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I believe in customized learning for both adults and children. We are all individuals, with unique needs and paths. Professional development should provide a framework to help identify needs, then provide tools to learn and grow with accountability.

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STEM Resource Finder | Concord Consortium

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The STEM Resource Finder is a collection of the Concord Consortium's best resources for science, math, and engineering education. Our curated collections offer lesson plans and units for your class based on these resources. All for free!"

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WarwickWARE™ provides K-12 school districts with online access to powerful management tools. The Staff Portal provides quick access to staff and student data and school district information. IEP etc.™ is a software package that assists administrators and teachers in monitoring progress for students in special education programs to ensure compliance.

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As a middle or high school career readiness teacher, you likely need to teach 21st century skills as part of your curriculum.

While all twelve of those skills are necessary to teach, the "four C's" are often considered to be the most important.
The four C's of 21st Century skills are:

1. Critical thinking

2. Creativity

3. Collaboration

4. Communication

These four skills are essential for modern students to succeed in school and the workplace.

They often make the biggest impact in terms of setting your students apart when applying for and starting their careers.
In this article, you'll discover what each skill entails and why they are so important to teach.
You'll also be able to download a free guide on how you can teach the 4 C's of 21st Century skills in middle or high school courses.

1. Critical Thinking
Critical thinking is the practice of solving problems, among other qualities.
In addition to working through problems, solving puzzles, and similar activities, critical thinking also includes an element of skepticism.

This is important in the 21st Century because it's harder than ever to verify accurate information (mostly thanks to the Internet).

Critical thinking empowers students to discover the truth in assertions, especially when it comes to separating fact from opinion.

With critical thinking, students don't just learn a set of facts or figures. Instead, they learn how to discover the facts and figures for themselves.

They ask questions. They become engaged in the world around them. They help others think critically, too.

That might be the most important part of critical thinking. Once one student has it mastered, it quickly spreads to their peers.

Whether they learn how to think critically from spending time online or simply asking "Why?" in everyday life, this skill prepares students for a life of independence and purposeful thought.

Still, critical thinking is just one of the four C's in 21st Century skills.

It works just fine when students use it alone. But when students combine it with the next skill, the sky is the limit to what they can achieve.

2. Creativity
Creativity is the practice of thinking outside the box.
While creativity is often treated like a you-have-it-or-you-don't quality, students can learn how to be creative by solving problems, creating systems, or just trying something they haven't tried before.

That doesn't mean every student will become an artist or a writer.

Instead, it means they'll be able to look at a problem from multiple perspectives - including those that others may not see.

Creativity allows students to embrace their inner strengths from big-picture planning to meticulous organization.

As a student learns about their creativity, they also learn how to express it in healthy and productive ways.

More importantly, they also become motivated to share that creativity with others.

Just like with critical thinking, that makes creativity contagious.

One student creates an interesting or innovative solution to a problem. Then, when they share it, the next student can become inspired to try something similar.

That's not to say every single creative endeavor will be a ringing success. Students will fail at some point, and some of their ideas simply won't work.

But that's okay. The point of creativity is to encourage students to think differently than convention demands.

They don't have to do things the way they've always been done.

Instead, they can figure out a better way.

Students don't have to embrace their creativity alone, either.

In fact, creativity works best when combined with the next 21st Century skill.

3. Collaboration
Collaboration is the practice of working together to achieve a common goal.
Collaboration is important because whether students realize it or not, they'll probably work with other people for the rest of their lives.

Virtually every job requires someone to work with another person at some point, even if it's for something as simple as what to get for lunch.

Practicing collaboration and teamwork helps students understand how to address a problem, pitch solutions, and decide the best course of action.

It's also helpful for them to learn that other people don't always have the same ideas that they do.

In fact, as students practice collaboration more and more, they'll learn that they have almost none of the same ideas that others do.

This can affect students in one of two ways. First, it could discourage them since nobody seems to agree with them that often. Second, it could embolden them because they realize they're bringing something unique to every conversation.

As a teacher, it's crucial that you encourage students to look at themselves through that second lens.

That way, students learn that they should speak up when they have an idea.

They may not be on the money 100% of the time - and some of their peers may have strong, opinionated reactions - but it'll teach them to speak up when they're working with others.
Communication is the practice of conveying ideas quickly and clearly.
4. Communication

Communication is often taken for granted in today's society. After all, if you say something, that means you conveyed an idea, right?

Not exactly.

In the age of text-based communications - SMS, emails, social media, etc. - it's never been more important for students to learn how to convey their thoughts in a way that others can understand them.

That's because text-based communications lack tone, which is critical to understanding the context of someone's words.

Still, even in situations where vocal tone is available, students need to learn how to communicate effectively.

That includes minimizing tangents, speaking directly to an idea, and checking other participants to make sure they're engaged.

Reading an audience - even if it's just two other people in a group discussion - lets students determine whether they should keep expanding on an idea or wrap up their point.

Their audience could even be their family at Thanksgiving dinner.

The point is that as students practice communication, they become better at efficiently conveying an idea without losing their point "in the weeds," so to speak.

