EDUC 105: LESSON 1

21st CENTURY CONTEXT

21ST Century Schools. Schools in the 21st century focus on a project-based curriculum
for life that would engage students in addressing real-world problems and humanity concerns
and issues.
This has become an innovation in education, from textbook-driven, teacher-centered,
paper-and-pencil schooling into a better understanding of the concept of knowledge and a new
definition of the educated person. Therefore, it makes a new way of designing and delivering the
curriculum.
Schools will go from “buildings” to “nerve centers”, with open walls and are roofless while
connecting teachers, students and the community to the breadth of knowledge in the world.
Teachers will transform their role from being dispensers of information to becoming
facilitators of learning and help students translate information delivery, and schools will need to
create a “culture of inquiry”.
Learners will become adaptive to changes. In the past, learners spent a required amount
of time in respective courses, received passing grades and graduated. Today, learners are
viewed in a new context.
These changes have implications for teachers: (1) Teachers must discover student
interest by helping them see what and how they are learning to prepare them for life in the real
world; (2) They must instill curiosity, which is fundamental to lifelong learning; (3) They must be
flexible in how they teach; and (4) They must excite learners to become more resourceful so
that they will continue to learn outside formal school.
21st Century learning demands a school that excites student for school. There is a little
or no discipline problem because of strong student engagement. Likewise, parents are informed
about positive changes in their children. As a result, students manifest significant improvement
in basic skills of reading, writing, speaking, listening, researching, scientific explorations, math,
multimedia skills and others.
The 21st Century Curriculum. The twenty-first century curriculum has critical attributes
that are interdisciplinary, project-based, and research-driven. It is connected to local, national,
and global communities, in which students may collaborate with people around the world in
various projects. The curriculum also integrates higher-order thinking skills, multiple
intelligences, technology and multimedia, multiple literacies and authentic assessments,
including service learning.
The classroom is filled with self-directed students, who work independently and
interdependently. The curriculum and instruction are designed imbued with the concept of
differentiation. Thus, instead of focusing on textbook-driven or fragmented instruction,
instruction turns to be more thematic, project-based and integrated with skills and competencies
purely not confined within themselves, but are explored through research and concept
application in projects and outputs.
 Learning is not confined through memorization of facts and figures alone but rather is
connected to previous knowledge, personal experience, interests, talents, and habits.
The 21st Century Learning Environment. Typically, a 21st century classroom is not
confined to a literal classroom building but a learning environment where students collaborate
with their peers, exchange insights, coach and mentor one another and share talents and skills
with other students. Cooperative learning is also apparent, in which students work in teams
because cooperation is given more emphasis than competition, and collaborative learning more
than isolated learning. They use technologies, including internet systems and other platforms.
Hence, in the process of creating a world-class 21st century learning environment,
building new schools and remodeling of present school facilities can be addressed toward
creating environmentally friendly, energy-efficient, and “green” schools. Inside every classroom,
students shall apply their knowledge of research in life, which is a clear indication of a relevant,
rigorous, 21st century real-life curriculum.
An ideal learning environment also considers the kind of spaces needed by students and
teachers in conducting investigations and projects by diverse groups for independent work. An
ideal learning environment has plenty of wall space and other areas for displaying student work
that includes a place where the parents and the community can gather to watch student
performances, as well as a place where they can meet for discussions.
Technology in the 21st Century Pedagogy. Technologies are not ends in themselves
but these are tools students use to create knowledge for personal and social change.
21st century learning recognizes full access to technology. Therefore, a better bandwidth
of Wifi access should be available along areas of the school for the students to access their files
and supplement their learning inside the classroom. Various laboratories and learning centers
are set up in such a way that they allow a space needed for students’ simulation and
manipulative works. All classrooms should have televisions to watch broadcasts created by the
school and other schools around. Other resources in the school can also be utilized by students
in creating opportunities for their knowledge explorations.
Understanding 21st Century Learners. Today’s students are referred to as “digital
natives”, while educators as “digital immigrants”. Most likely, digital natives usually react, are
random, holistic and non-linear. Their predominant senses are motion and touch. They learn
through experience and learn differently. Digital immigrants often reflect, are sequential, and
linear. Their predominant senses are hearing and seeing. They tend to intellectualize and
believe that learning is constant.
Students’ entire lives have been immersed in the 21st Century Media Culture. They take
in the world via the filter of computing devices, such as cellular phones, hand help gaming
devices, PDAs and laptops plus the computers, TVs, and game console at home.
A survey by the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation found that young people (ages 8-18)
spend on electronic media an average of six hours a day. In addition, many are multitasking,
such as listening to music while surfing the Web or instant-messaging friends while playing a
video game.
 The preschoolers easily navigate electronic multimedia resources on games, in which
they learn colors, numbers, letters, spelling, and more complex tasks, such as mixing basic
colors to create new colors, problem-solving activities, and reading.
However, as Dr. Michael Wesch points out, although today’s students understand how to
access and utilize these tools, they use them only for entertainment purposes. Thus, students
should be prepared and assisted to become media literate as they function in an online
collaborative research-based environment with the advent of researching, analyzing,
synthesizing, critiquing, evaluating, and creating new knowledge.
21st Century Skills Outcomes and the Demands in the Job Market. The 21st Century
skills are a set of abilities that students need to develop to succeed in the information age. The
Partnership for 21st Century Skills lists three types, namely: (1) Learning Skills which comprise
critical thinking, creative thinking, collaborating, and communicating; (2) Literacy Skills
which is composed of information literacy, media literacy, and technology literacy; and (3)
Life Skills that include flexibility, initiative, social skills, productivity and leadership. These
skills have always been important in an information-based economy.
Likewise, skills demanded in the job market include knowing a trade, following directions,
getting along with others, working hard and being professional, efficient, prompt, honest, and
fair. More so, to adapt to these jobs in this information age, students need to think deeply about
issues, solve problems creatively, work in teams, communicate clearly in many media, learn
ever-changing technologies and deal with the influx of information. Amidst rapid changes in the
world, industry requires students to be flexible, take the initiative, lead when necessary, and
create something new and useful.
According to Partnership for 21st Century Skills (P21), various industries look for
employees who can think critically, solve problems creatively, innovate, collaborate, and
communicate. Therefore, for a perfect match between academe and industry demands, schools
need to embed time-tested industry-demanded work skills in the curriculum.
The 21st Century Learning Implications. 21ST Century skills are viewed relevant to all
academic areas and the skills may be taught in a wide variety of both in-campus and community
settings.
Teachers should practice teaching cross-disciplinary skills in related courses, such as
integrating research methods in various disciplines; articulating technical scientific concepts in
verbal, written, and graphic forms; presenting laboratory reports to a pool of specialists, or use
emerging technologies, software programs and multimedia applications as an extension of an
assigned project.
Likewise, accrediting organizations and regulatory bodies may require 21st century skills
in the curriculum. In doing so, the assessment tools should also contain these skills. They may
design or adopt learning standards that explicitly describe multi-disciplinary skills that students
should acquire and master.
Schools and teachers should use a variety of applied skills, multiple technologies, and
new ways of analyzing and processing information, while also taking initiative, thinking
creatively, planning out the process, and working collaboratively in teams with other students.
 More so, schools may allow students to purse alternatives, in which students can earn
academic merits and satisfy graduation requirements by completing an internship,
apprenticeship or volunteer experience. It is in this manner that students can practice a variety
of practical, career-based, work-related skills and values while equally completing the academic
coursework and meeting the same learning standards required of students.
In today’s world, information and knowledge are continuously increasing at a certain rate
that no one can learn everything about every subject. What may appear true today could be
proven to be false tomorrow and the jobs that students will get after the graduate may not yet
exist. For this reason, students need to be taught how to process, analyze, and use information
and they need adaptable skills that they can apply in all facets of life., Thus, merely teaching
them ideas and facts without teaching them how to use them in real-life settings is no longer
enough.
Schools need to adapt and develop new ways of teaching and learning that reflect a
changing world. The purpose of school should be to prepare students for success after
graduation and therefore, schools need to prioritize the knowledge and skills that will be in the
greatest demand, such as those deemed to be most important by college professors and
employers. Hence, teaching students to perform well in school or pass the test alone is no
longer sufficient.
Henceforth, teachers must realize and students must understand that no one can move
toward a vision of the future unless he/she understands the socio-historical context of where
they are now, what events led them to be where they are, how this can inform development of a
vision for the future and how they want to get there. Thus, a clear articulation of the purpose of
education for the 21st century is the place to begin.
A PARADIGM SHIFT FOR 21ST CENTURY EDUCATION

