Walden University Blog

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Students of the 21st century are often random learners who access multiple social networking websites and other media locations and get copious information. Students may be researching one topic, and then another topic pops up. If the new topic that pops up seems interesting to them, they might then follow that link completely leaving behind the topic they were initially searching. Educators must take advantage of this knowledge of the learning characteristics of students in the 21st century, and design lessons that embrace those characteristics and encourage students to use the four C’s: Critical thinking and problem solving skills, Communication skills, Collaboration skills, and Creativity and innovation skills.

As an example of just how much instant information is available, consider this. According to Woframalpha.com, if a student accesses their website from their smart phone or computer while sitting in class, they have instant access to “10+ trillion pieces of data, 50,000+ types of algorithms and models, and linguistic capabilities for 1000+ domains.”

With massive amounts of instant information available from multiple locations, trying to make sense of all of the available information can be like trying to drink from a fire hose. There’s plenty of water, but can you really drink it? Students must learn how to effectively become consumers of knowledge and collaborate in the manner the 21st century global society business world communicates.  One way to help students learn how to do this is by teachers posing real world meaningful problems within integrated and thematic units, and setting parameters that encourage students to use the four C’s.