21st century teachers should have more empathy for students.

I agree Nazime but can you explain a bit more about what you mean and how being more empathetic can be achieved? Do teachers, lecturers have enough time or opportunities to get to know their students face to face?

For quality teaching in the 21st century, educators should cultivate a diverse set of skills, including lifelong learning, creativity, critical thinking for problem-solving, digital literacy, communication skills, collaboration skills, and more. While it's unrealistic for a teacher to master every available skill, the more skills they can develop, the more effective they become in delivering high-quality instruction.

Duli, Are you presently incorporating these skills into your teaching and if so, might you provide a couple of examples? I am particulary interested in creativity and collaboration.

Collaboration manifests itself through PLC, while creativity is a complex activity. However, I have at least two articles about creativity in RG, and if you are interested in them, you might find something that you are looking for.

Thank you Duli I will have a look at those articles. You say that collaboration manifests through professional learning communities. Are you suggesting it is a skill caught or a skill taught? If taught, I would be interested in knowing how this is managed in your practice. I think we make a lot of assumptions about collaboration. I would argue that most 21st century work involves working in professional learning communities. Creative thoughts and ideas can be generated in these communities or stifled.

I would welcome others thoughts as well.

Collaborating in a PLC encompasses both "skill caught" and "skills taught." Given your focus on "skill taught," it's noteworthy that schools or districts often offer training sessions, workshops, or professional development opportunities dedicated to enhancing collaboration skills within PLCs. For instance, several months ago, we convened a meeting to delve into Collaborative Planning. During this session, we emphasized a structured approach involving three key practices: unit internalization, lesson preparation, and student work analysis. Moreover, various meetings have centered around collaborative decision-making, such as deliberations on the addition of AP courses and coordinating with fellow subject teachers to align curriculum content.

Helia Jacinto In my perspective, students should learn and be taught from Pre-K to Adult appropriate leadership style/s and intercultural sensitivity/competency aside from the basics and content areas in order to be able to meet and address effectively the demands of a current globalized world economy. . . .

Zoncita, such an important point to raise about when these skills should be caught or taught. And I so agree that it needs to be addressed through all years of schooling. But I wonder about the means. Do you think we should teach leadership and intercultural sensitivity and if so how? Or do you feel we need to model leadership and intercultural sensitivity? For example if teachers make all the decisions in their classroom, they are telling their students that this is my classroom not 'our' classroom. In the same sense, teachers being sensitive to the varying needs of all individuals with respect to culture and other differences, demonstrates a way of being with others. If teachers select texts for the classroom that demonstrate widely diverse cultural experiences, that too can model awareness. Your Thoughts?

We are being bombarded with information. I would rank Critical Selection of information and Critical Reading essential skills for 21st Century Learners. What Critical Thinking Skills are you addressing in your courses?

The skill to adapt to the environment you find yourself. Cultivate the skill of listening to students with empathy and they will listen and learn with you.

I think today's teachers should be ready to change themselves, not by changing something, and they should always improve their knowledge, know more about practice. Not limited to theory

Zebiniso, I certainly agree that teachers must be willing and ready to change themselves. But if they are willing and ready ready for change how are they being prepared for the changes 21st Century learners require? And what are those changes? When you say improve their knowledge about practice, can you provide an example?

When I say the teacher's practice, for example, inclusive education also requires pedagogical practice, dual education also requires practice, and for this, the teacher must first understand about it and define the work in practice. How can he recommend a practice he doesn't know about to a student?

A wonderful and aspirational goal for teachers Melek. I woud argue that problem solving is required in all areas of learning. And I would suggest while it is important for teachers to have problem-solving skills, teachers need to be curious and share their curiosity with students. At times, 'we wonder and solve problems together.'

You have raised many important qualities and skills 21st century teachers require like adaptability, curiosity, questioning, knowing yourself and your students. ..

I would love to learn how you are putting some of these into practice in your tutorialas and classes.

Hi Melek Şahin

Zoncita Del Mundo Norman, Thanks for your thoughts! How do you envision incorporating these skills (leadership style/s and intercultural sensitivity/competency) into the existing curricula across different age groups?

All points of view are very interesting. As far as I have been able to understand, flexibility and knowledge of students (of their characteristics) should be key (it already is today, it can probably be said that it always has been).

But I think that in such a changing socio-economic (and therefore psychological) context, trying to imagine the characteristics of teachers necessary for this century is somewhat complicated, in any case for characteristics of a specific, concrete type.

On the other hand, these very (rapidly) changing conditions of the social (psycho-social) environment have led to the change of the very object of the teacher's activity: the student.

It happens that we no longer have inter-generational changes, that is, differences between one generation and another, as occurred in the 19th and 20th centuries, now we have "intra-generational" changes, that is, within a time interval, corresponding to the average life of a person, there are changes of all kinds in the behaviors, values, motives, etc., of those who are the object of teachers' work.

That is why I think that a characteristic that may survive the change of times is the ability to be flexible enough to understand the way of thinking of our students, the causes that lead them to think and act as they do, which does not mean that teachers necessarily have to change their own evaluations and attitudes as people (although "de facto" we all, under the effects of interactions with our environment, change).

In general I am thinking of a "meta-characteristic", which allows one to mentally model the way of being/thinking of the "other" and their relationship with the surrounding reality.

I think inclusive learning may Results to the expectations, and the important thing that teachers have to understand is that, due to advancement of technology it seems like everything is around us and students know alot so when teaching they have to base on practice than theory, also competence based is recommended.

What if problem-posing derives from the students own lives where possible so they understand its relevance?

What if problem posing comes from the students as well as from the teachers?