With communication locked down, students can streamline their ideas and make a positive impression on those around them.

Still, it's important to note that communication isn't enough on its own to help students with 21st Century skills.

To really succeed, students need to use all four of these skills together.
The four C's of 21st Century skills let students create a whole that's greater than the sum of its parts.
How Do the Four C's Work Together?

That may sound overly-generalized, and you may be right. But the skills themselves are so general that it's difficult to pin down what, why, or how students should learn the four C's.

It's most accurate to say that students need the four C's for any and every reason.

Critical thinking teaches students to question claims and seek truth.

Creativity teaches students to think in a way that's unique to them.

Collaboration teaches students that groups can create something bigger and better than you can on your own.

Communication teaches students how to efficiently convey ideas.

Combined, the four C's empower students to become one-person think tanks.

Then, when those students get together, they can achieve almost anything!

How Do You Teach the Four C's of 21st Century Skills?

Now you know what the four C's of 21st Century skills are and why employers want new hires to have them.
Click below to get your free guide on teaching critical thinking, creativity, collaboration, and communication!
So how do you teach them in your daily middle and high school classes?

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What Are the 4 C's of 21st Century Skills?

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As a middle or high school career readiness teacher, you likely need to teach 21st century skills as part of your curriculum. While all twelve of those skills are necessary to teach, the "four C's" are often considered to be the most important.

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Immaculata University (2012-present)
Pursuing Ed.D in Educational Leadership,
Immaculata University (2014)
Principal Certification

Pennsylvania State University (2009)
Certificate, Educational Technology

Pennsylvania State University (2004)
Masters Degree in Curriculum and Instruction

Millersville University (1992)
Bachelors Degree and Teaching Certification in Chemistry

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Public School Experience
1993-2006 - Chemistry teacher
2006-2010 - Technology Coach
2010-2016 - Technology Coordinator
2016-present - Technology Director

University Teaching Experience
Harrisburg University (2010)
Brandman University (2013-2017)
Wilson College (2017-present)

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To empower teachers to leverage digital tools so they can use the best instructional practices to increase student achievement.

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Better Sharing, Brighter Future

"Twenty Years of Creative Commons (in Sixty Seconds)" by Ryan Junell and Glenn Otis Brown for Creative Commons is licensed via CC BY 4.0 and includes adaptations of the multiple open and public domain works. View full licensing and attribution information about all works included in the video on Flickr.

Creative Commons is an international nonprofit organization that empowers people to grow and sustain the thriving commons of shared knowledge and culture we need to address the world's most pressing challenges and create a brighter future for all.

Learn more

The nonprofit behind the licenses and tools the world uses to share

For over 20 years, Creative Commons has supported a global movement built on a belief in the power of open access to knowledge and creativity. From Wikipedia to the Smithsonian, organizations and individuals rely on our work to share billions of historic images, scientific articles, cultural artifacts, educational resources, music, and more!

Wikipedia

55+ million articles

Every one of Wikipedia's 55 million plus articles are shared openly and freely using a CC license.

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492,000+ images

All images of public-domain works in the Met's collection are openly available under Creative Commons Zero (CC0).

Khan Academy

100,000+ lessons

Many of the lessons found on Khan Academy are openly licensed under CC-BY-NC-SA.

Wikipedia

55+ million articles

Every one of Wikipedia's 55 million plus articles are shared openly and freely using a CC license.

The Met

492,000+ images

All images of public-domain works in the Met's collection are openly available under Creative Commons Zero (CC0).

Khan Academy

100,000+ lessons

Many of the lessons found on Khan Academy are openly licensed under CC-BY-NC-SA.

Wikipedia

55+ million articles

Every one of Wikipedia's 55 million plus articles are shared openly and freely using a CC license.

The Met

492,000+ images

All images of public-domain works in the Met's collection are openly available under Creative Commons Zero (CC0).

Khan Academy

100,000+ lessons

Many of the lessons found on Khan Academy are openly licensed under CC-BY-NC-SA.

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Cropped, Open Culture Strategic Workshop by Filipa Alfama, CC BY 4.0

One year after Creative Commons (CC) hosted an exploratory Open Culture Roundtable, in Lisbon, Portugal, which initiated the Towards a Recommendation on Open Culture (TAROC) global initiative, nearly 50 stakeholders from all continents gathered again for a strategic workshop, in Lisbon in May 2024. In this blog post, we share a snapshot of key highlights.

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Open Culture
Cropped, Open Culture Strategic Workshop by Filipa Alfama, CC BY 4.0

One year after Creative Commons (CC) hosted an exploratory Open Culture Roundtable, in Lisbon, Portugal, which initiated the Towards a Recommendation on Open Culture (TAROC) global initiative, nearly 50 stakeholders from all continents gathered again for a strategic workshop, in Lisbon in May 2024. In this blog post, we share a snapshot of key highlights.

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Open Culture, Open Heritage

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Le Sortie de l'opéra en l'an 2000 by A. Robida - Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division - Public Domain.

