Page: 1 | 4 min read

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Intellectual empowerment, experiential learning, social integration, career development.

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Essay on Teaching In The 21St Century

Students are often asked to write an essay on Teaching In The 21St Century in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on Teaching In The 21St Century

The digital age of learning.

In the 21st century, teaching has transformed dramatically due to the rise of technology. Classrooms are no longer confined to physical spaces; instead, they have expanded to include virtual platforms, making education accessible to learners worldwide.

Technology as a Teaching Tool

Technology has become an indispensable tool in modern classrooms. Interactive whiteboards, tablets, and laptops allow teachers to engage students with dynamic presentations, videos, and simulations. Online platforms facilitate collaboration, enabling students to work together on projects regardless of location.

Personalized Learning

With the aid of technology, teachers can tailor instruction to meet the unique needs of each student. Adaptive learning software tracks individual progress and adjusts the curriculum accordingly. This approach ensures that every student receives targeted support and has the opportunity to succeed.

Global Connectivity

The internet has broken down geographical barriers, allowing students to connect with peers from different cultures and backgrounds. Virtual exchange programs and online forums provide opportunities for students to learn about diverse perspectives and develop global awareness.

Lifelong Learning

In the 21st century, learning is no longer limited to formal educational institutions. The internet has made it possible for individuals to pursue lifelong learning through online courses, webinars, and tutorials. This flexibility allows people to continuously update their skills and knowledge, adapting to the ever-changing demands of the modern world.

The Role of the Teacher

While technology has transformed teaching methods, the role of the teacher remains crucial. Teachers are no longer solely providers of information; instead, they are facilitators of learning. They guide students in navigating the vast ocean of information available online, helping them develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills.

Challenges and Opportunities

The integration of technology in education also presents challenges. Ensuring equitable access to technology and addressing the digital divide are ongoing concerns. Additionally, teachers must continuously adapt to new technologies and pedagogical approaches. However, these challenges also bring forth opportunities to create more engaging, personalized, and globally connected learning experiences.

Teaching in the 21st century is characterized by the transformative power of technology. Classrooms have evolved into dynamic digital spaces, providing students with personalized learning experiences, global connectivity, and lifelong learning opportunities. As technology continues to advance, teachers play a pivotal role in guiding students through this rapidly changing educational landscape.

250 Words Essay on Teaching In The 21St Century

Teaching in the 21st century: embracing innovation and technology.

The 21st century has brought about profound changes in teaching and learning. Educators have witnessed a transition from traditional chalk-and-talk methods to a more dynamic and student-centered approach to education. In this modern era, teachers have embraced innovation and technology, recognizing their transformative potential in shaping the minds of young learners.

Technology as a Catalyst for Learning

Technology has become an integral part of teaching and learning in the 21st century. Interactive whiteboards, tablets, and laptops are now commonplace in classrooms, allowing teachers to deliver lessons in a more engaging and visually appealing manner. Students can explore educational apps, conduct research, and collaborate on projects using these tools, enhancing their learning experience.

Blended Learning: A Fusion of Modalities

Modern teaching methods have shifted towards blended learning, which skillfully combines face-to-face instruction with online learning platforms. Students can access learning materials and participate in online discussions at their own pace, while classroom time is dedicated to interactive activities, group work, and creative projects. This flexible approach fosters independence, time management skills, and encourages students to take ownership of their learning journey.

Empowering Students through Personalized Learning

In the 21st century, teaching has undergone a shift from a one-size-fits-all approach to personalized learning. Teachers utilize data-driven insights to tailor instruction to each student’s needs, interests, and learning styles. By identifying learning gaps and strengths, educators can provide targeted support and create differentiated learning pathways. This personalized approach ensures that all students have the opportunity to thrive and reach their full potential.

Fostering Collaboration and Communication

The 21st century teaching emphasizes collaboration and communication skills, preparing students for a globalized and interconnected world. Teachers encourage students to work together on projects, engage in peer-to-peer learning, and participate in discussions. These opportunities develop teamwork, problem-solving abilities, and effective communication skills, which are highly valued in the modern workplace.