Before 21st Century Education 21st Century Education

Time Based Outcome-Based
Focus: Memorization of Discrete Facts Focus: What students know, Can Do, and
Are Like after all the details are forgotten.
Lower order thinking skills in Bloom’s Higher order thinking skills (metacognition),
Taxonomy, such as knowledge and such as application, analysis, synthesis, and
comprehension evaluation
Textbook-Driven Research Driven
Passive Learning Active Learning
Learners work in isolation and confined in the Learners work collaboratively with
classroom (Walled Classroom) classmates and others around the world
(Global Classroom)
Teacher-Centered: teacher is dispenser of Student Centered: Teacher is
knowledge, information and attention facilitator/coach of students’ learning
Little to no student freedom Great deal of student freedom
“Discipline Problems” – No trust between No “Discipline Problems” – Students and
educators and students. Little student teachers have mutual respect and
motivation relationship as co-learners. High student
motivation.
Fragmented Curriculum Integrated and Interdisciplinary Curriculum
Grades taken from formal assessment Grades are based on student’s performance
measures entered in the class record for
reporting purposes
Assessment is for making purposes and
placed as part of lesson plan structure
Low expectations. What students receive is
what they get
Teacher is a judge. No one else sees student
work. Outputs are assessed using structured
metrics.
Curriculum is irrelevant and meaningless to
the students.
Print is the primary vehicle of learning and
assessment.
Student diversity is ignored.
Students just follow orders and instructions
while listening to teacher’s lecture.
Literacy is the 3R’s (reading, writing, and
‘arithmetic).
Factory model, based upon the needs of
employers for the industrialization age of the
19th century.
as evidence of learning outcome.
Assessment is important aspect of instruction
ton gauge learning outcome
High expectations that students succeed in
learning to high extent
Self, peer and others serve as evaluators of
student learning using wide range of metrics
and authentic assessments.
Curriculum is connected to students’
interests, experiences, talents, and the real
world.
Performances, projects, and multiple forms of
media are used for learning and assessment.
Curriculum and instruction address student
diversity.
Students are empowered to lead and initiate
while creating solutions and solving
problems.
Multiple literacies of the 21st century aligned
to living and working in a globalized new
society.
Global model based upon the needs of a
globalized high-tech society.

The paradigm shift from the 20th to the 21st century, shows that the structure and
modalities of education have evolved. Students become the center of teaching-learning process
in the 21st century using wide array of technological tools to assist them in exploring knowledge
and information needed in surviving the test of time and preparing for future career endeavors.
Assessment has been mand varied to address multiple literacy development in diverse contexts.
Teachers turn to become facilitators rather than lecturers and dispensers of information. As
such, curriculum is designed in a way that it connects to life in the real world, interconnected
with other disciplines and reshapes the students’ holistic perspectives.
The Critical Attributes of 21stCentury  Integrated and Interdisciplinary
Education  Global Classrooms
 Technologies and Multimedia
Education continuously changes dramatically  Student-Centeredness
throughout time. There is a paradigm shift in  Project-based and Research-driven
the way teaching and learning is delivered.  Creating/Adapting to Constant Personal
Therefore, the 21st century teacher needs to and Social Changes, and Lifelong
develop essential knowledge, skills, and Learning
values in order to cope with these changes  Relevant, Rigorous, and Real World
and address students’ need.
 21st Century Skills

