In order prepare the young people today for the challenges and realities of the 21st century, we need to address which skills and competences that are acquired and the position of soft skills in education.

In this project we developed a methodology in the form of a teacher course.

The course will give teachers more knowledge on 21st Century skills and how this relates to existing pedagogy. In addition to the theoretical perspectives the teachers also learn new methods for teaching and are themselves part of creating pedagogical tools for teaching 21st century skills in schools today.

Soft skills and deep learning can be operationalised in different ways. The project “21st Century Skills for 21st Century Needs” have used the framework of Michael Fullan. Six competences have a central position in this framework. These six C’s are Character, Citizenship, Collaboration, Communication, Creativity and Critical thinking and problem solving. The skills are related to how you work and how you interact with other people. It means that they are non-technical skills and consequently difficult to measure. They are non the less essential skills for the 21st century.

The methodology of the course is also developed in light of the 6 C’s. The outcome of the course is therefore dependent on the use of the 6 C’s both of the participants and the lecturers. Hence it is a dynamic process and will differ from course to course, depending on the actors in the course and the context.