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11 GUIDING
PRINCIPLES OF 21ST
CENTURY EDUCATION
Sudeshna Roy
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Mar 9, 2020 · 6 min read
Is the current education system efficient enough to teach and
prepare students for the 21st century? That’s the question we
raised in our earlier article from the series “Future of
Education”.

The role of the teachers and leaders of schools are slowly changing
from being just the facilitators of knowledge to one where they are
now being asked to take up the roles of visionaries of changing
times and new age collaborators.

Research says that the future of work is on its way to be radically

transformed in the coming years as well.

For a world that is being reshaped by new innovations everyday, it

seems that a 19th century framework of teaching is highly
inadequate to provide students with the required skills of modern
era.

Therefore, the ensuing questions of the discussion become:

1. What should the 21st century school

curriculum look like?

2. How is the role of a teacher in a classroom

shifting gradually?

3. And what should be the new guiding

principles of our education system?

These are the questions that we are going to explore in today’s

article.

1. GENERATE CURIOSITY
True purpose of education is to create a learner’s
mindset among students that leads to lifelong learning.
Despite being a developed country, each year around 1.2 million
students dropout of high schools in the United States alone, that’s
one student every 26 seconds. While the majority of them
drop out of schools due to inaccessibility and financial problems,
many discontinue because they do not find interest or relevance in
their curriculum (this is true especially in higher education.)

Today, when information has become easily accessible and free

and online learning resources have enabled anyone with a spirit of
enquiry to learn anything they want to; if we want kids to come to
school, we have to make learning more interesting and fun beyond
simple textbook reads and a generic exam system.

2. FOSTER CREATIVITY
Considering our transition into an entrepreneurial age where the
system rewards a person for their ability to come up with creative
solutions and imagine a world beyond what is; the factory model
of learning that teaches children to follow rules and stay inside
the lines is neither efficient nor desired.

Although the creative expression may vary from student to

student, schools should focus on successfully unleashing their
ability to think outside the box and help them find a way to convey
their ideas successfully.

Classrooms should be designed in such a way that

fosters creativity among students and nudges them to
ask questions that are relevant, thought provoking and
leads to unique solutions.
3. CRITICAL THINKING
Critical thinking is the ability to use one’s judgement to discern the
essentials from the noise around and recognize facts from fiction.

Fortunately, it is a trainable skill. The earlier we start teaching this

to young people, the better off they are in a world full of
misinformation, fake news and compelling advertisements.

4. REVERSE CLASSROOM
Gradually, the current education system is shifting from a
teacher-centric approach of instruction-based teaching to a
student-centric learning process.

If we successfully alter the classroom design to one where students

read through the topics at home and classroom is left for
discussion, solving doubts and practical application oriented
activities; it is more likely to lead to active learning on the
student’s part.

5. COMMUNICATION AND STORYTELLING

It is not enough to have a unique idea in this day and age, one
must know how to “sell” the idea to other people in order to make
an impact.
Due to the ever decreasing attention span of common people, if
your story isn’t compelling enough, you are unlikely to get a
chance to finish it.

Effective communication skills not only leads to improved

relationships, but also makes a person better thinker and leader.

6. DESIGN AND EXPERIMENTATION

Google, one of the most innovative organizations in the world,
stays ahead of the competition because it encourages employees
to set aside 20% of their time for experimenting on side
projects that eventually lead to their new products.

Similarly, if students are empowered to experiment on their ideas,

they will not only become better problem solvers, but also will
learn how to gain valuable insights from failures.

7. EXPOSURE TO TECHNOLOGY
If someone wants to be a doctor, they must gain a workable
understanding of the human anatomy first, irrespective of their
specialization.

Similarly, in an era where machines and algorithms are

running the world, each person should at least
understand technology enough to be agile and adapt to
the changing needs of the job and society.

The earlier we start teaching kids about different applications and

advancements of technology, the better prepared they are for a
digitally enabled world.

8. CODING
Another way to teach young kids about technology is through
coding. Unfortunately, it’s a common perception that coding is
difficult and boring.

But as we are moving towards a future where algorithms, apps and

artificial intelligence are going to rule, basic applicable
understanding of coding is crucial.

This requires a mindset shift from

“coding is only for IT geeks” to “coding
is easy, and developing apps is fun”.
Initiatives such as code.org and hourofcode.com are
supported by organizations like Google, Amazon, Microsoft etc to
promote coding and generate interest for computer science among
young students to prepare them for 21st century jobs.

9. PERENNIAL GROWTH MINDSET

In the age of social media, talking about failure has become a
taboo. The constant comparison with someone’s fake
reality often leads to lack of confidence and generates the need for
immediate gratification.

Just like critical thinking, perseverance is also a learnable

skill.

Having a growth mindset helps the student to be willing to learn

new things, upskill what they already know and teaches them
that with time and effort everything can be learned.

To participate in a world that changes

everyday, the willingness to learn new
things without feeling despair is the
most valuable skill to have.

10. EMPATHY AND MORALITY

Although this needs to be in the educational curriculum of all
centuries, with the super-human advancement of science in the
21st century, the need to be moral and empathetic is
limitless.

In Denmark, since 1993, it has become mandatory for

schools to dedicate one hour each week to teaching
empathy where if one student shares their problem and the
whole class along with the teacher try to find out solutions based
on real listening and understanding.

It’s no surprise that Denmark has ranked as the happiest

country in the world twice in the last three years.

11. COLLABORATION
Competition is never the answer to create a sustainable world, true
success comes from collaborative efforts.

Characteristics of collaborative learning

include encouraging students to ask for help
from their peers, share their learning resources
and use their individual skills for solving a
common problem.

This method of learning not only improves communication and

leadership skills; but instils a sense of responsibility among
students and teaches them to overcome individual needs for a
greater cause.

The purpose of education in the 21st century is

to provide the right environment and modern
tools to unleash the highest potential of every
student while ensuring that their manoeuvre is
rooted in the virtues of righteousness and
compassion.

We, at illumnus, are trying to build a better future by providing

modern tools to the educators of today and thus transforming the
education system, one school at a time.
 Education Reform
 Education Technology
 21st Century Learning
 21st Century Education
 Future Of Learning

86

WRITTEN BY
Sudeshna Roy
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Creator of The Redefined Self — a place to read, write, breathe. Hub for new writers to
find inspiration, guidance and resources to live a mindful creative life

OneLXP by illumnus®
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OneLXP is a B2B SaaS-based collaborative Learning Experience Platform for

Universities/Schools. We are changing the way how education is experienced in
schools through modern technology, ultimately improving learning outcomes

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