The following are eight attributes of 21st Century Education and their implications:
1. Integrated and Interdisciplinary. Education in the 21st century is characterized by
interfacing various disciplines in an integrated manner rather than compartmentalizing its
subsequent parts. This critical attribute implies the need to review the curriculum and
create strategies infusing different subjects toward enhancing the learning experiences
of students.
2. Technologies and Multimedia. Education in the 21st century makes optimum use of
available Information and Communication Technology (ICT), as well as multimedia to
improve the teaching and learning process, including online applications and technology
platforms. It implies a need to acquire and use computers and multimedia equipment
and the design of a technology plan to enhance learning at its best.
3. Global Classrooms. Education in the 21st Century aims to produce global citizens by
exposing students to the issues and concerns in the local, national and global societies.
This critical attribute implies the need to include current global issues/concerns, such as
peace and respect for cultural diversity, climate change and global warming in classroom
discussions.
4. Creating/Adapting to Constant Personal and Social Change and Lifelong Learning.
Education in the 21stn century subscribes to the belief that learning does not end within
the four walls of the classroom. Instead, it can take place anywhere, anytime regardless
of age. This means that teachers should facilitate students’ learning even beyond
academics. Therefore, it should not end with requirement compliance and passing the
exams, but also for transferring and applying knowledge to a new context or real-life
situations. As such, the curriculum should be planned in such a way that students will
continue to learn even outside the school for life.
5. Student-Centered. Education in the 21st century is focused on students as learners
while addressing their needs. Differentiated instruction is relevant in the 21st Century
classrooms, where diversity factors and issues are taken into account and addressed
when planning and delivering instruction, including their learning styles, interests, needs
and abilities.
6. 21ST Century Skills. Education in the 21st century demonstrates the skills needed in
becoming productive members of society. Beyond learning the basic skills of reading,
writing and numeracy, students should also develop life and work skills in 21st century
communities, such as critical and creative thinking, problem-solving and decision-making
and ICT literacy and skills. Therefore, it implies that teachers should possess these skills
first before their students.
7. Project-based and Research Driven. 21st century education emphasizes data,
information and evidence-based decision making through student activities that
encourage active learning. This implies the need for knowledge and skills in research,
such as self-directed activities, learning projects, investigatory projects, capstones, and
other research-based output.
8. Relevant, Rigorous, and Real World. Education in the 21st Century is meaningful as it
connects to real-life experiences of learners. It implies the use of current and relevant
information linked to real-life situations and contexts.
 THE CHARACTERSITICS OF A 21ST CENTURY TEACHER
The 21st century teaching-learning environment becomes more complicated brought by
technological changes. Therefore, teachers should be able to cope with and adapt to these
changes.
Thus, teachers must be equipped with attributes, knowledge, and skills critical to 21st
century education so that they may be able to integrate them in their teaching. 21st century
teachers are characterized as:
1. Multi-literate. Teachers know how to use various technologies in teaching.
2. Multi-Specialist. Teachers are not only knowledgeable in the course subject they teach
but also in other areas so that they can help the learner build up what they gain in the
classroom and outside the school and make sense of what was learned.
3. Multi-Skilled. Teachers cope with the demand for widening learning opportunities by
being skillful not just in teaching but also in facilitating and organizing groups and
activities.
4. Self-Directed. Teachers are responsible for various aspects of school life and know how
to initiate action to realize the learning goals of the students and the educational goals of
the country, at large.
5. Lifelong learner. Teachers embrace the ideal that learning never ends. Therefore,
teachers must be constantly updated on the latest information related to their subject
and pedagogic trends. They should also share what they are learning with their students
and colleagues with a high sense of professionalism.
6. Flexible. Teachers are able to adapt to various learning styles and needs of the learners.
They can facilitate learner-centered teaching with flexibility using alternative modes of
delivery.
7. Creative Problem Solver – Teachers create innovate ideas and effective solutions to
the arising problems in the field, be it in the classroom, in the school or the profession as
a whole.
8. Critical thinker. Teachers are critical thinkers as they encourage students to reflect on
what they have leaned, and rekindle in them the desire to ask questions, reason out,
probe, and establish their own knowledge and belief.
9. Has a passion for Excellent Teaching. Teachers possess passion in the teaching
profession to ensure that students are motivated to learn under their guidance and care.
10. High Emotional Quotient (EQ). Teachers do not just have the head but also the heart
to teach. Teaching is emotionally taxing but an influential job as it involves interaction
with human beings.
 COMMON 21ST CENTURY TECHNOLOGY TOOLS FOR LEARNING
As teacher for the 21st century, no one can escape from the reality that we are now in a
borderless society. It is, therefore, important that we should know different technology tools for
learning to respond to the needs of 21st Century learners’ and the demands of the times. The
following are common 21st century technology tools:
1. Affinity Groups. These are groups or communities that unite individuals with
common interests. Electronic spaces extend the range of possibilities for such
groups.
2. Blogs. Web logs or “blogs” are interactive websites, often open to the public that can
include web links, photographs and audio and video elements.
3. E-portfolio. It refers to student’s works that are generated, selected, organized,
stored, and revised digitally. Often, electronic portfolios are accessible to multiple
audiences and can be moved from one site to another easily. It can document the
process of learning, promote integrative thinking, display final work, and/or provide a
space for reflective learning.
4. Hypertext. These are electronic texts that provide multiple links and allow users to
trace ideas in immediate and idiosyncratic directions. Hypermedia adds sound, video,
animation, and/or virtual reality environments to the user’s choices.
5. Podcasts. These are digitalized audio files that are stored on the internet and
downloaded to listeners’ computers or most likely to MP3 players. The term
“podcasts” comes from iPod, the popular MP3 player.
6. Web. 2.0. This refers to a second generation of web-based communities that
demonstrate the participatory literacies that students need for the 21st Century.
7. Myspace. It is a social networking website that offers an interactive user-submitted
network of friends, personal profiles, blogs, groups, photos, music and videos
internationally. Students can rate professors, discuss books, and connect with high
school and college classmates here.
8. Second Life. It is an internet-based 3-D virtual world that uses avatars (digital
representations) to explore, socialize, participate in individual or group activities,
create and trade items (virtual property) and services.
9. Semantic Web. It is an extension of the current Web that puts data into a common
format so that instead of humans working with individual search engines (e.g. Google,
Ask Jeeves) to locate information, the search engines themselves feed into a single
mechanism that provides this searching on its own. Sometimes called Web 3.0, this
technology enables integration of virtually all kinds of information for more efficient
and comprehensive retrieval.
 10. Webkinz. It is an internet simulation wherein children learn pet care and other skills.
11. Wiki. It refers to software that fosters collaboration and communication online. Wikis
enable students to create, comment upon, and revise collaborative projects. One of
the most prominent is Wikipedia, an online multilingual free-content encyclopedia,
which ahs 7.9 million articles in 253 languages.
12. Youtube. It is a popular website for video sharing where users can upload, view, and
share video footage, including movie clips, TV clips, and music videos, even student-
produced videos.
13. Google Docs. It allows students to collaborate with other people and the document
materials that need to be compiled, processed, transacted, and analyzed.
14. Prezi. It allows individuals to use pre-made, creative presentation templates.
15. Easybib. It allows individuals to generate citations in any given format.
16. Social Media Platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Edmodo, Schoology, Instagram,
etc.). These are means to communicate and share ideas among users.
17. Smartboards and Audience Response Systems. These are replacement for
traditional chalkboards or whiteboards in classrooms.
18. ReadWriteThink.org. It is a repository of standards-based literacy lessons that offer
teachers instructional ideas for Internet integration.
19. WebquestPage. It provides WebQuests on an array of topics across content areas
with a template for creating one’s own.
20. Literacy Web. It is an online portal that includes a large number of new literacy’s
resources for new literacies for teachers.

SYNTHESIS AND LEARNING REFLECTION

The 21st Century Education

- Education prepares students for life in this world that can make them
communicate, function and create change personally, socially, economically, and
politically on local, national and global levels.
- There is a drastic change brough about by the advent of the 21st century
education in the context of a curriculum, classroom environment, technology,
learners, and demands of the job market.
- 21st century education implies challenges among teachers in the way they need
to embrace technological advancement and instructional innovations.
- With the paradigm shift from 20th century to 21st century education,
transformations and transitions are taking place.
- To cope with the demands of 21st century education, educational institutions
should address its eight critical attributes.
- Teachers must be multiliterate, multispecialist, multiskilled, self-directed, lifelong
learners, flexible, creative problem solver, critical thinker, emotionally intelligent
and passionate for excellent teaching.

Prepared by: Marvin A. Aquino

Course Facilitator
 EDUC 105: LESSON 2

21st Century Skills

21ST Century skills refers to a broad set of knowledge, skills, work, habits, and character
traits that are deemed necessary in coping with today’s world and future careers and workplaces.
Thus, it can be applied in all academic subject areas and educational settings throughout a
student’s life.
The 21st Century Skills
The 21st century skills may include the following: (1) critical thinking, problem solving,
reasoning, analysis, interpretation, synthesizing information; (2) research skills and practices,
interrogative questioning; (3) creativity, artistry, curiosity, imagination, innovation, personal
expression; (4) perseverance, self-direction, planning, self-discipline, adaptability, initiative; (5)
oral and written communication, public speaking and presenting, listening; (6) leadership,
teamwork, collaboration, cooperation, facility in using virtual workspaces; (7) information and
communication technology (ICT) literacy, media and Internet literacy, data interpretation and
analysis, computer programming; (8) civic, ethical, and social justice literacy; (9) economic and
financial literacy, entrepreneurialism; (10) global awareness, multicultural literacy,
humanitarianism; (11) scientific literacy and reasoning, the scientific method; (12) environmental
and conversation literacy, ecosystem understanding; and (13) health and wellness literacy,
including nutrition, diet, exercise, and public health and safety.

FRAMEWORK FOR 21ST CENTURY

According to the Partnership for 21st Century Skills, this concept encompasses a wide
array of a body of knowledge and skills that have to be categorized. Moreover, this concept has
been interconnected with applied skills, cross-curricular skills, cross-disciplinary skills,
interdisciplinary skills, transferable skills, transversal skills, noncognitive skills and soft skills.

The 21st century skills concept is ground on the belief that students must be educated in
a more relevant, useful, in-demand and universally applicable manner. The idea simply lies in the
fact that students need to be taught different skills and reflect on the specific demands that will be
placed upon them in a complex, competitive, knowledge-based, information-age and technology
driven society. Therefore, 21st century education addresses the whole child or the whole person
(AACTE, 2010).
Hence, the curriculum should be designed to be interdisciplinary, integrated, and project-
based. Tony Wagner (2010), in his book “The Global Achievement Gap”, advocated the seven
survival skills, namely: (1) Critical and Problem Solving; (2) Collaboration across networks and
leading by influence; (3) agility and adaptability; (4) initiative and entrepreneurialism; (5) effective
oral and written communication; (6) accessing and analyzing information; and (7) curiosity and
imagination.
The term 21st Century Skills refers to certain core competencies, such as collaboration,
digital literacy, critical thinking, and problem-solving that schools need to teach the students for
them to thrive in today’s world.
The Partnership for 21st Century Skills presents the following sets of skills that are
categorized accordingly with different strands of expected outcomes.