" An Original Theory or New Hypothesis of the Universe. Plate XXXI. ". By Thomas Wright. Public Domain

" Community Needs Care" by Camila Leão for Fine Acts x OBI is licensed via https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/.

CC staff photos are licensed under CC BY 4.0. Gratitude to Sara Jordan Photography.

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Creative Commons is an international nonprofit organization that empowers people to grow and sustain the thriving commons of shared knowledge and culture we need to address the world's most pressing challenges and create a brighter future for all.

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Not just for students anymore

Speaking in a video called "Flipping Professional Development: No teacher bored in the background" back then, Kristin Daniels, who at the time was a technology and innovation coach, said, "I look at the teachers...and I know some of them are not getting it. I know some of them are bored. And I know some of them have completely checked out."

The move to flipped classrooms was an attempt by the Stillwater district to encourage educators to check back in.

Other districts have followed suit.

The Montour School District, just outside of Pittsburg, Pa., flipped its professional development two years ago to better connect with teachers. So far, the change has been well received.

Montour Powers Up

At the Montour School District, technology has reached new heights. A new elementary school houses learning spaces that allow students to collaborate with peers and teachers, and think creatively. Montour Elementary School includes an Upcycle Makerspace where students repurpose hard-to-recycle material. The school also has a Minecraft Education Lab that incorporates the game into student learning, and boasts the "world's first" Brick Makerspace powered by LEGO Education

solutions. The area is designed to enhance students' spatial, fine motor, social, language, and creative skills.

Montour High School is also pushing against boundaries with its Tech Lab that includes four large well-equipped makerspaces. From within a full-dome planetarium students explore planets and constellations, and create their own shows. The high school is also home to a lightboard studio, where teachers can create video lectures and directly interact with handwritten notes and diagrams while facing the camera.

All this new technology isn't just thrown onto an educators' laps. Training is provided, and flipped professional development is one of the ways the new information is digested.

Beth Hobbs, a third-grade teacher and a Minecraft global ambassador, joins hundreds of educators worldwide in monthly Skype conferences to learn how to include the game and other technology into her lesson plans.

"Recently, Minecraft Education Edition released a Chemistry World which has been the hot topic of conversation," says Hobbs. "We all have been very excited for our students to explore the Chemistry World and create a foundation for Chemistry Education in an engaging manner. I love to hear how other Mentors are using these lessons and more in their classrooms.

Doug Macek, a 26-year veteran physics teacher at Montour High School, prefers flipped learning over traditional professional development.

"We've all been there before, where you sit through professional development only to find it's not what you thought. Or, it's of no help," Macek says. "The freedom to choose the type of professional development I need, from an electronic-based session with a repository of interactive videos or a live presenter, that's one of the greatest things about flipped PD."

Flipped Learning Here to Stay?

Most likely, but for Justin Aglio, director of K-4 academic achievement and K-12 innovation for the Montour district, it's important to note that flipped professional development happens to be "one of our tricks in the tool bag." Aglio is nationally recognized within the technology and innovation arena.

"My job as an administrator is to listen and support our teachers, who are hungry to learn and grow because they love our kids. We want to be responsive to them and give them the tools they need. Right now this is what's working best for our students and teachers. A year from now...we could be using holograms,"

Educators know there's no magic bullet or one-size-fits-all model to teaching and learning. Industry experts, such as Learning Forward, a nonprofit membership association that leverages professional learning to ensure every student has an equal opportunity to learn at high levels, suggest that flipped professional learning, like other professional-learning models, works best when the content is clearly aligned with the goals of the professional learning.

"If 'flipped learning' is being used with students, it's valuable for teachers to experience it as well," says Stephanie Hirsh, executive director of Learning Forward.

NEA Flips, Too

The national association recently converted what were a series of face-to-face only trainings into a blended model that includes online modules, the asynchronous groups found on NEA's edCommunities, and Zoom, an online platform for hosting live meetings.

Through NEA's Early Career Learning Labs, small groups of early career educators get help from online virtual coaches. In this virtual space, a problem is identified and the group works to identify potential solutions, try out solutions, and reflect on what might work best.

"Our time is so thin," says Macek. "We don't like to do anything that we don't see as being of value or productive...and that's why choosing your own avenue to go down is so important.

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Speaking in a video called "Flipping Professional Development: No teacher bored in the background" back then, Kristin Daniels, who at the time was a technology and innovation coach, said, "I look at the teachers...and I know some of them are not getting it. I know some of them are bored.

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The education leaders section of the ISTE Standards supports the implementation of the ISTE Standards for Students and the ISTE Standards for Educators, and provides a framework for guiding digital age learning. This section of the standards targets the knowledge and behaviors required for leaders to empower teachers and make student learning possible. They're focused on some of the most timely, yet enduring, topics in education today - equity, digital citizenship, visioneering, team and systems building, continuous improvement and professional growth.

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The education leaders section of the ISTE Standards supports the implementation of the ISTE Standards for Students and the ISTE Standards for Educators, and provides a framework for guiding digital age learning. This section of the standards targets the knowledge and behaviors required for leaders to empower teachers and make student learning possible.