Teaching in the 21st century is a dynamic and ever-evolving landscape. Educators have embraced innovation and technology, creating engaging and personalized learning experiences for students. With technology as a catalyst, blended learning models, and a focus on personalized learning, students are empowered to become independent thinkers, effective communicators, and resourceful learners. In this digital age, teachers play a pivotal role in cultivating the skills and knowledge necessary for students to thrive in the 21st century and beyond.

500 Words Essay on Teaching In The 21St Century

Teaching in the 21st century.

Teaching methods have undergone a profound transformation in the 21st century, driven by technological advancements, globalization, and changing student demographics. In this modern era, effective teaching embraces a dynamic and engaging approach that empowers students to thrive in a rapidly evolving world.

Technology-Enabled Learning

The integration of technology has revolutionized the teaching and learning landscape. Interactive whiteboards, tablets, and laptops have become essential tools in classrooms, allowing for multimedia presentations, online research, and collaborative projects. Virtual learning platforms facilitate blended learning, where students access digital resources and engage in online discussions, enhancing their learning experience beyond the physical classroom.

Student-Centered Approach

The 21st century teacher recognizes the importance of student-centered learning. This approach shifts the focus from rote memorization to critical thinking, problem-solving, and creativity. Teachers encourage active participation and collaboration, fostering a classroom environment where students feel comfortable sharing ideas and taking risks. Differentiation, or adapting instruction to meet the needs of individual students, is key to ensuring that all learners succeed.

Global Citizenship and Cultural Awareness

Globalization has made it essential for students to develop a global mindset and an appreciation for diverse cultures. Teachers incorporate global issues and perspectives into their lessons, helping students understand the interconnectedness of the world and the importance of empathy and understanding. They also encourage students to learn foreign languages, which opens doors to new opportunities and enhances intercultural communication.

Entrepreneurial Thinking and Innovation

In a rapidly changing job market, students need to be equipped with entrepreneurial skills and a mindset that embraces innovation. Teachers foster creativity and encourage students to think outside the box. Project-based learning, where students work on real-world problems, helps them develop problem-solving skills and the ability to collaborate effectively. Encouraging students to embrace failure as a learning opportunity builds resilience and promotes a growth mindset.

Lifelong Learning and Adaptability

In the 21st century, learning does not end with graduation. Teachers instill in students a love of learning and the ability to adapt to changing circumstances. They encourage students to be curious and seek knowledge beyond the classroom, whether through online courses, workshops, or personal interests. Teachers also help students develop strong research skills, enabling them to evaluate information critically and make informed decisions.

In conclusion, teaching in the 21st century is about preparing students for success in a dynamic and interconnected world. By embracing technology, adopting a student-centered approach, promoting global citizenship, fostering entrepreneurial thinking, and nurturing lifelong learning, teachers empower students to become active, informed, and responsible members of society.

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Demystifying Learning Frameworks: The P21 Framework

The P21 Framework is a model for incorporating 21st century skills into learning. It was developed by a coalition of the US Department of Education, businesses including Apple, AOL, Microsoft, Cisco, and SAP, and organizations involved in education such as the NEA. Collectively, this coalition is known as the Partnership for 21st Century Learning. It was first published in 2006 and has been continuously updated, most recently in 2015.

Overall Goal

This framework was created to combine a set of competencies that emphasizes 21st Century Skills for students and supports teachers in teaching those skills. It uses core academic subjects as a vehicle for  teaching life and career skills, learning and innovation skills, and information and media skills. These skills allow students to be better-prepared for today’s highly collaborative, innovation-focused workforce. For this reason, student outcomes in this framework are often described in terms of the future impact they will have for students when they seek employment.

P21 has the advantage of being a very general framework. It covers a lot of subjects and many potential strategies to train teachers and influence student outcomes. Its broad base allows it to be easily adaptable for both in-school and out-of-school activities. Details on the components of each of these outcomes are available on the P21 website.

Theoretical Basis

Much of the P21 Framework’s basis comes from a belief that children need the proper opportunities and avenues to gain the skills for careers.The coalition formed in an attempt to better prepare children for the challenges of the modern working world, and this framework is motivated by a desire for college and career-oriented education. The skills that the P21 lists are considered crucial for success in the workplace by all sectors.