LEARNING AND INNOVATION SKILLS

These are the primary skills orchestrated in the 21st Century. They are attributes that
differentiate students who are prepared for a complex life and work environment from those who
are not. Therefore, there is a need to stress on creativity, critical thinking, communication and
collaboration in preparing learners for the future.
A. Critical Thinking and Problem-Solving Skills
- These may include effectively analyzing and evaluating evidence, arguments,
claims, and beliefs; and solving different kinds of non-familiar problems in both
conventional and innovative ways.
Skill Sub-Skill
1. Reason Effectively Use various types of reasoning (inductive, deductive, and etc.) use
as appropriate to the situation.
Use systems thinking.
Analyze how parts of a whole interact with each other to produce
overall outcomes in complex systems.

Skill Sub-Skill
2. Make Judgements Effectively analyze and evaluate evidence, arguments, claims and
and Decisions beliefs.
Analyze and evaluate major alternative points of view.
Synthesize and make connections between information and
arguments.
Interpret information and draw conclusions based on the best
analysis.
Reflect Critically on learning experiences and processes.

Skill Sub-Skill
3. Solve Problems Solve different kinds of non-familiar problems in both conventional
and innovative ways.
Identify and ask significant questions that clarify various points of
view and lead to better solutions.

B. Communication
- This pertains to articulating thoughts and ideas effectively using oral and written
communication skills in a variety of forms and contexts.
Skill Sub-Skills
1. Communicate Articulate thoughts and ideas effectively using oral, written and
Clearly nonverbal communication skills in variety of forms and contexts.
Listen effectively to decipher meaning, including knowledge, values,
attitudes, and intentions.
Use communication for a range of purposes (e.g., to inform, instruct,
motivate, and persuade).
Utilize multiple media and technologies, and judge their effectiveness
a priori, as well as assess their impact
Communicate effectively in diverse environments (including multi-
lingual).
Use technology as a tool to research organize, evaluate and
communicate.
Use digital technologies (Computers, PDAs, media players, GPS, etc.),
communication/networking tools and social networks appropriately to
access.
Exercise flexibility and willingness in making necessary compromises
to accomplish a common goal.
Assume shared responsibility for collaborative work, and value the
individual contributions made by each team member.

C. Collaboration
- It entails demonstrating ability to work effectively and respectfully with diverse
teams.

Skill Sub-Skill
1. Work Together Establish clear definitions and agreements on the roles of partners in
Effectively in the collaborative process.
Team Keep communication open within teams to carry out tasks.
Carefully identify obstacles and address problems cooperatively.

D. Creativity and Innovation

- It denotes use of wide range of Idea creation techniques to create new worthwhile
ideas.

Skill Sub-Skill
1. Think Creatively Use a wide range of idea creation techniques, such as brainstorming.
Create new and worthwhile ideas (both incremental and radical
concepts)
 Elaborate, refine, analyze and evaluate their own ideas in order to
improve and maximize creative efforts.
Skill Sub-Skill
2. Work creatively Develop, implement, and communicate new ideas to others
with Others effectively.
Be open and responsive to new and diverse perspectives;
incorporate group input and feedback into the work.
Demonstrate originality and inventiveness in work and understand
the real-world limits to adopting new ideas.
View failure as an opportunity to learn; understand that creativity and
innovation is a long-term, cyclical process of small successes and
frequent mistakes.

Skill Sub-Skill
3. Implement Act on creative ideas to make a tangible and useful contribution to
Innovations the field in which the innovation will occur.

INFORMATION, MEDIA, AND TECHNOLOGY SKILLS

People in the 21st Century live in a technology and media-saturated environment marked
by the following: (1) access to an abundance of information; (2) rapid changes in technology tools;
and (3) the ability to collaborate and make individual contributions on an unprecedented scale.
Therefore, to be effective in the 21st century, everyone must be able to exhibit a range of
functional and critical thinking skills related to information, media, and technology. (AACTE, 2010)
A. Information Literacy
- It refers to accessing and evaluating information critically and competently and
managing the flow of information from wide variety of sources.
Skill Sub-Skill
1. Access and Access information efficiently (time) and effectively (sources).
Evaluate Evaluate information critically and competently.
Information

Skill Sub-Skill
2. Use and Use information accurately and creatively for the issue or problem at
Manage hand.
information Manage the flow of information from a wide variety of sources.
Apply a fundamental understanding of the ethical/legal issues
surrounding the access and use of information.
 B. Media Literacy
- It underscores understanding both how and why media messages are constructed;
creating media products by understanding and utilizing the most appropriate media
creation tools, characteristics and conventions.

Skill Sub-Skill
1. Analyze Media Understand both how and why media messages are constructed,
and for what purposes.
Examine how individuals interpret messages differently, how values
and points of view are included or excluded, and how media can
influence beliefs and behaviors.

Skill Sub-Skill
2. Create Media Understand the utilize the most appropriate media creation tools,
Products characteristics and conventions.
Understand and effectively utilize the most appropriate expressions
and interpretations in diverse, multi-cultural environments.

C. Technology Literacy
- It pertains to the use of technology as a tool to research, organize, evaluate, and
communicate information.

Skill Sub-Skill
1. Apply Use technology as a tool to research, organize, evaluate, and
Technology communicate information.
Effectively Use digital technologies (computers, PDAs, media players, GPS,
etc.), communication/networking tools and social networks
appropriately to access, manage, integrate, evaluate, and create
information to successfully function in a knowledge economy
Apply a fundamental understanding of the ethical/legal issues
surrounding the access and use of information technologies.

LIFE AND CAREER SKILLS

- Today’s life and work environments both require more than thinking skills and
content knowledge. Cultivating the ability to navigate the complex life requires
students to develop the following life and career skills: (1) Flexibility and
Adaptability; (2) Initiative and Self Direction; (3) Social and Cross-Cultural Skills;
(4) productivity and accountability; and (5) leadership and responsibility (AACTA,
2010).
Flexibility and Adaptability
Skill Sub-Skill
Adapt to varied roles, job responsibilities, schedules and contexts.
 1. Adapt to Work effectively in a climate of ambiguity and changing priorities.
Change

Skill Sub-Skill
2. Be Flexible Incorporate feedback effectively.
Deal positively with praise, setbacks, and criticism.
Understand, negotiate, and balance diverse views and beliefs to
reach workable solutions, particularly in multi-cultural environments.

Initiative and Self-Direction

Skill Sub-Skill
1. Manage goals, Set goals with tangible and intangible success criteria.
and Time Balance Tactical (short term) and strategic (long term) goals.
Utilize time and manage workload efficiently.

Skill Sub-Skill
2. Work Monitor, define, prioritize, and complete tasks without direct
independently oversight.

Skill Sub-Skill
3. Be-self-directed Go beyond basic mastery of skills and/or curriculum to explore and
Learner expand one’s own learning and opportunities to gain expertise.
Demonstrate initiative to advance skills levels towards a professional
level.
Demonstrate commitment to learning as a lifelong process.
Demonstrate integrity and ethical behavior in using influence and
power.

Skill Sub-Skill
4. Be responsible Act responsibly with the interest of the larger community in mind.
to others.
Consider others’ ideas and viewpoints.
Look for others’ welfare and safety in all circumstances.
Assist others in times of their downfalls and setbacks.

Social and Cross-Cultural Skills

Skill Sub-Skill
1. Interact Know when it is appropriate to listen and when to speak.
Effectively With Conduct one’s self in a respectable and professional manner.
others
 Skill Sub-Skill
2. Work effectively Respect cultural differences and work effectively with people from a
in Diverse range of social and cultural backgrounds.
teams Respond open-mindedly to different ideas and values.
Leverage social and cultural differences to create new ideas and
increase both innovation and quality work.

Productivity and Accountability

Skill Sub-Skill
1. Manage Set meet goals, even in the face of obstacles and competing
Projects pressures.
Prioritize, plan and manage work to achieve the intended result.

