"21st Century Fluency Skills"

"21st Century Fluency Skills."

Students these days are exposed to plethora of information more than ever before, as pointed out by Warlick, (2010), literacy has gone far beyond ability to read and understand texts, in this age of computer information technology, texts are combined with multimedia information systems where anyone is free to publish without filtration or scrutiny. As Coiro, (2003) informed in his article, users of internet must be able to deconstruct what is being red, identify author’s motive, investigate the source and be able to remove the wheat from the chaff. Many expert spoke on the need to teach and empower students to become critical consumers of information, to approach internet with caution and determine the veracity of information encountered online. Beth Philips informed her students on the ABC of websites, while Eagleton, & Dobler, talked about 4As of evaluation, and Jukes, (2007), talked about the 21st Century fluency skills

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Categories of Literacy and Fluency

Jukes, (2007) proposed seven broad categories of the 21st century skills, which had been modified to five under the new digital citizen to include: solution fluency, information fluency, creativity fluency, media fluency; and collaboration fluency. Jukes, (2007) stated that these fluencies are required for contemporary learners to be successful in the ever competitive 21st digital information environment. Experts agree that for anybody to be successful in the new information age, the above mentioned fluency skills are imperative, and conversely, there is a consensus among experts that the education system is not doing enough to prepare students for the challenges that they will face after graduation! Educational institutions are still employing the moribund traditional literacy model to teach the 21st century skills, that is why many digital native students are falling through the cracks.



Traditional literacy Vs. 21st Century Fluency Skills

Under traditional literacy environment, students were considered literate when they are able to read and comprehend texts, this notion is no longer valid, as Dr. Almasi declared; texts have multiple interpretations, ability to make judgment and determine the validity of information, query the motives authors as well as being able to evaluate information are critical. In the traditional classroom, teachers were the sole repertoire of knowledge, they had the sole authority and fed students with what they need to know, this method is outdated. With the new information age comes the ability to learn anywhere any time, education has gone beyond the four walls of the classroom, and teachers have become con-constructors of knowledge with their students. In traditional literacy, group’s skills, personal skills listening skills, etc, were not emphasized, not critical to employability, however, in the emerging labour market, these soft skills are even rated over educational qualifications. Traditional literacy environment produced graduates that worked in close environments and obtained jobs for live, in the new information age, collaboration and networking have become the norm. Research showed that technological fluency and communication skills are rated highest by employers with 81 and 74 respectively. Traditional literacy did not equip students with new fluencies as outlined by Jukes, (2007).



Evaluating Students Based on the New Categories

Evaluating students based on the new categories will be possible based on concerted efforts between school and the home, after the students have been taught formally about how to acquire the 21st century skills. First, a checklist of what to look for in students based on the broad categories of the new skills will be developed. Secondly, students will be put in contexts where these new skills will be demonstrated for observation, teachers will be able to determine whether students have imbibed these new skills or not. The best way to do this will be through inquiry and project based learning, class presentations, application of knowledge, creation of artifacts, and demonstration by students in such a way that all the fluencies will be applied to real life situations.



The Importance of Educating Families about 21st Century Skills

Firstly, teachers are working from the assumption and premise that parents and teachers are working in the best interest of the students, if this is held to be true by both parties, educating parents about the necessity to evaluate students on 21st, century skills will be easier. It is necessary to education families of students so as to stem the incidence of resistance by the parents. The reason and the intent of the new evaluation regime must be communicated to the parents. Parents also must be educated about the requirement of the digital age, and why their kids need to be set up for success in the new environment that is significantly different from what parents experienced. Parents and families should be shown data, statistics and information about what the employers are looking for, what their children are expected to be able to do and soft skills that employers will examine and value before an offer of employment is made. School must articulate the digital environment requirement, and convince parents that the school system is working in the best interest of their children.



References

References

Coiro, J. (n.d.). Coiro, J. (2003). Rethinking comprehension strategies to better prepare students for

critically evaluating content on the Internet. The NERA Journal, 39, 29-34. (Julie Coiro) –

Academia.edu . University of Rhode Island - Academia.edu . Retrieved July 18, 2011, from http://uri.academia.edu/JulieCoiro/Papers/97344/Coiro_J._2003_._Rethinking_comprehension_strategies_to_better_prepare_students_for_critically_evaluating_content_on_the_Internet._The_NERA_Journal_39_29-34

Eagleton, M. B., & Dobler, E. (2007). Reading the web: Strategies for Internet inquiry. New York, NY: The Guilford Press.

Jukes, I. (2007). 21st Century fluency skills: Attributes of a 21st century learner.

21CFP - The 21st Century Fluency Project. (n.d.). 21st Century Fluency Project. Retrieved July 16, 2011, from http://fluency21.com/about.cfm

Laureate Education, Inc. 2010 (Producer). Evaluating Information. (DVD). How students should evaluate the information found on the Internet. Baltimore, MD: Author.

November, A. (2008). Web literacy for educators. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.