The foundation believes that work environments are more complex in today’s society, so students must be able to integrate the traditional academic core with interdisciplinary skills that are more reflective of those complexities. They will gain these skills by integrating core content and interdisciplinary themes, and engaging in activities that promote Creativity, Critical Thinking, Communication, and Collaboration–the P21’s research-based 4C’s . Many of these opportunities for integrating core knowledge and critical thinking skills stem from technological literacy and related areas like media literacy. These literacies are translated into a list of competencies that students should master by the time they leave school.

Competency Basis

The core academic subjects include traditional subjects (Language arts, math, science, history, etc.) as well as a cluster of interdisciplinary subjects including  Global Awareness, Financial, Economic, Business, and Entrepreneurial Literacy, Civic Literacy, Health Literacy, and Environmental Literacy. These competencies measure the outcomes of student learning.

P21 recommends that instruction in these subjects incorporate opportunities for students to also gain additional competencies critical for success in the 21st century:

• Learning and Innovation Skills (the so-called 4Cs) are Creative Thinking, Collaboration, Communication, and Critical Thinking and Problem Solving. These skills were picked for their use in complex work environments. Many of these skills have a design thinking flavor to them.
• Information, Media, and Technology Skills are the tools that students will learn to master both digital and non-digital media. Media is used as a creative tool, but also as an object to be evaluated for accuracy, effectiveness, and ethical considerations.
• Life and Career Skills are the habits and mindsets that students should develop when they learn from this framework. Some of these skills are internal, while others are based on interactions with others. These skills include accepting feedback, working in teams, and adapting well to change.

Instructional Approach

This framework is primarily directed toward in-school interventions, but it can be applied to out-of-school activities as well.

Support systems are the portion of the P21 Framework designed to give teachers the tools to influence student outcomes. They include guidelines for assessments, professional development, and learning environments to ensure teachers are prepared to work within the framework.These systems are designed to encourage teachers to create lessons and assessments based on the key subjects, while involving technology, and inquiry- and problem-based learning in lesson delivery to help students build 21st century skills.

P21 highlights Exemplar Schools who are evaluated based on their implementation of the core content, use of engaging teaching methods, and presence of the following support systems.

• Standards and Assessments focus on the skills associated with 21st Century content and measure mastery through standardized testing, inquiry- and project-based learning, and portfolio development. Assessments can also be enhanced by technology to provide students with a new medium for creative expression and feedback from the teacher.
• Curriculum and Instruction teaches 21st Century Skills as both individual competencies and as tools to be used to navigate the core curriculum.
• Professional Development gives teachers the skills to integrate 21st century themes into core content through projects and inquiries and to support that integration with technology.
• Learning Environments support teachers who collaborate and create relevant learning experiences for students involving 21st century skills. Well-planned environments encourage group work and provide equitable access to technology.

Method of Assessment

P21 advocates for a variety of assessments, including standardized testing and project and problem-based assessments. Additionally, P21 assesses schools by allowing districts to apply to be considered Exemplars.

Example: Avonworth School District

The P21 Framework awarded Avonworth School District with the title of “Exemplar School” thanks to their effective use of the framework in curriculum design. Tom Ralston, Superintendent, says the framework “has helped our educators to view learning through an important lens that embeds collaboration, critical thinking, creativity, and communication into learning experiences for children.” He saw its adoption as a way to make sure the district’s students are trained as the problem solvers and self-guided learners that are needed in today’s workforce. The district has created experiences that introduce teachers to community members working in fields related to their content area to help them create innovative, relevant lessons. Ralston has helped create an environment where teachers feel they can take risks in their lessons to help students develop the positive characteristics that will help their students succeed. “The acknowledgement that Avonworth High School has been recognized as a P21 Exemplar School is a wonderful affirmation of the educational program that our teachers and administrators facilitate for students,” says Tom. The P21 Exemplar status has been a source of pride for the district, and it has helped them work to prepare students for the future.

