Twenty-First-Century Technology Skills

Twenty-first-century technology skills are those abilities that enable students to access, analyze, manage, synthesize, evaluate, create, and share information in a variety of forms and media that incorporate a global perspective. Educators can leverage these technology skills to support 21st-century-learning outcomes that are associated with preparing students to meet the needs of an ever-evolving workforce. These skills are not directly associated with particular content areas but rather encompass skills that students need to be successful, lifelong learners in an increasingly interconnected world. Twenty-first-century skills usually refer to competencies in creativity, communication, collaboration, digital literacy, critical thinking, and problem solving.

Education experts, however, do not agree on a universal definition of 21st-century skills, and they disagree on whether technology skills should be taught and what learning environments ...