Skill Sub-Skill
2. Produce Demonstrate additional attributes associated with producing high
Results quality products, including the abilities to:
- Work positively and ethically
- Multi-task
- Manage time and projects effectively
- Participate actively, as well as be reliable and
punctual
- Present oneself professionally and with proper
etiquette
- Collaborate and cooperate effectively with teams
- Respect and appreciate team diversity
- Be accountable for results

Leadership and Responsibility

Skill Sub-Skill
1. Guide and Lead Use interpersonal and problem-solving skills to influence and guide
others others toward a goal.
Leverage strengths of others to accomplish a common goal.
Inspire others to reach their very best via example and self-lessness
Demonstrate integrity and ethical behavior in using influence and
power.

Skill Sub-Skill
2. Be responsible Act responsibly with the interests of the larger community in mind.
to others.
 INTEGRATING 21ST CENTURY SKILLS IN TEACHING-LEARNING PROCESS.

The 21st Century Supports Systems. The following elements are the critical systems
necessary to ensure student mastery of 21st Century Skills: (1) 21st Century standards; (2)
assessments; (3) curriculum and instruction; (4) professional development; and (5) learning
environments. These must be aligned to produce a support system that produces 21 st century
outcomes for today’s students (Partnership for 21st Century Skills, 2008).
1. 21st Century Standards
i. Focus on 21st Century skills, content knowledge and expertise
ii. Build understanding across and among core subjects, as well as 21 st Century
interdisciplinary themes.
iii. Emphasize deep understanding rather than shallow knowledge.
iv. Engage students with the real-world data, tools, and experts they will encounter in
college, on the job, and in life; students learn best when actively engaged in solving
meaningful problems.
v. Allow for multiple measures of mastery.

2. Assessment of 21st Century Skills

i. Supports a balance of assessments, including high-quality standardized testing
along with effective formative and summative classroom assessments.
ii. Emphasizes useful feedback on student performance that is embedded into
everyday learning.
iii. Requires a balance of technology-enhanced, formative and summative
assessments that measure student mastery of 21 st century skills.
iv. Enables development of portfolios of student work that demonstrate mastery of
21st century skills to educators and prospective employers.
v. Enables a balance portfolio of measures to assess the educational system’s
effectiveness in reaching high levels of student competency in 21 st century skills
(AACTE, 2010).

3. 21ST Century Curriculum and Instruction

i. Teachers 21st Century skills discretely in the context of core subjects and 21 st
Century interdisciplinary themes.
ii. Focuses on providing opportunities for applying 21 st century skills across content
areas and a competency-based approach to learning.
iii. Enables innovative learning methods that integrate the use of supportive
technologies, inquiry and problem-based approaches and higher-order thinking
skills.
 iv. Encourages the integration of community resources beyond school ways (AACTE,
2010).

4. The 21st Century Professional Development

i. Highlights ways teachers can seize opportunities for integrating 21 st Century skills,
tools, and teaching strategies into their classroom practice and help them identify
what activities they can replace/de-emphasize.
ii. Balances direct instruction with project-oriented teaching methods.
iii. Illustrates how a deeper understanding of subject matter can enhance problem-
solving, critical thinking, and other 21st century skills.
iv. Enables 21st Century professional learning communities for teachers that model
the kinds of classroom learning that best promotes 21 st Century skills for students.
v. Cultivates teachers’ ability to identify students’ particular learning styles,
intelligences, strengths and weaknesses.
vi. Helps teachers develop their abilities to use various strategies (such as formative
assessments) to reach diverse students and create environments that support
differentiated teaching and learning.
vii. Supports the continuous evaluation of students 21 st century skills development.
viii. Encourages knowledge sharing among communities of practitioners using face-to-
face, virtual, and blended communications.
ix. Uses a scalable and sustainable model of professional development (AACTE,
2010).

5. The 21st Century Learning Environments

i. Create learning practices, human support and physical environments that will
support the teaching and learning of 21st century skills outcomes.
ii. Support professional learning communities that enable educators to collaborate,
share best practices, and integrate 21st century skills into classroom practice.
iii. Enable students to learning in relevant, real world 21 st Century contexts (e.g.,
through project-based or other applied work).
iv. Allow equitable access to quality learning tools, technologies and resources.
v. Provide 21st century architectural and interior designs for group, team, and
individual learning.
vi. Support expanded community and international involvement in learning, both face-
to-face and online (AACTE, 2010).

Implications to Educators
The advent of 21st Century skill enhancement among learners bring the following
implications to educators in:
1. Successfully complementing technologies to content and pedagogy and developing the
ability to creatively use technologies to meet specific learning needs.
 2. Aligning instruction with standards, particularly those that embody 21st century knowledge
and skills.
3. Balancing direct instruction strategically with project-oriented teaching methods.
4. Applying child and adolescents’ development knowledge to educator preparation and
education policy.
5. Using a range of assessment strategies to evaluate student performance and differentiate
instruction (including but not limited to formative, portfolio-based, curriculum-embedded
and summative).
6. Participating actively in learning communities, tapping the expertise within a school or
school district, through coaching, mentoring, knowledge-sharing, and team teaching.
7. Acting as mentors and peer coaches with fellow educators.
8. Using a range of strategies (such as formative assessments) to reach diverse students
and to create environments that support differentiated teaching and learning.
9. Pursuing continuous learning opportunities and embracing career-long learning as
professional ethics (AACTE, 2010).
10. Establishing a conductive learning environment where learners can freely express
themselves and explore their potentials and capacities.
Implications to Pre-service Teacher Preparation
There is a need to understand the key elements of optimum curricula that will help pre-
service teachers develop the dispositions, habits of mind and confidence to enable students to
develop 21st Century skills in a range of core academic subject areas.
Since schools get rid of one-size-fits-all system, therefore, pre-service teachers are
expected to play an active role in developing and organizing content and instruction for their
students.
AACTE (2010) asserts that a 21st century approach to curriculum is about more than just
adding an extra course or extra class time in the curriculum. Thus, pre-service teachers benefit
from the ability to fully explore and understand how to develop and use curriculum for deep
understanding and mastery of academic subject knowledge and 21st century skills.
As a starting point, a teacher education program can be aligned with students and teacher
standards in ways that blend thinking and innovation skills, ICT literacy; and life and career skills
in the context of all academic subjects and across interdisciplinary themes.
An effective 21st century skills approach to curriculum, in other words, is designed for
understanding (McTighe and Wiggins, 2005 in AACTE, 2010). The program’s curriculum will be
most beneficial to pre-service teachers if it is designed to produce deep understanding and
authentic application of 21st century skills in all subject areas.
Instructional Models. Instructional models are an important component of any teacher
preparation program. AACTE (2010) pointed out that the integration of innovative and research-
proven teaching strategies, modern learning technologies, and real-world resources and contexts
are all imperative in:
1. Integrating “teach for understanding” principles. When pre-service teachers can
prepare and present lessons that can develop students’ essential concepts and kills with
 the integration of technologies, the latter can reciprocally demonstrate critical thinking and
problem-solving in class.
2. Creating rich practice teaching experiences. Strong practice teaching experiences
allow pre-service to connect theory and practice.
3. Creating dynamic learning communities and peer mentoring networks. Pre-service
teachers benefit greatly from service-learning as part of their experiential learning courses.
It provides time to reflect on relevant pedagogic strategies that enhance 21st century skills
in classroom practice.
4. Examining the role of content, pedagogy, and technologies in developing higher-
order thinking skills. The ability to teach for content mastery is a challenging task for
most pre-service teachers. Teaching for content mastery (1) supports a range of high-
quality standardized testing along formative and summative assessments; (2) emphasizes
useful feedback on student performance; (3) requires balanced technology-enhanced,
formative and summative assessments; (4) enables development of student portfolios that
demonstrate mastery of 21st century knowledge and skills; and (5) enables a balanced
score card to assess the educational systems’ effectiveness.
Teacher preparation programs can play a vital role in developing educational leaders who
understand and can influence current trend in assessment through (1) research and
evaluation test for innovative approaches; (2) 21 st Century knowledge and kills assessment
strategies; and (3) mastery of a wide range of student assessment methods.
Learning environments. The learning environment within the teacher preparation
program is a key component of any systemic reform initiative. Determining the enabling
structures, policies, and strategies that can best support 21 st century skills acquisition among
pre-service teachers is a step towards creating a king of environment that will promote 21 st
century learning.
The following are initiatives in creating 21 st century teacher education learning
environment: (1) Establish a 21st century vision for learning environments in the program and
the university; (2) ensure that the physical infrastructure supports 21 st century knowledge and
skills; (3) Practice flexibility in time for project-based work and competency-based
assessment; (4) ensure technical infrastructure that sufficiently supports learning; and (5)
strengthen networking engagement in the learning environment.
Partnerships. Partnerships are extraordinary important in the work of transforming 21 st
century teacher preparation programs. Along the line, teamwork within the program and the
institution is imperative for sustainability and development. The partnership forged with
community leaders, business industry, professional associations, government agencies, non-
government organizations, other institutions, parents, other stakeholders, and the community
creates high impact outcome.
The powerful partnerships are created through strong collaboration towards enabling
innovation in the teaching and learning for the 21st Century.
Continuous Improvement. Continuous improvement represents willingness to commit to
revisiting the process over time. For AACTE (2010), any implementation effort should include
continuous improvement steps to wit: (1) Clearly identify measurable goals; (2) track progress
regularly against these goals; (3) communicate progress to all stakeholders; and (4) Engage
all participants in refining and improving success over time (AACTE 2010).
 21ST Century Skill Categories
Synthesis and learning Reflection