External Resources

• A list of P21 competencies
• Evaluation criteria for P21 Exemplar Schools
• Roadmap for 21st Century Learning Environments
• P21 YouTube Channel
• A Parent’s Guide to 21st-Century Learning
• Partnership for 21st Century Skills Resource Library

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The pros and cons of assigning essays in 21st century education.

The 21st century has seen a dramatic shift in the world of education. Technology and innovative learning strategies are transforming the way that students acquire knowledge. As such, educators and educational institutions must consider the most effective assessment methods to ensure that students are successful. One approach commonly employed in education is the assignment of essays. In this article, we will explore the pros and cons of assigning essays in the 21st century and outline strategies for maximizing their benefits while mitigating their drawbacks.

Definition of Essays in the Context of 21st Century Education

An essay is a written composition that requires the writer to analyze a subject, form an argument, and support their conclusions with evidence. In the context of 21st century education, essays are frequently employed as an assessment tool. Assigning essay topics allows educators to evaluate students' understanding of topics, as well as their ability to communicate effectively about those topics.

Pros of Assigning Essays

The primary advantage of assigning essays is that it enables students to develop several important skills.

Development of Critical Thinking Skills

Perhaps the most important benefit of assigning essays is that it encourages students to engage in critical thinking. Essays require that students think deeply about a topic, analyzing the information and forming a logical argument that supports their point of view. By requiring evidence-based support, essay assignments stimulate students to develop their critical reasoning skills.

Enhancement of Writing and Communication Skills

Writing an essay also offers students the opportunity to refine their writing and communication abilities. Through essay assignments, students become more adept at organizing their thoughts and articulating their ideas in a clear and concise manner. Additionally, essay assignments necessitate practice in researching and citing sources. This not only familiarizes students with the process of scholarly research but also equips them with important skills that can be used in a variety of real-world scenarios.

Encouragement of Creativity and Self-Expression

Another advantage of assigning essays is that it provides students with the freedom to explore their unique perspectives and express their creativity. By providing engaging writing prompts, essay assignments allow students to exercise their imaginations. Through essay writing, students can communicate their ideas in an engaging manner, providing a platform for self-expression.

Assessment of Subject Knowledge

Finally, essay assignments are an effective way for educators to assess students' mastery of a subject. By evaluating a student's essay, teachers can determine if they understand the material and can defend their arguments with evidence. Furthermore, essay assignments can provide insight into a student's thought process, enabling teachers to identify any gaps in their understanding.

Cons of Assigning Essays

Although there are several advantages of assigning essays, there are also drawbacks that must be addressed. 

Time-Consuming for Students and Teachers

Writing an essay can be an extremely time-consuming process for students and teachers alike. Essay assignments require extensive planning, research, and writing. Furthermore, the feedback and revision process can also be lengthy, which is why many students seek out professional paper writing websites to save them time and provide them with a quality essay. Teachers also have to spend a large amount of time grading and providing constructive feedback on multiple student essays. Thankfully, paper writing websites can assist teachers in providing more efficient and comprehensive feedback, allowing them to be more time-efficient in their assessment of students' essays.

Potential for Subjective Grading

Another issue with essay assignments is that grading can be subjective. While objective criteria can be employed, interpretation of essays can vary among different teachers and lead to inconsistent evaluations. This can be especially difficult if essay topics are open-ended and left open to interpretation.

Limited Scope for Collaborative Learning

Additionally, essay assignments tend to be focused on individual work and independent thinking. This can make it difficult to integrate collaborative learning activities into essay assignments.

Furthermore, it can exclude visual or auditory learners who may struggle to express their understanding through writing.

Inadequate Representation of Diverse Learning Styles

Finally, essay assignments can also be inadequate in representing the range of diverse learning styles. Some students may find it difficult to communicate their knowledge through writing and may benefit more from other forms of assessment.

Mitigating the Cons and Maximizing the Pros

Although there are drawbacks to assigning essays, there are steps that educators can take to maximize their benefits while minimizing their drawbacks.

Incorporating Varied Assessment Methods

In order to accommodate different learning styles and provide a platform for collaborative learning, educators should consider incorporating alternative assessment methods. This includes alternative formats like presentations, projects, or debates as well as technology-based assessments. Integrating exams, quizzes, or practical assessments into the curriculum can also help to assess a variety of different skills.