Surely, is not just about solving mathematical problems but rather, it's about engaging students in wanting to know the solutions.

Teachers nowadays must be globally competitive not just the learners, he/she must be innovative,creative,compassionate and most of all, caring and loving...

Is the time spent with students shorter than in the past? Is there less time to be caring, less time to know our students and their needs? Salvacion, can you explain a bit more about the teacher's need to be globally competitive? Do you mean school rankings? Or do you mean to be able to teach anywhere in the world?

The world has certainly become a place where we can meet up and share cross cultural research, work together acoss countries and share information and resources.

Good day to you ma'am Gloria Latham! This is my answer to your quiry in what ways the teachers must be globally competitive:

* being a globally competent teacher requires embracing a mindset that translates personal global competence into professional classroom practice.

* It is a vision of equitable teaching and learning that enable students to thrive in an ever-changing world.

* the responsibilities of the teacher have dramatically shifted over the past decade to include preparing students for a complex, interconnected world.

* on the other hand, teaching in an isolated classroom can feel like an especially local endeavor, other than the occasional field trip or guest speaker, students may not be interacting with people and cultures beyond their classroom walls.

* lastly, teachers are facing increasing pressures to prepare students for todays global, knowledge -based economy. They also must effectively teach an increasingly diverse student population affected by real-world issues that have an impact of their physical and mental health and social-emotional well-being.

Thank you and more power!

Many Thanks Salvacion. What a wonderful response to my question. Do you feel you are putting these into practice? For instance, how are you preparing students for a global interconnected world?

Are students working in groups? Are they connecting with students in other parts of the world solving problems together? Helia and I would love to know.

My answers to you're questions ma'am Gloria and ma'am Helia, hope it will help 😊

In order to prepare students to be globally competent they must aquire the knowledge and skills to:

* investigate the world. Global competence starts by being aware,curious and interested in learning about the world and how it works.. Meaning, globally competent students ask and explore critical questions and "researchable" problems - problems for which there may not be one right answer, but can be systematically engaged intellectually and emotionally.

* weigh perspectives..

* communicate ideas...

* take action..

* apply disciplinary and interdisciplinary expertise..

* becoming better at educating for global competence involves rethinking practices and recognizing that there are no simple recipes for success.

While flexibility has always been an important characteristic of teachers I would agree that this flexibility is even more essential today. I like the notion of mentally modeling the way of thinking and being of the 'other.'

I am wondering about the sheer quanity of information available and who owns the knowledge? Has this shifted or should it shift? Is the teacher still the holder and despenser of knowledge or is the teacher the intrepretor, the sifter, of available knowledge and the one who challenges the students to read critically and select relevant information and pose new questions that matter?

Another researcher just asked the question abiut the role of AI in Higher Education?

What is AI's role in teaching?

The history of human being is the history of the modifications/substitutions of their "human subject spheres" as they were called by Prof. Tatiana Gabay (Psychologist at Moscow State University) in her proposed structure of the (psychological) human activity.

By means of that transformations humans have evolved, not biologically, they can't do that so fast, but socially, creating tools.

AI, as science, has as its main aim, the construction of artifacts (literally or virtually) having that human property known as intelligence. Before constructions of tools, as means of "spheres'" modifiers, were oriented to act on afferent and efferent organs. Now AI tools and procedures are replacing our "functional brain unites" (again a Gabay's concept), where our knowledge and abilities reside.

Teaching is an activity and it is being modified by new tools and procedures. Particular examples can be found by searching. Even more, AI has been applied in Educational Sciences in general for decades, starting from the 70 of XX century. Expert systems, Intelligent tutoring systems, adaptive systems and recommenders are, among other, well known applications of those times. Now, just uncountable...

Okay. Because all these systems and processes are available to us as teachers and have been available, I am asking about their practical effectiveness in teaching and learning. How do they enter your classroom or tutorial room spaces to better enhance learning. What does it look like when they are implemented? Does AI enhance 21st century learning? And if so how?

Do you feel we are at a crossroads? If we continue to do what we have always done, we will lose more teachers and we will certainly lose students. It may be more convenient for students to meet on Zoom or read lectures online from home, but what is being lost? What is the state of lonliness and isolation with respect to teaching and learning?

Lots of possible responses to that one … one area they might experiment with to enhance learning … involves developing strategies that might enable a diversity of learners to use their backgrounds in powerful ways as they make knowledge products … 21st century teachers also need to be able to analyse what might get in the way of doing this (increasingly standardised educative systems)

Thank-you Michael. You make some sound suggestions. Helia asks if teachers are being prepared for these responsibilities and challenges. Do you feel they are? Can you provide a couple of concrete examples of ways you use the ideas you expressed to enable diversity and create knowledge products in your classrooms?

Difficult to answer that one … in short though … i think the tendency to locate the answer to the question ‘what can a teacher do to enable diversity?’ with the individual teacher rather than the system is worth sitting with … in my experience … i could have done a lot more to meet the needs of a diversity of learners (negotiated assessment tasks for instance) … but in an overly micro managed system … altering assessment tasks is very difficult …

Having said that … i always wrote assessment tasks for accreditation bodies … that allowed for some choice … choice and negotation … enable learner backgrounds to travel into assessable knowledge products (ive written re this - see - ‘on pedagogical soaces’ ch 456+7)

I would argue that providing choice in well thought through assessment tasks, both recognises individual differences and also points out individual thinking processes and creativity.

Rather than regurgitate back what has been taught, assessment has the potential to stretch the students capabilities to go far beyond what was taught into what might be possible.

And it can be far more pleasurable for the teacher/lecturer to read.