Digital Era: 21st Century Learning
In our fast-paced world, just like everything else, education and learning trends have also changed incredibly. Especially with technological advancements, learning is now something closely connected to various skills and knowledge systems supported by technology.
As far as I comprehend, 21st-century learning is about various skills, knowledge, and competencies that learners should possess in order to be mindful, productive, and successful individuals in this fast-paced age: the 21st century.
The importance and necessity of this topic come to the surface with its application to various fields, for instance, language learning, as it is based not only on knowing some necessary knowledge areas but also on knowing the value of these and acting on it accordingly (The 3*3 model of 21st-century learning, based on the Kereluik et al. (2013) framework).
As a teacher candidate, I think knowing and applying the 21st-century skills in language classrooms and language learning is crucial for being a qualified language teacher and raising successful students. Additionally, keeping up with the latest trends would be useful for creating a more learner-friendly environment, as these skills are quite helpful for making learners create and thus produce more permanent results. Once again, the necessity of integrating technology lies in the fact that we live in an era in which many things are automatized, and critical skills like creativity, competence, and being knowledgeable are highly important. With the help of technology, we can create productive materials and practices for the benefit of both us and our students :).