Providing Timely and Constructive Feedback

The quality of feedback given to students is an important factor in determining the success of essay assignments. As such, educators should provide timely and constructive feedback that helps students develop their writing skills. Additionally, peer review or revision processes can be employed to encourage collaborative learning.

Balancing Essay Assignments with Other Forms of Assessment

Finally, educators should strive to find a balance between essay assignments and other forms of assessment. Adapting essay assignments to be more engaging and relevant to real-world scenarios can help to make them more appealing to students. Furthermore, integrating other assessment methods into the curriculum can provide a more comprehensive assessment of student understanding.

In conclusion, there are both advantages and drawbacks to assigning essays in 21st century education. While essays can be an effective educational tool, it is important for educators to consider the pros and cons and strive to find a balance to best suit their students’ needs. Additionally, educators should explore innovative assessment methods while recognizing the value of essays as a means of measuring subject knowledge and honing writing and communication abilities.

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Designing Our Future: Humanities-Centered Teaching, Learning, and Thinking in the 21st Century

 Call for Proposals for Special Issue

Interdisciplinary Humanities  

Designing Our Future: Humanities-Centered Teaching, Learning, and Thinking in the 21st Century  

Editors: 

Katy Hanggi, Chair & Associate Professor, Dept. of Focused Inquiry, Virginia Commonwealth University

Julianna Grabianowski, Assistant Professor of Business, Doane University

Jared List, Associate Professor of Spanish, Doane University

Special Issue Description

What does the future hold for the humanities? Now, perhaps more than ever, the humanities have the opportunity and the urgency to innovate and adapt to the shifting dimensions of the twenty-first century. The humanities provide valuable habits of minds and skills that prepare students for their professional and personal lives. They teach us about the human condition: how we relate to each other; how we understand and work with differing perspectives; how we express ourselves; how we act ethically; and, how we better come to know ourselves. The disciplined university has traditionally organized the humanities within majors, minors, certificates, and general education courses. This structure creates silos where subjects are taught within a particular discipline with an occasional slippage into other disciplines. With the increasing corporatization of the university and the shrinking of higher education, the humanities have become subject to market forces and student demand, positioning academics to continually demonstrate the “value” of their program, degree, or course.

To push against this rigid structure, some colleges and universities are being creative and innovative with the humanities. Some are trying to infuse the humanities in places where traditionally they have been absent, and some are reconceptualizing and repackaging them. For example, how do the humanities give us a roadmap to determine the ethical boundaries of the non-human, cyborgian networks of knowledge generated by artificial intelligence? Or, how does the growing emphasis on incorporating multidisciplinary “real-world” problem-solving in general education courses demonstrate the necessity of humanities thinking? 

Thus, this special issue which aims to highlight the strategies and unique ways in which we are adapting and responding to the shifts in higher education. What we note is rather than a focus on disciplinary content, we see an emerging emphasis on humanities thinking and its “real-world” application. We have obstacles to confront and many possibilities before us. For example, the pandemic has shown that higher education can pivot quickly, and with those changes, many of us are seeing the speed of change continue to increase amidst the challenges colleges and universities face. Do we continue to operate within and make small changes to the siloed structures that have defined the American university? Or can we imagine new configurations and ways of thinking about our disciplines, courses, and pedagogies that empower us to design our futures?  

Accordingly, we invite scholars to contribute essays that engage with the following questions: 

• How do we center the humanities in interdisciplinary work through meaningful and productive collaborations?
• How do we design humanities courses or programs that generate student interest and demonstrate their value?
• How do we survive the shrinking of higher education amidst an unknown future?
• In what ways can the humanities be positioned as central to institutions’ strategic priorities?
• How can we capitalize on higher education’s emphasis on experiential learning and career preparedness to strengthen our offerings?
• How can innovative pedagogies inform new approaches to the humanities?
• How can online learning be leveraged to extend the reach of what the humanities tell us how to relate to another?
• How does the growth of generative AI impact humanities education in productive, innovative ways?
• What are institutions’ creative responses to the obstacles of interdisciplinarity?
• How do we prepare graduate students for a higher education landscape that is unlikely to provide them with full-time employment in academia?
• How are community colleges drawing connections between the humanities and workforce readiness? 

