What are the 6 C-s of the 21st century competencies?

People are always worrying about the future. One of the reasons for this anxiety is the fact that humanity now lives in a world of rapid and unpredictable changes and the faster the changes the more people are uncertain about what is in the store of the future. In such a world, it’s vital that young people are equipped with the right skills and competencies  to be prepared  to respond to the challenges  of  the future society. It is argued that today’s skills will not match the jobs of tomorrow and newly acquired skills will quickly become obsolete. Many jobs will go to oblivion and new jobs will appear( https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---ed_emp/---emp_ent/documents/publication/wcms_813222.pdf).

The focus of attention of researchers around the world (sociologists, business community,

psychologists, educators, etc.) is currently the following questions: what are the features of the

society of the future? What qualities of a persons'  personality are in demand by the society of the

future?  What is the list of those competencies for the future that should be formed in students

today? What is the interpretation of the term “21st century skills and competencies”?

Before discussion of the  21st skills and competencies, we believe, it is necessary to delineate between the definition:  What is  competence? and What is skill?

A competency is more than just knowledge or skills.  The European Commission’s Cedefop glossary (Cedefop, 2014)  defines  “skills” and “competencies” as follows: a skill is  the ability to implement  tasks and solve problems, while a competency is  the ability to put into practice  learning outcomes appropriately  in a definite context (education, work, personal or professional development). A competency is a broader concept. It involves the use of theory, concepts and knowledge in combination with functional aspects as well  as interpersonal  traits like social organization skills, ethical values, etc.

 Competencies involve the ability to meet complex demands, by activating psychosocial resources (including skills and attitudes) in a particular context. For example, the ability to communicate effectively is a competence that is based on  an individual’s knowledge of language, practical IT skills and  maintaining  good relationships with  those  who he or she is communicating.

In this article, we provide the 6 C’s suggested by  Fullan and Scot that   they believe are essential and most important for the  21st century for modern students to succeed in school and the workplace. (Fullan & Scott, Deep Pedagogies for deep learning, 2014)

1. Character – “qualities of the individual essential for being personally effective in a complex world including: grit, tenacity, perseverance, resilience, reliability, and honesty.” 2. Citizenship – “thinking like global citizens, considering global issues based on a deep understanding of diverse values with genuine interest in engaging with others to solve complex problems that impact human and environmental sustainability.”

3. Communication – the “mastery of three fluencies: digital, writing, and speaking tailored for a range of audiences.”

 4. Critical Thinking – “critically evaluating information and arguments, seeing patterns and connections, constructing meaningful knowledge and applying it in the real world.” 5. Collaboration – “the capacity to work interdependently and synergistically in teams with strong interpersonal and team related skills including effective management of team dynamics, making substantive decisions together, and learning from and contributing to the learning of others.”

 6. Creativity – “having an ‘entrepreneurial eye’ for economic and social opportunities, asking the right questions to generate novel ideas, and demonstrating leadership to pursue those ideas into practice.”

Fullan &Scott point out that taken together these personal, interpersonal and cognitive capabilities identify the underpinnings needed by school and college graduates if they are to build the communities, institutions and indeed the societies that will be socially, culturally, economically as well as environmentally sustainable over the coming years (Michael Fullan and Geoff Scott https://www.michaelfullan.ca/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/Education-Plus-A-Whitepaper-July-2014-1.pdf).

A.A. MULDAGALIYEVA, SH.B.GUMAROVA,

Department of Foreign languages