21st Century Classroom

The 21st century skills are a set of abilities that students need to develop in order to succeed in the information age. The Partnership for 21st Century Skills lists three types:

Learning Skills:	Literacy Skills:	Life Skills:
Critical Thinking Creative Thinking Collaborating Communicating	Information Literacy Media Literacy Technology Literacy	Flexibility Initiative Social Skills Productivity Leadership

Computing devices have become essential tools for 21st century students and greatly assist in teaching and learning to make them more engaging and effective. Therefore, beside the 4Cs, an additional C - Connect was suggested for the learning skills,

Components of 21st Century Classroom

Characteristics of a 21st Century Classroom

• Students take responsibility of their learning
• Teacher as facilitator
• Collaborative environment
• Technology Integration
• Inquiry based approach
• Writing for reflection
• Use of a problem solving methodology
• Hands-on learning
• Performance-based assessments
• Active learning
• Justification for answers
• Adaptive learning

21st Century Learning Space
When talking about learning space, the obvious words are: space, flexibility, versatility, connectedness, freedom, innovative, comfortable.

According to Thornburg (2004), learning takes place in four spaces: campfires (information), watering holes (conversation), caves (concept), and life (context).

• Campfire: a place to learn from experts or storytellers. A place for whole-group discussions.
• Watering Hole: a space for small group discourse, sharing and collaboration. 
• Cave: a space for individual study, reflection, quiet reading and creative flow.

Below are sample of 21st century classroom setting:

References:

Goertz, P. (2015) 10 Signs of a 21st Century Classroom. Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/discussion/10-signs-21st-century-classroom on 11th Nov. 2015

Pearlman, B. (2010) Designing New Learning Environments to Support 21st Century Skills. Retrieved from http://www.bobpearlman.org/Learning21/New%20Learning%20Environments%20for%2021st%20Century%20Skills.PDF on 11th Nov. 2015

Saxena, S. (2013) Top 10 Characteristics of a 21st Century Classroom. Retrieved from http://edtechreview.in/news/862-top-10-characteristics-of-a-21st-century-classroom on 11th Nov. 2015

Thornburg, D. (2004). Campfires in Cyberspace: primordial Metaphors for Learning in the 21st Century. International Journal of Instructional Technology and Distance Learning, Vol.1. No.10. Retrieved from http://homepages.dcc.ufmg.br/~angelo/webquests/metaforas_imagens/Campifires.pdf on 11th Nov. 2015

Thoughtful Learning. (2015). What are 21st century skills. Retrieved from https://k12.thoughtfullearning.com/FAQ/what-are-21st-century-skills on 11th Nov. 2015