• The term 21st Century skills refers to broad set of knowledge, skills, work, habits, and
character traits that are critically important in today’s world, particularly in collegiate programs
and contemporary careers and workplaces.
• The partnership for 21st Century Skills encompasses a wide-range body of knowledge and
skills that are interconnected with applied skills, cross-curricular skills, cross-disciplinary skills,
interdisciplinary skills, transferable skills, transversal skills, noncognitive skills, and soft skills.
• To succeed in life and in their future career, students must hone and empower themselves
with learning and innovation skills, information, media, and technology skills, life and career
skills, and social and cross-cultural skills.
• The integration of 21st Century skills must be continuously practiced along standards and
assessments, curriculum and instruction, professional development, and learning
environments.
• Considering that teachers are the greatest mobilizers of 21 st century education, therefore, pre-
service teachers must be rigidly trained on these skills to prepare them for their future
professional career roles.
 EDUC 105: LESSON 3

New Literacies

Between 1950 and 1970, the development of the literacy, both operational and functional,
was established. During this period, literacy was defined as reading and writing skills necessitated
for activities in modern society (Gûneş, 2000). Beyond the 1990s, literacy had started to diversify
in the light of technological developments, change of living conditions in cities, and the new
necessities. Hereafter, literacy then became multi-faceted.

At first, literacy was used in various types, such as computer literacy, technology literacy,
internet literacy, and media literacy, respectively (Altun, 2005). Later on; it became a lifestyle
along with a person’s entire life in a society that encompasses information literacy, cultural literacy
and universal literacy.

Truly, literacy has changed and developed through a multitude of phases within a specific
period based on social needs.

However, along this line, literacy is not confined only to knowing how to read and write rather,
it is a matter of applying knowledge for specific purposes in particular contexts. It includes a
socially-driven and evolved a pattern of activities, such as writing correspondence, records
keeping and inventories, posting announcements, reporting, etc. As such, Lankshear & Knobel
(2006) averred that literacies intend to generate and communicate meanings through the medium
of encoded texts within contexts in various discourses.

Kress (2003) posited that literacy can only happen when having a kind of potential content
through interaction with the text. Likewise, a particular text may be understood for being
connected or related. Although in a way, such meaning can be more relational than literal
expressing solidarity or affinity with particular people, like understanding the internet, online
practices and online content. Hence, anything available online can become resource for making
diverse meaning

Literacies can bear a coding system that can capture the meaning, such as “letteracy” (i.e.,
within language and recognition of alphabetic symbols).

Moreover, the Primary English Teaching Association Australia (2015) asserts that 21 st
Century literacy has expanded to include social change, increasing field expertise and digital
technologies. To be literate requires comprehension, selection and use of multimodal codes and
conventions to interpret and express ideas, feelings and information. Subject- specific literacies
are recognized to require the application of specialized knowledge and skills, information skills,
and the creative and imaginative language. Literacy in the 21st century, therefore, demands the
ability to perform and act confidently, efficiently and ethically with a wide range of written and
visual, print, live, digital or electronic text types according to purpose (www.petaa.edu.au).
 The increasing complexity of modern communication gives rise to a number of distinct
capabilities and possibilities. Hence, 21st Century literacy combines cross-curricular capabilities
also called ‘multiliteracies’ and now commonly referred to as ‘new literacies’. These broad skills
include visual literacy, information literacy, cultural literacy and digital literacy dynamics. These
new literacies are fused with traditional print literacy to create opportunities and enable students
to understand and use new text types, while exploring knowledge and information with a wide
array of technological tools, such as blogging, fanfic writing, manga producing, meme-ing,
photoshopping, animé music video (AMV). Podcasting, Vodcasting, and gaming, running a paper-
based zine, reading literacy novels and wordless picture books, reading graphic novels and
comics, and reading bus timetables, (Primary English Teaching Association Australia, 2015).

Leander (2003) noted that new literacies are often flexible, continuous and open, where online
and offline lives and “literacyscapes” merge. Thus, when a literacy practice becomes a mindset
with the concept of Web 2.0, it can be regarded as new literacy, New technologies enable and
enhance these practices in a way that is highly complex and exciting for students.

New literacies: Commonly recognized examples include instant messaging, vlogging, social
networking, podcasting, photo sharing, digital storytelling, and conducting online searches.

Exploring the New Literacies

There are seven new literacies that are stressed in the 21 st century curriculum.

1. Multicultural Literacy is about understanding ethnic groups that comprise the population
and focuses on complex issues of identity, diversity and citizenship.
2. Social literacy is the development of social skills, knowledge and positive values in human
beings to act positively and responsibly in sophisticated complex social settings.
3. Media literacy is the ability to access, analyze, evaluate, and create media.
4. Financial literacy is the ability to make informed judgments and make effective decisions
regarding the use and management of money.
5. Digital literacy is the ability to effectively use digital devices for purposes of
communication, expression, collaboration and advocacy in a knowledge-based society.
6. Ecological literacy is understanding the principles of ecosystems toward sustainability.
7. Creative literacy is the ability to make original ideas that have value, and ability to see the
world in new ways.

The Truth on 21st Century Literacies according to Research

Since success with technology depends largely on critical thinking and reflection, teachers
with relatively little technological skills can provide less useful instruction. Therefore, schools must
support the teachers by providing them professionals training and up-to-date technology for
utilization in classrooms.

Global economies, new technologies, and exponential growth in information are transforming
our society. Since today’s people engage with a technology- driven, diverse, and quickly changing
world, teachers need to prepare students for this world with problem-solving, collaboration, and
analysis, as well as skills with word processing, hypertext, LCDs, Webcams, podcasts,
smartboards, and social networking software that are central to individual and community
success.

The Nation Council of Teachers of English (2013) came up with a research that reveals the
following:

1. As new technologies shape literacies, they bring opportunities for teachers to foster
reading and writing in more diverse and participatory contexts.
2. Sites, like literature’s Voice of the shuttle, online fanfiction, and the Internet Public Library,
expand both the range of available texts and the social dimension of literacy.
3. Research on electronic reading workshops shows that they contribute to the emergence
of new literacies.
4. Research also shows that the digital technology enhances writing and interaction in
several ways.
5. K-12 students, who write with computers, produce compositions of greater length and
higher quality are more engaged with and motivated toward writing than those who do not
write with computers.
6. College students, who keep e-portfolios, have a higher rate of academic achievement and
overall retention rate than those who do not keep e-portfolios. They also demonstrate a
greater capacity for metacognition, reflection and audience awareness.
7. Both typical and atypical students, who receive an online response to writing, revise their
works better than those participating in traditional method.

