Abstract
The study aimed to determine the characteristics of pre-service teachers’ 21st-century skill concepts and their compatibility with the contemporary 21st-century skill lists, 21st-century self-skills and to compare and discuss, in terms of curricula and their fields. 71 pre-service science and 59 pre-service mathematics teachers were participated this phenomenological study. The statements by the participants were transformed into codes. These codes were categorized based on the framework for the 21st century skills. 21st-century skills codes with contemporary concepts relating to subcategories like “cognitive skills”, “process skills”, “communication and collaboration skills”, “initiative and self-direction skills”, “career skills”, and “technology knowledge/usage/production skills” indicate that teacher candidates are knowledgeable about 21st-century skills. Also the study found out that the greatest effects on the 21st-century skills of pre-service science and mathematics teachers are the curricula and the education they are taught. In this context, this research was based on the belief that determining the influence of pre-service teachers’ out-of-school and in-school trainings, their curricula, branches, etc. on their 21st-century skills will be guiding in terms of organizing curricula and environments of education.
Highlights
Today, a growing environment of breakthroughs in areas such as defense industry, space technologies, technological and scientific development, quality production, inventions, coping with environmental problems, and decreasing resources in the context of the development policies of countries has raised these countries’ interest in science, engineering and innovative technologies, urging them to focus on the fields of education and investment (Akgündüz et al, 2015; Turkey’s Ministry of National Education [MEB], 2017; Chalkiadaki, 2018; Mullis, 2019)
These codes were categorized based on the framework for the 21st century skills. 21st-century skills codes with contemporary concepts relating to subcategories like “cognitive skills”, “process skills”, “communication and collaboration skills”, “initiative and self-direction skills”, “career skills”, and “technology knowledge/usage/production skills” indicate that teacher candidates are knowledgeable about 21st-century skills
The report (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development [OECD], 2017) which suggests that literacy, problem-solving skills, information and communications skills, management and communication, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) skills, and self-organization and learning readiness skills are on higher levels in those industries where digitalization is higher demonstrates the current understanding of skill
Summary
A growing environment of breakthroughs in areas such as defense industry, space technologies, technological and scientific development, quality production, inventions, coping with environmental problems, and decreasing resources in the context of the development policies of countries has raised these countries’ interest in science, engineering and innovative technologies, urging them to focus on the fields of education and investment (Akgündüz et al, 2015; Turkey’s Ministry of National Education [MEB], 2017; Chalkiadaki, 2018; Mullis, 2019). The report (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development [OECD], 2017) which suggests that literacy, problem-solving skills, information and communications skills, management and communication, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) skills, and self-organization and learning readiness skills are on higher levels in those industries where digitalization is higher demonstrates the current understanding of skill Explaining that especially those teachers who teach STEM lessons benefit from the use of technology in the educational environment more than other teachers, Siddiq, Scherer, and Tondeur (2016) state that, as a reflection of this, the skills and the education conception of the new century are in a mutual balance. Due to the conditions and complex problems of the 21st century, individuals living in the information and technology society of this age are expected to have high-level skills such as critical thinking, decision-making, communications, creative thinking and problem solving rather than just content-oriented teaching and talent development processes (Turkey Competences Framework [TYC], 2015; Kozikoğlu & Altunova, 2018; Astuti et al, 2019)
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