Education’s Role in the 21st Century
This brings us to our own time, our recently arrived Knowledge
Age. In our newly fl at world of connected knowledge work, global
markets, tele-linked citizens, and blended cultural traditions,
the 21st century demands a fresh set of responses.8
(See Table
1.2.) In the Knowledge Age, brainpower replaces brawnpower,
and mechanical horsepower gives way to electronic hertzpower.
Table 1.2. Society’s Educational Goals Throughout the Ages, continued
Goals for
Education Agrarian Age Industrial Age Knowledge Age
Carry traditions Pass on farming Learn the past knowledge Quickly learn traditional
and values knowledge and of a trade, craft, or knowledge in a fi eld and
forward traditions to the profession and pass apply its principles
next generation this on to the next across other fi elds to
generation create new knowledge
and innovations
Raise children Maintain one’s own Build identity from and
in the ethnic, culture and values amid compassion for a wide
religious, and a diversity of traditions range of cultures and
cultural in urban life traditions
traditions of
parents and
ancestors
Connect with other cul- Participate in a wide
tures and geographies diversity of traditions
as communication and and multicultural
transportation expand experiences
Blend traditions and
global citizenship
into new traditions
and values to pass on
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16 | 21st century skills
Achieving education’s goals in our times is shaped by the increasingly
powerful technologies we have for communicating, collaborating,
and learning. And learning assumes a central role
throughout life.
Contributing to Work and Society To be a productive contributor to
society in our 21st century, you need to be able to quickly learn the
core content of a fi eld of knowledge while also mastering a broad
portfolio of essential learning, innovation, technology, and career
skills needed for work and life. And when you apply these skills to
today’s knowledge and innovation work, you are participating in a
global network in which, for example, a product may be designed
in California, manufactured in China, assembled in the Czech Re -
public, and sold in chain stores in cities across the world.
This global network of economic, technological, political, so -
cial, and ecological interconnections is no less than breathtaking.
We work with the support of multiple teams spread across the
world to get things done, solve problems, and create and deliver
new services. But since our interlinked economies depend on both
natural and human resources from around the globe, we must
continually fi nd new ways to preserve our natural world while
building more harmonious, culturally rich, and creative societies.
Fulfi lling Personal Talents With only 77 percent of the world’s
school-age children currently in school, we have a long way to go
to reach universal access to a basic education. But countries are
stepping up their investments in education as an economic imperative,
and as a result, more students are gaining more opportunities
to develop their talents.
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learning past and future | 17
Today nearly two billion cell phones are in use around the
world, and access to the Internet is rapidly increasing in schools,
homes, community centers, and Internet cafés worldwide. This
is providing even more opportunities to learn and develop skills.
As amplifi ers, storerooms, and sensory extensions for our
thinking and communicating, digital devices and the Internet
are today’s power tools for building abilities and sharing talents.
Making these tools universally accessible and closing the digital
divide between the information rich and the information poor
will provide more opportunities for learners to realize their potential.
People everywhere will then be able to contribute their own
special talents and gifts to the health and welfare of their community,
the economy, and to society as a whole.
Fulfi lling Civic Responsibilities With access to the expanded spectrum
of issues, facts, opinions, and conversations that our increasingly
media-rich and Internet-connected world brings us, our
potential for informed participation in democratic decision making
has never been better. E-mail, the Internet, and cell phones
have made it easier to connect with others who share our interests
and concerns and to coordinate our social, civic, and community
activities.
At the same time, the potential for information overload, distraction,
and analysis paralysis when facing demands for attention
from too many sources—ranging from well-informed and reliable
to woefully uninformed and even deliberately misleading—is also
high. Learning to manage our digital power tools and to apply the
critical thinking and information literacy skills needed to put all
this information to good use is a clear challenge for the 21st century.
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18 | 21st century skills
As the campaign and presidency of the world’s fi rst Internet
president, Barack Obama, has shown, technology can be a powerful
tool for personally engaging citizens in the political issues of
our times and in the process of change. In many ways, we are
just beginning to understand how to tap the enormous power
of online social technologies for collaborative problem solving,
political action, and community building.
Carrying Forward Traditions and Values Learning the core principles
and traditions of a fi eld of knowledge and blending these
with the knowledge and practices of other fi elds to invent and in -
troduce new knowledge, new services, and new products, will be a
high-demand skill set in the 21st century.
Increased mobility, immigration, intermarriage, and access to
job opportunities worldwide have led to another kind of blending
and mixing—communities across the globe are becoming ever
more culturally diverse. Though this diversity has brought vitality
and richness to our communities, differences between traditional
culture and modern values are still a troubling source of tension
in the world.
The 21st century challenge for each of us is to build and maintain
our own identity from our given traditions and from the wide
variety of traditions all around us. At the same time we must all
learn to apply tolerance and compassion for the different identities
and values of others.
With the growing diversity of global traditions and values that
now surrounds us, the challenge to maintaining social harmony is
great, but the opportunities for richer, more creative, and vibrant
communities are even greater.
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learning past and future | 19
Our historic shift to a 21st century Knowledge Age, decades in
the making, has forever tilted the balance of what is needed and
valued in our work, our learning, and our life. In the 21st century,
lifelong learning is here to stay.
Fortunately, a number of powerful global forces are coming
together to help transform learning to meet the demands of our
times.