Proposal Submission Guidelines and Process

Submit essay proposals to [email protected] by  Friday, April 26, 2024 , including the following information: 

• Proposed essay title
• Abstract of 250 words 
• Name(s) of author(s) and academic affiliation(s)
• Brief bio(s) (100 words of less) of author(s)

Essay Guidelines

Essays will meet the following norms:

• 5,000 to 7,000 words (including notes) 
• double spaced, 12-points Times New Roman font, 1” fully-justified margins
• adheres to latest version of  The Chicago Manual of Style
• Endnotes only (notes should show full citations followed by shortened citations for the same sources; single-spaced and 10-points Times New Roman font))
• no bibliography
• quotes over three lines in length need to be in a free-standing block of text with no quotation marks, indented on the left side of the block, and starting the quotation on a new line, with the entire quote indented 1/2 inch from the left margin while maintaining double-spacing;
• permissions to reprint images and illustrations, if any, are the responsibility of the author and should be arranged for and paid before submitting the article;
• sent electronically in MS Word file to editors

Important Dates and Timeline

• Essay proposals deadline: Friday, April 26, 2024
• Notification of accepted essay proposals: Friday, May 10, 2024
• Completed essay deadline: Friday, September 20, 2024
• Anticipated publication: Spring/Summer 2025

Essay proposals will be evaluated on relevance to topic, originality, and clarity. Essay drafts will undergo a double-blind peer review process where reviewers will evaluate originality, clarity, and documentation, and scholarly contribution to decide if the essay is suitable for publication, in need of revision, or not publishable.  

About the Journal We encourage you to take a look at past issues  here  to familiarize yourself with the journal and the published works. Per HERA’s website, “The Humanities Education and Research Association's Scholarly Journal:  Interdisciplinary Humanities is a refereed scholarly journal, published three times a year. The journal accepts articles that deal with ‘any learning activities with content that draws upon human cultural heritage, uses methods that derive from the humanistic disciplines, and has a purpose that is concerned with human values.’ Articles dealing with the interdisciplinary humanities or humanities education at all levels (K-12, college, and adult learning) are welcome, as are creative works of poetry, fiction and non-fiction that reflect the journal's interests and the themes of specific issues.” 

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April 8, 2024 , Filed Under: Uncategorized

Innovative Tools for 21st Century Learning

The landscape of education is rapidly evolving in the 21st century. With the advent of new technologies, the tools and methods used in learning environments have transformed drastically. This article takes a closer look at some innovative tools that are reshaping the ways in which we engage with information, collaborate, and learn in more effective and exciting ways. These tools, devoid of commercial taint, offer a peek into the future of learning.

The Digital Classroom

In the digital age, the traditional classroom setting is being augmented with virtual learning environments . These platforms facilitate a blend of in-person and remote learning opportunities, allowing students to interact with their peers and instructors in dynamic ways. From video conferencing to shared digital whiteboards, the digital classroom breaks down geographical barriers to education.

Immersive Learning with Virtual Reality

Virtual reality (VR) technology has opened up new frontiers in education, enabling immersive learning experiences that were once the stuff of science fiction. By simulating real-world environments or historical events, VR allows students to explore and interact with their subject matter in a hands-on manner, significantly enhancing understanding and retention.

Collaborative Tools for Group Projects

Collaboration is key in modern education. New tools have made it simpler for students and educators to work together on projects, regardless of their physical location. Shared document platforms, task management apps, and real-time editing capabilities ensure that collaborative work is seamless and productive.

Among these collaborative tools, the wiki offers a unique platform for sharing and building knowledge collaboratively. It empowers students and educators to curate content collectively, facilitating a deeper understanding of subjects through communal effort and insights.

Adaptive Assessment Tools

Adaptive assessment tools are reshaping the way educators evaluate student understanding and skills. These tools adjust the difficulty of questions based on the learner’s responses in real-time, providing a more accurate measurement of knowledge and abilities. This approach not only improves the assessment process but also helps in identifying areas where students may need additional support or resources.

