Learning to Teach Global Competencies in a Transforming Digital World: A National Examination and Case Study

Introduction

In our ever-changing global society, success can be defined by the ability to adapt to new environments and master innovations in technology. Global competencies, often referred to as 21^st century skills, are knowledge, work habits, and character traits that can be interdependent, interdisciplinary, and leveraged in a variety of situations both locally and globally (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development [OECD], 2018). These 21^st century skills encompass a wide range of knowledge, skills and abilities. The most prominent and globally applicable of these competencies include critical thinking and problem-solving; innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship; learning to learn/self-awareness and self-direction; collaboration; communication; global citizenship and sustainability; experiential and problem-based learning; computational thinking; and digital literacy/fluency (Let’s Talk Science, 2018; Ontario Ministry of Education, 2016). Some of these 21^st century skills relate more specifically to technical capacities in science, technology, engineering, and math (often referred to as STEM, e.g., The Obama Administration, 2013); however, many more highlight the need for soft skills like self-awareness, communication, and collaboration (including the Arts as STEAM, Madden et al., 2013). Overall, these skills and competencies reflect an individual’s ability to adaptively grow and change in our globally connected, innovative world as we see rapid changes in technology, globalization, urbanization, and environmental awareness.

Previous research has indicated that the ability to learn and possess 21^st century skills hosts a wide range of benefits for individuals. As technology continues to expand into an ever-increasing portion of our society, digital fluency--the ability to effectively interpret information, create knowledge, and communicate ideas in digital spaces--becomes increasingly important. For example, knowledge of how to write and interpret code is linked to a wide range of educational and intellectual benefits (Martin, 2019). Strong problem-solving capacities and creativity have been connected to higher academic achievement (OECD, 2014). Many interpersonal skills such as cooperation and communication have been linked to greater global citizenship (Reysen & Katzarska-Miller, 2017). The ability to be flexible and innovative allows for an easy transition between occupations and the ability to adapt to a change in current roles in the workplace. All of these 21^st century skills, whether directly related to technology or soft/social skills, are crucial for individuals to be competent, well-rounded global citizens. Perhaps even more crucial is ensuring that younger generations, who will be the leaders, thinkers, and the workforce of the future, have these abilities and skills.

Computational thinking (CT) is one specific 21^st century skill shown to be valuable in developing children’s general problem-solving skills (Gonzalez et al., 2016; Tu & Johnson, 1990). CT is defined as how computer scientists think, solving problems using the fundamental tenets of computing (Wing, 2017). CT is not strictly about computer science but is rather a way of thinking and tackling problems with specific strategies rooted in computer science. In order to find a solution to a computer science problem, simple steps must be followed, such as identifying the problem, reading through and experimenting with their scripts, trying again, and searching for workable scripts (Brennan & Resnick, 2012). Bransford and Stein (1993) present a similar problem-solving technique to Brennan and Resnick’s (2012) steps in CT with the IDEAL problem-solving acronym: identifying problems and opportunities; defining goals and representing the problem; exploring possible solution strategies; anticipating, acting; and looking back. As can be seen with this model, the process of problem-solving in computer science is easily translated to strategies that can be used across other subjects and domains. Just as a programmer can identify a coding problem and go back to their scripts to work through solutions for that problem, an individual writing an essay for their Language Arts class can identify a problem that they seek to solve and support throughout their essay. Utilizing CT and other 21^st century skills in subject areas outside of computer sciences is both feasible and valuable (Mueller et al., 2017). For children and youth, the ability to use CT to solve problems in our global society may prove to be critical in attaining success.