Abstract
The first two decades of the twenty-first century witnessed the blossoming of frameworks to conceptualize “21st-century skills” both in school and career. However, there is still a lack of consensus about what we are talking about when using the term “21st-century skills,” as the existing frameworks on “21st-century skills” are different from each other. Drawing upon 471 existing sources published in 2000–2017 regarding “21st-century skills,” identified from six research databases, this study was intended to answer the following research question via a systematic review: What skills had been considered as “21st-century skills” in the existing educational research literature? Seven categories or domains of knowledge and skills emerged when investigating this literature. Implications and future research directions about how adaptive learning and adaptive testing in the new century can empower educational and vocational guidance were briefly discussed at the end of this paper.
Résumé
Vers une compréhension des compétences du 21ème siècle: A partir d'une revue systématique
Les deux premières décennies du 21ème siècle ont vu fleurir des cadres pour conceptualiser les "compétences du 21ème siècle", tant à l'école que dans la carrière. Cependant, il n'y a toujours pas de consensus sur ce dont nous parlons lorsque nous utilisons le terme " compétences du XXIe siècle ", car les cadres existants sur les " compétences du XXIe siècle " sont différents les uns des autres. S'appuyant sur 471 sources existantes publiées entre 2000 et 2017 concernant les "compétences du XXIe siècle", identifiées à partir de six bases de données de recherche, cette étude visait à répondre à la question de recherche suivante par le biais d’une revue systématique: Quelles compétences ont été considérées comme des " compétences du XXIe siècle " dans la littérature de recherche en matière d’éducation existante ? Sept catégories ou domaines de connaissances et de compétences ont émergé lors de l’analyse de la littérature. Les implications et les futures directions de recherche sur la manière dont l'apprentissage adaptatif et les tests adaptatifs de ce nouveau siècle peuvent renforcer l'orientation scolaire et professionnelle ont été brièvement discutées à la fin de cet article.
Zusammenfassung
Zum Verständnis der Fähigkeiten des 21. Jahrhunderts: Aus einer systematischen Übersicht
In den ersten beiden Jahrzehnten des 21. Jahrhunderts belegen die Entwicklung zahlreiche Rahmenkonzepte für die Konzeptualisierung der "Kompetenzen des 21. Jahrhunderts “. Es besteht jedoch immer noch kein Konsens darüber, worüber wir sprechen, wenn wir den Begriff "Fähigkeiten des 21. Jahrhunderts" verwenden, da sich die bestehenden Rahmenwerke für "Fähigkeiten des 21. Jahrhunderts" voneinander unterscheiden. Die vorliegende Studie stützt sich auf 471 Quellen, die im Zeitraum 2000–2017 zum Thema "Fähigkeiten des 21. Jahrhunderts" veröffentlicht wurden und aus sechs Forschungsdatenbanken stammen: Welche Fähigkeiten wurden in der bestehenden Bildungsforschungsliteratur als "21st-century skills" betrachtet? Bei der Untersuchung dieser Literatur wurden sieben Kategorien oder Bereiche von Wissen und Fähigkeiten ermittelt. Implikationen und zukünftige Forschungsrichtungen darüber, wie adaptives Lernen und adaptives Testen im neuen Jahrhundert die Bildungs- und Berufsberatung unterstützen können, werden am Ende dieses Papiers kurz diskutiert.
Resumen
Para entender las habilidades del 21º siglo: De una revisión sistemática
Las dos primeras décadas del siglo XXI han sido testigo del florecimiento de modelos para conceptualizar las "competencias del siglo XXI" tanto en la escuela como en la profesión. Sin embargo, sigue habiendo una falta de consenso sobre de qué estamos hablando cuando utilizamos el término "habilidades del siglo XXI", ya que los marcos existentes sobre las "habilidades del siglo XXI" son diferentes entre sí. A partir de 471 fuentes existentes publicadas entre 2000 y 2017 en relación con las "competencias del siglo XXI", identificadas a partir de seis bases de datos de investigación, este estudio pretendía responder a la siguiente pregunta de investigación mediante una revisión sistemática: ¿Qué habilidades han sido consideradas como "habilidades del siglo XXI" en la literatura de investigación educativa existente? Al investigar esta literatura surgieron siete categorías o dominios de conocimientos y habilidades. Al final de este trabajo se discutieron brevemente las implicaciones y las futuras direcciones de investigación sobre cómo el aprendizaje adaptativo y las pruebas adaptativas del nuevo siglo pueden potenciar la orientación educativa y profesional.
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Acknowledgements
The author thanks Drs. Esther Care, Alvin Vista and Helyn Kim at the Brookings Institution for a summer internship in 2018 that inspired the writing of this article and the ensuing pursuit of research in adaptive assessment. Also, the author thanks the participants at the annual conference of the National Council on Measurement in Education in 2019 for their constructive feedback on an earlier version of this article, Dr. Aarti Bellara from the University of Connecticut that supported this study, in addition to editors and anonymous reviewers of this journal whose comments helped improve this article tremendously. This work is supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant DGE-1747486. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.
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The author disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, conference presentation, and/or publication of this article: This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant DGE-1747486. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.
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Chen, D. Toward an understanding of 21st-century skills: From a systematic review. Int J Educ Vocat Guidance 23, 275–294 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10775-021-09511-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10775-021-09511-1