Gamification of Education

Turning learning into a game is an approach that has gained momentum in the 21st century. Gamification incorporates game design elements in educational settings, making learning processes more engaging and fun. The competitive and rewarding nature of games motivates students to achieve their educational goals while enjoying the process.

AI and Personalized Learning

Artificial intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing the educational field by providing personalized learning experiences to students. AI can tailor educational content to meet the individual needs of learners, adapting in real time based on their progress. This personalized approach ensures that students receive instruction and practice where they need it most, making the learning process more efficient and effective.

Open Educational Resources (OER)

Open Educational Resources are freely accessible, openly licensed documents and media that are useful for teaching, learning, and research. OERs have surged in popularity, offering a wealth of diverse learning materials to educators and learners worldwide. This democratizes access to education and encourages a culture of sharing and collaboration among the educational community.

Blockchain in Education

The adoption of blockchain technology in education is offering novel solutions to longstanding issues like credential verification and the secure sharing of academic records. By utilizing a decentralized and immutable ledger, educational institutions can provide stakeholders with a tamper-proof record of achievements, facilitating seamless transitions between different levels of education and the workforce.

Sustainable Learning Environments

With a growing emphasis on sustainability , educational institutions are incorporating eco-friendly practices and resources into their curricula and infrastructures. This includes the use of digital textbooks to reduce paper waste, implementing green building designs, and integrating sustainable development goals into lesson plans. Such initiatives educate students on the importance of environmental stewardship while reducing the carbon footprint of educational facilities.

Final Thoughts

The innovation in educational tools is a testament to the evolving needs of 21st-century learners and educators. As technology advances, so too does the potential for these tools to transform the educational landscape. While not an exhaustive list, the examples provided highlight the breadth and depth of options available for enhancing learning processes in exciting and novel ways. The future of education is bright, with technology paving the way for more engaging, inclusive, and effective learning environments.

The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes —  Marcel Proust

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The Sunday Read: ‘What Deathbed Visions Teach Us About Living’

Researchers are documenting a phenomenon that seems to help the dying, as well as those they leave behind..

By Phoebe Zerwick

Read by Samantha Desz

Produced by Jack D’Isidoro and Aaron Esposito

Narration produced by Anna Diamond and Emma Kehlbeck

Original music by Aaron Esposito

Engineered by Sophia Lanman and Sharon Kearney

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Chris Kerr was 12 when he first observed a deathbed vision. His memory of that summer in 1974 is blurred, but not the sense of mystery he felt at the bedside of his dying father. Throughout Kerr’s childhood in Toronto, his father, a surgeon, was too busy to spend much time with his son, except for an annual fishing trip they took, just the two of them, to the Canadian wilderness. Gaunt and weakened by cancer at 42, his father reached for the buttons on Kerr’s shirt, fiddled with them and said something about getting ready to catch the plane to their cabin in the woods. “I knew intuitively, I knew wherever he was, must be a good place because we were going fishing,” Kerr told me.

Kerr now calls what he witnessed an end-of-life vision. His father wasn’t delusional, he believes. His mind was taking him to a time and place where he and his son could be together, in the wilds of northern Canada.

Kerr followed his father into medicine, and in the last 10 years he has hired a permanent research team that expanded studies on deathbed visions to include interviews with patients receiving hospice care at home and with their families, deepening researchers’ understanding of the variety and profundity of these visions.

There are a lot of ways to listen to ‘The Daily.’ Here’s how.

We want to hear from you. Tune in, and tell us what you think. Email us at [email protected] . Follow Michael Barbaro on X: @mikiebarb . And if you’re interested in advertising with The Daily, write to us at [email protected] .

Additional production for The Sunday Read was contributed by Isabella Anderson, Anna Diamond, Sarah Diamond, Elena Hecht, Emma Kehlbeck, Tanya Pérez and Krish Seenivasan.