Functional Literacy

The term functional literacy was initially defined by UNESCO through William S. Gray in his
Teaching of Reading and Writing (1956) as adult training to meet independently the reading and
writing demands placed on them. It stresses the acquisition of appropriate verbal, cognitive and
computational skills to accomplish practical results in specific cultural settings dubbed as survival
literacy and reductionist literacy.

Over the decades, as societies have evolved into technical innovations, the definition of
functional literacy has been modified to meet the changing demands (Concise Oxford Companion
to the English Language, 1998).

Referring to the functional literacy, UNESCO states the following:

1. Literacy programs should be integrated to and correlated with economic and social
development plans.
2. The eradication of illiteracy should begin with population sectors, which are highly
motivated and need literacy for their own and their country’s benefit.
3. Literacy programs should be linked with economic priorities and carried out in areas
undergoing rapid economic expansion.
4. Literacy programs must impart not only reading and writing bur also professional and
technical knowledge leading to greater participation of adults in economic and civic life.
 5. Literacy must be an integral part of the over-all educational system and plan of each
country.
6. The financial need for functional literacy should be met with various resources, as well as
be provided for economic investments.
7. The literacy programs should aid in achieving main economic objectives (i.e. increase in
labor productivity, food production, industrialization, social and professional mobility,
creation of new manpower and diversification of the economy).

Thus, literacy materials present reading, writing and numeracy concepts using words and
ideas needed in using information for learners to enhance sufficient literacy skills and continue
learning on their own.

A number of functional literacy programs have been carried out that focus on different job
skills and development aspects. To name a few, in the Philippine context are agricultural, health,
industry, family planning, home making, arts and culture and technical-vocational programs.

A new functional literacy aspect, called specific literacy, is becoming a trend, in which the job
of the student is analyzed to see exactly the literacy skills needed and those that are only taught.
This is to prevent job-skill mismatch. In specific literacy, the student may learn very little but will
be of immediate value that would result in increased learner motivation.

Therefore, the specific literacy strategy is planning tool that allows the literacy worker to focus
on skills that are of value to the learners.

Significance of this approach includes literacy that: (1) starts in the workplace; (2) uses a
diagnostic approach; (3) identifies turning points in economic life that may act as an incentive to
learning; (4) assesses the limits of a short-term intervention; and (5) looks for generic skills.
(https://www.encyclopedia.com/humanities/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-
maps/functional-literacy)

Gunes (2000) posited that functional literacy constitutes the second level of literacy next to
basic literacy, in which literary and mathematical information and skills can be utilized in one’s
personal, social, economic and cultural endeavors. Therefore, the essence in functional literacy
is to learn basic related information and skills and use them in daily life. Functional literacy level
comprises both technical and functional skills while encompassing social, citizenship, and
economic roles.

In context, Capar (1998) cites that a functionally literate person in someone who is one step
ahead of literacy and maintains literacy activity throughout his/her life in order to keep living and
effectively accommodate him/herself to his/her surroundings. It is, therefore, an ongoing process.

UNESCO defines functional literacy as the ability of an individual to take part in significant
activities in professional, social, political and cultural aspects in a society, where he/she lives
using his/her literacy skills (De Castel, 1971; Goksen, Gulgoz and Kagitcibasi, 2000; as cited in
Savas, 2006).
 Hatch (2010) defines it based on the American Heritage College Dictionary (AHCD).
Accordingly, the word “functional” means “building capacity” and “literacy” as “reading and writing
skills”. Therefore, it is the capability to proficiently read and write that can be used in daily life
routines.

Likewise, Knoblauch and Brannon (1993), as cited in Jabusch (2002) distinguished basic
literacy and functional literacy as having the expression “functional” to indicate performance with
texts, including mathematics.

The Education for All Global Monitoring Report (UNESCO, 2006) states that functional
literacy means the ability to make significant use of activities involving reading and writing
skills that include using information, communicating with others, and following a path of
lifelong learning necessary for the ability to express him/herself in daily life. UNESCO’s
definition also adds that functional literacy includes those skills essential for both official
and unofficial participation, as well as those which are necessary for national change and
development that can be used to aid an individual in contributing to his/her own
development and that of his/her family and the society. The National Statistics Authority
defines functional literacy as the level of literacy that includes reading, writing and
numeracy skills that help people cope with the daily demands of life.

Based on these definitions, functional literacy can be concluded as an activity that contributes
to the development of an individual and the society, including the ability to use information and
skills related to listening, speaking, reading, writing and arithmetic necessary for daily life in social,
cultural and economic aspects effectively (https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org).

Improving Functional Literacy in the Philippines

Over the years, the Philippines had continuously aspired to attain an increased functional
literacy rate.

Manuyo (2019) reported that based on the 2013 Functional Literacy, Education and Mass
Media Survey (FLEMMS), the country registered a 90.3% rate, which means that nine out of every
10 Filipinos aged 10-64 were functionally literate. In 2003, there were still gaps at the community
level. In the study conducted by World Vision, results showed that the proportion of girls and boys
aged 11-13, who were functionally literate, placed at a critical rate of 44%, or below 50% of the
students were able to read with comprehension by the end of their basic education.

It was also evident that school dropouts contributed to low functional literacy. Obviously, one
in every 100 or about 4 million Filipino children and youth were out-of-school in 2013. Of the total
number, 22.9% got married, 19.2% lacked a family income to be sent to school and 19.1% lacked
interest in attending schools. In order to address illiteracy issues, creating formal and non- formal
learning environments, active participation of local stakeholders, capacity building of teachers,
development contextualized or indigenized learning materials, and tracking of improvement of
reading, basic math and essential life skills outcomes were desired. Interventions also include
improvement of classrooms and several reading facilities, establishing a culture of reading
program, parental training and learning, and skill integration in the curriculum.
(https://www.worldvision.org.ph/stories/improving-functional-literacy-in-the-philippines/)

In a follow-up study by World Vision in 2016, the functional literacy rate went up at 76.53%.
In the community level, the rate inclined to 62.64%, or around 50%-70% of the students were able
to read with comprehension by the end of their basic education. The increase was significant
within the 3-year interval but it also indicated more improvement is expected considering that the
rate remained 17.36% short of the 80% threshold (https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org).

An analysis shows that functional literacy could mean low resilience to respond to abnormal
conditions and increase a child’s vulnerability to exploitation. This could also result in
unpreparedness for gainful employment and eventually increased dependency on welfare
programs.

One of the government initiatives to address this is the Alternative Learning System (ALS)
that provides the opportunity for learning among out-of-school youth for them to land in better
jobs.

(https://pdfs.semanticsholar.org/3941/28e7d8e26/67db4951eb52713964a98546ec.pdf)

Integration of New Literacies in the Curriculum

To address the call for literacy in today’s world, students must become proficient in the new
literacies of 21st century technologies. The International Reading Association (IRA) believes that
literacy educators have the responsibility to integrate information and communication
technologies into the curriculum to prepare students for the future they deserve.

The multi-literate learner. Today, the internet and other forms of information and
communication technologies (ICTs) are redefining the nature of reading, writing, and
communication. New literacy skills and practices are required by each new ICT as it emerges and
evolves. Thus, these new literacies need to be integrated into the curriculum to prepare students
for successful civic participation in a global environment.

Students would desire for; (1) teachers who use ICTs skillfully for teaching and learning; (2)
peers who use ICTs responsibly and who share their knowledge; (3) a literacy curriculum that
offers opportunities for collaboration with peers around the world; (4) instruction that embeds
critical and culturally sensitive thinking into practice, standards and assessments that include new
literacies; (5) leaders and policymakers who are committed advocates of ICTs for teaching and
learning; and (8) equal access to ICTs for all classrooms and students.

