Malcolm X said: “Education is our passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to the people who prepare for it today.”

Jamaica is at a critical juncture in history. We are now 60 years old as an independent nation and have been demonstrating great resilience. Undoubtedly, many challenges remain, but we have made strides, and must continue to do so.

Over the last two years we have seen significant learning loss at every level of the education system that could potentially set us back in a significant way for years to come. During the pandemic many businesses everywhere had to pivot in order to survive. Many recognised that they could no longer meet local and global demands; hence, the move to pivot.

If we are to meet local and global educational demands, achieve our Vision 2030 targets, or even be able to compare to our education counterparts, then we need to pivot as well. As leaders in education must prepare to begin another leg of the journey, intentional steps must be made to greater emphasise the development of 21 first century skills in more of our learners. This means more so the 5Cs of 21st century learning — communication, collaboration, critical thinking, creativity, and character. These skills can no longer be a luxury that graduates of elite institutions are fortunate to have developed, but a necessity for all learners, irrespective of where they study.

Why are soft skills important?

Higher education and business leaders cite soft skills as being the most important driver of success in post-secondary studies and in the workplace. In a 2017 New Employment Opportunities (NEO) survey the Jamaican private sector ranked soft skills such as communication and teamwork at 40 per cent and academic skills at 30 per cent. We can infer that soft skills are increasingly becoming more important than our content knowledge. Where does that put us as a country, where emphasis is placed heavily on content knowledge?

We must realise that career/life-readiness means equipping learners with a nuanced set of skills that can prepare them for the unknown. Content knowledge from core subjects can only go so far. Students need to be taught how to apply facts and ideas towards finding creative solutions to complex problems.

I recently had the awesome privilege of listening in on a brainstorming session of a group of nine-year-olds as they worked through a performance task with their mathematics coach. As I reflected, the conclusion of the matter is that developing critical thinking skills should be a priority at all levels of our education system. This is a critical piece on the chessboard of our education system.

There is a disquieting dilemma, though. Information is more accessible due to advancements in technology, so one’s ability to recall information is no longer as important as being able to critically analyse and synthesise that information.

In 2020, a report by the World Economic Forum revealed that senior executives around the world view “critical thinking and analysis” as the skill most likely to increase in importance between now and 2025. To put it in perspective, in the survey senior executives tied critical thinking with collaboration as an essential skill, just behind communication skills and creativity.

But what is critical thinking? Nowadays, the term is used very loosely as very few understand that we all think on a daily basis, but few consciously focus on the process of thinking. The Foundation for Critical Thinking defines it as “self-directed, self-disciplined” thinking that attempts to reason at the highest level of quality in a fair-minded way. Consequently, educational institutions need new assessments that can accurately measure richer learning and more complex skills such as 21st century skills.

In a ‘workinar’ hosted by the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) – Jamaica Affiliate, educators indicated that over the last year they observed the following deficiencies in their learners:

* thinking creatively (84 per cent)

* thinking critically and make good decisions (70 per cent)

* ability to resolve conflicts amicably (65 per cent)

* ability to apply learning to solve real world problems (54 per cent)

* effectively communicate with peers and those in authority (41 per cent)

* cultural awareness (43 per cent)

There were educators present from all levels of education, which is somewhat telling: The issues exist in all learners — children and adult learners alike. We must understand that some skills, as simple as it may seem, must be developed over time.

Take collaboration, for example. This is a learned skill, and to work well as a team takes practice. So it is important that schools intentionally and consistently provide learning experiences that foster positive interdependence. This cannot be left only to be developed via what is called the hidden curriculum.

In Jamaica, the need for character development is dire. Unfortunately, we are seeing a fast decline in expectations of good character, behaviour norms, and positive interactions in schools. Interestingly, schools bear the brunt of the breakdown in the character of our children/youth. It is high time for the family (parents/guardians) and society to recommit their vows to participate in the education of our children/youth. Schooling is one piece of the education puzzle. We must never underestimate societal influence on how our children are educated.

Strategies for developing the 4Cs

What can educators do in their classrooms to gradually promote these skills? These strategies can be easily implemented and are suitable for any level:

(i) Give think time in which learners individually think first, then share with team members/partners, before whole class sharing. This simultaneous mode of interaction will teach learners that, while collaboration enhances learning, they are individually accountable to give a fair contribution — as it is in the real world. The aim is for a symbiotic relationship to develop, not a parasitic one. The greatest challenge with ‘group work’ in school is that on unequal participation.

(ii) Provide opportunities for students to demonstrate originality and inventiveness in their work and understand the real-world limits to adopting new ideas. Be deliberate in wording assessment tasks to foster creative thinking.

(iii) Frequently require that students provide reasons/explanations for all their claims, interpretation, analyses, evaluations, or decisions. Ask why and hold them accountable to provide a well-reasoned answer. For example, instead of a worksheet, provide worked examples and ask learners to explain or justify why it is correct or incorrect while reflecting on the appropriateness of their decisions.

(iv) Design multi-layered learning experiences/tasks that encourage teamwork/collaboration. For example, students can be required to play different roles when completing tasks (in the same way people come together to make a movie).

(v) Consistently and deliberately structure tasks which require students to make use of effective communication strategies (asking questions, paraphrasing, listening for understanding, or to give feedback). Encourage the use of communications tools, multimedia, and other technologies.

(vi) Emphasise the importance of, and help them to learn and practise behaviours that reflect universal ethical values.

Education is the key to opening that door to the bright future we so much desire. As Alvin Toffler puts it: “The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.” There is a lot of relearning, unlearning and learning to be done. Let us not forget the soft skills as we focus our efforts on pivoting our classroom practices into the 21st century.

As we continue to bask in the festivities of being 60 years old, let us continue to put hearts and minds to together as we ‘reignite this nation’, Jamaica, land we love, for greatness.

Shellon Samuels-White is a teacher educator at The Mico University College and executive director of Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) – Jamaica Affiliate.