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[CFP] 2024 Situations International Conference: Asian Diaspora in the 21st Century

Call for Papers

2024 Situations International Conference

22-23 November, 2024

Yonsei University, Seoul, South Korea

Asian Diaspora in the 21st Century:

Transnational Hauntology and Affective Production

Scholars have extensively debated the meaning and significance of diaspora . At their inception, classic diaspora studies considered a racial or ethnic group’s dispersal caused by religious difference, the Jewish people being the archetype in understanding diaspora. The scope of modern diaspora studies has been expanded to embrace emancipatory politics and the exploration of various conditions of racial, ethnic, and political minorities. Contemporary diaspora is characterized by fragmentation, dislocation, and globalization, and these new features must be clearly redefined and analyzed. Non-European diaspora experience, Asian diaspora in particular, has not been extensively explored. Raising questions about the magnitude and the limited destinations of Korean migration being identified as a diaspora, Gerard Chaliand and Jean Pierre Rageau argue that “the total number of overseas Koreans lacks the massive proportions of a typical diaspora, such as the Irish case, in which more than half of the population emigrated from their homeland” (1995). Should we define an ethnic group’s diaspora through size or distance? Doesn’t the atypicality of the Korean diaspora call for a retheorization of diaspora today?

A small group of migrants may have felt themselves to be in a precarious situation in the 19th and 20th centuries, but in the 21st century, diasporic subjects have multiple ways of retaining contact with their communities of origin, thanks to advances in communication technology and frequent air travel. Contemporary diasporas in the 21st century can be characterized by varieties of diasporic experience that no longer necessitate a permanent break from one’s homeland. The consciousness of being a diasporic subject may no longer depend as much on a physical and geographic separation from a homeland. What does diasporic consciousness mean then in a world where contact and even return to the homeland is possible? And turning away from the attention of ethnicity or race on diaspora to the emotional experience of being unsettled, displaced, and haunted, may unveil a greater understanding of our being in the 21st century.

Playing on the concept of ontology and resonating with his lifelong project of deconstruction, Jacques Derrida suggests by the term, hauntology, how to engage ghosts and historical remnants from the past. (Hau)ntology is a neologism that reminds us that we are always displaced and unhomed. When diasporic subjects seek to break away from their past, it can always come back to haunt their present experience associated with mixed feelings of melancholia, rage, alienation, anomie, and hopefulness for a better future. The displaced subjects’ affective production transcending the limited ties of kinship and nation can mediate the deterritorialized humanity in the 21st century. Situations (Volume 18, No. 1, 2025) calls for papers that explore concepts of migration and diaspora in the 21st century and/or papers that examine literary and cultural content representing, mediating, or rearticulating the diasporic consciousness of Asian diaspora communities.

Possible topics:

• Contemporary diasporas: North Korean defectors, the Zainichi community, the Chinese diaspora in Southeast Asia, and the South Asian diaspora in African and Arab states
• diasporic consciousness: displacement and lost land, homeland and host land
• language barriers and linguistic isolation
• citizenship and sense of belonging
• the myth and politics of return
• refugee camps, resettlement, and national borders
• gendered experience within diasporic communities
• inter-Asian migration and politics of asylum
• the problem of collective memory in diasporic communities
• assimilation and de-assimilation in one’s adopted land
• diaspora and the “blue humanities” centered on oceans and seas

Confirmed Keynote Speakers:

John Lie, Distinguished Professor of Sociology, U.C. Berkeley

So-young Kim, Professor of Cinema Studies, Korea National University of Arts

Early inquiries with 200-word abstracts are appreciated.  By  3 1  August 2024 ,  we would invite you to submit your 4,000-word Chicago-style conference presentation with its abstract and keywords  (the acceptance of the presentation will be decided based on the 4,000-paper).

Each invited participant is then expected to turn his or her conference presentation into a finished 6,000-word paper for possible inclusion in a future issue of the SCOPUS-indexed journal,  Situations: Cultural Studies in the Asian Context . All inquiries and submissions should be sent to both  [email protected]  and [email protected] .

Submissions should follow the Chicago Manual of Style (16th ed.), using only endnotes.

We will pay for the hotel accommodation for those participants whose papers we accept. The presenters will share twin bedrooms.