Coiro, et. al (2008) noted four common elements as broader dimensions of new literacies, to
wit: (1) the internet and other ICTs require new social practices, skills, strategies, and dispositions
for their effective use; (2) new literacies are central to full civic, economic, and personal
participation in a global community; (3) new literacies rapidly change as defining technologies
change; and (4) new literacies are multiple, multimodal and multifaceted, thus, they benefit from
multiple lenses seeking to understand how to better support the students in a digital age.
 Impact of new literacies on institution. Additional changes are taking place in literacy
instruction (Grisham and Wolsey, 2009). Henry (2008) restated that engagement in literacy
activities is being transformed today like at no other time in history. As students turn to the internet
and other information communication technologies (ICTs) at increasing rates to read, write and
interact with texts, they must develop new skills and strategies, or new literacies, to be successful
in these multimodal, inter-textual and interactive environment. The internet has become the
defining technology for today’s youth and may be the most important ICT for students to learn
how to manipulate successfully.

Although, there are multiple ways to view the changes in literacy and communication
emerging from new technologies (Labbo and Reinking. 1999), it cannot be ignored that literacy
changes experiences at school and in everyday lives. As such, rapid profound changes in
technology impact students’ literacy journey. Hence, Leu. et. al (2004) posited that changes in
literacy are confronted by innovation, that the new literacies of today will be replaced by even
newer ones tomorrow as new ICTs continuously emerge in a more globalized community of
learners. And such changes bear important implications to instruction, assessment, professional
development and research.

Multiliteracies in the Educational Reform

In a broader essence, the concept of 21st century skills are motivated by the belief that
teaching students the most relevant, useful, in-demand, and university applicable skills should be
prioritized in today’s schools.

As such, students need to be taught different skills that should reflect the specific demands of
a complex, competitive, knowledge-based, information-age, technology-driven economy and
society.

21st Century skills may be taught in a wide variety of school settings. Teachers may advocate
teaching cross-disciplinary skills, while schools may require 21st century skills in both instruction
and assessment processes. Schools and teachers may use educational approaches that
inherently expedite or facilitate the acquisition of cross-disciplinary skills.

Educational strategies that include authentic, outcome-based learning, project-based

learning and performance-based learning tend to be cross-disciplinary in nature. Students
complete a research project, create multiple technologies, analyze and process information, think
creatively, plan out the process, and work collaboratively in teams with other students.

Likewise, schools may allow students to pursue alternative learning pathways, in which
students earn academic credit and satisfy graduation requirements by completing an internship,
apprenticeship or immersion experience. In this case, students can acquire a variety of practical,
job-related skills and work habits, while also completing academic coursework and meeting the
same learning standards required of students.

Assessment of multiliteracies. Assessment moves from usual memorization of facts and

disconnected processes to demonstration of understanding through application in a variety of
context. Real-world audiences are important part of the assessment process, including self-
assessment.

Media literacy skills are honed as students address real-world issues from the environment.
Students use the technological and multimedia tools now available to them to design and produce
websites, television shows, radio shows, public service announcements, mini-documentaries,
electronic portfolios, DVDs, oral histories and even films.

In a way, students can freely express their points of view as they create projects using
multimedia and deliver these products to real-world audiences, realizing that they can make a
difference and change the world. They learn what is to be a contributing citizen, and carry these
citizenship skills throughout their lives.

As a result, standardized test scores are higher because students have acquired the skills
and content in a meaningful connected way with profound understanding. They actually master
the content on a much higher level and develop their basic skills by constant application
throughout their schooling.

Preparing teacher for multiliteracies. New London Group (1996) underscored multi-
literacies as multimodal ways of communication that include communications between and among
other languages using diverse channels within cultures and an ability to understand technology
and multimedia. As such, applying multiliteracies to teaching offers a new classroom pedagogy
that extends and helps manage classrooms.

Biswas (2014) asserted that one challenge for educators is to help students create a
sustainable literacy development throughout schooling, so that students can develop strong
literacy skills (Borsheim, et. al, 2008). Certainly, multiple and new literacies require students to
integrate technology-enhanced educational tools into their work. Ajayi (2011) recommended that
teacher education must prepare teachers to teach multiliteracies in their schools where there is a
critical gap between multiliteracies and classroom pedagogy (Pennington, 2013). Given
globalization and technological changes, teaching multiliteracies is indispensable to literacy
teaching and learning in the 21st century.

Therefore, Newman (2002) in Biswas (2014) suggests that teachers integrate four
components of multiliteracies in teaching:

1. Situated practice leads students towards meaningful learning by integrating primary

knowledge.
2. Over instruction guides students to the systematic practice of learning process with tools
and techniques.
3. Critical framing teaches students how to question diverse perceptions for better learning
experiences.
4. Transformed action teaches students to apply the lessons they lean to solve real-life
problems.

Thus, teaching multiliteracies can inform, engage, and encourage students to embrace
the multiplicity of learning practices (New London Group, 1996). Moreover, teaching
multiliteracies’ can help teachers blend and apply the following four instructional
processes of multiliteracies in classroom to ensure successful teaching and advancing
students’ learning processes.

Research shows that effective instruction in 21st Century literacies takes an

integrated approach, helping students understand how to access, evaluate, synthesize,
and contribute to information (New London Group, 1996).

Teachers insist to: (1) encourage students to reflect regularly on the role of
technology in their learning; (2) create a website and invite students to use it to continue
class discussions and bring in outside voices; (3) give students strategies for evaluating
the quality of information they find on the internet; (4) be open about one’s own strengths
and limitations with technology and invite students to help; (5) explore technologies
students are using outside the classroom and find ways to incorporate them into one’s
teaching; (6) use wiki to develop a multimodal reader’s guide to a class text; (7) include a
broad variety of media and genres in class texts; (8) ask students to create a podcast to
share with an authentic audience; (9) give students explicit instruction about how to avoid
plagiarism in a digital environment; and (10) refer to the partnership for 21st Century Skills
website.

For schools and policymakers: (1) Teachers need both intellectual and material
support for effective 21st century literacy instruction; (2) Schools need to provide
continuing opportunities for professional development, as well as up-to-date technologies
for use in literacy classrooms; (3) Address the digital divide by lowering the number of
students per computer and by providing high quality access (broadband speed and
multiple locations) to technology and multiple software packages; (4) Ensure that students
in literacy classes have regular access to technology; (5) Provide regular literacy specific
professional development in technology for teachers and administrators at all levels,
including higher education; (6) Require teacher preparation programs to include training
in integrating technology into instruction; (7) Protect online learners and ensure their
privacy; (8) Affirm the importance of literacy teachers in helping students develop
technological proficiency; (9) Adopt and regularly review standards for instruction in
technology.

The integration of new literacies and the teaching of multiliteracies open new
pedagogical practices that create opportunities for future literacy teaching and learning.
Multiliteracies can also help teachers provide equal access to learning for all students. In
effect, students learn to collaborate by sharing their thoughts with others in online spaces
where they can engage in different forms or modes of learning process. Consequently,
students can be expected to become more confident and knowledgeable in their learning
through participatory and collaborative practices as a result of this new literacy integration
in the curriculum for teacher education (New London Group, 1996).
 Synthesis and Learning Reflections

• New literacy demands the ability to move confidently, efficiently, and ethically between and
among a wide range of written and visual, print, live, digital, or electronic text types according
to purpose.
• Functional literacy is the level of literacy that includes not only ready and writing but also
numeracy skills that would help people cope with the daily demands of life.
• There are various plans and programs of the government in improving functional literacy in
the Philippines.
• New literacies can be integrated into the curriculum through effective teaching-learning
implementation.
• Multiple literacies are multimodal ways of communication, which include communications
among different languages, using language within different cultures, and the ability to
understand technology and multimedia.