21st century skills – the words have been buzzing through speeches and between conversations at education conferences and on the web for a couple of years now. National organizations like the Partnership for 21st Century Skills (P21), advocate and define the 21st century skills pertinent to students’ success in their studies and careers after graduation.1
Educators, curriculum developers and technology specialists all work diligently to integrate these skills into learning to support student achievement. However, the focus is on what the skills are, not on how students will get them. What seems to be lacking is discussion about which tools actually help to develop 21st century skills. Specific thinking and learning strategies, like visual thinking, can help students in their growth toward 21st century readiness.
- This visual diagram, created in Inspiration®, may be downloaded for any non-commercial use.
In the “P21 Framework Definitions” document, the four essential 21st century skills for students are narrowed down to critical thinking, problem solving, communication and collaboration.2 Here’s how visual thinking tools can assist your students in learning each skill:
Critical Thinking
The use of open-ended, visual thinking strategies such as webbing, idea mapping, mind mapping and concept mapping, develop students’ fluency in brainstorming and idea generation. These tools also help students identify connections, infer relationships, and evaluate events and information. The visual components then allow students to organize, connect, and analyze ideas and information while refining students’ thinking. The visual diagrams students create facilitate the analysis of how each idea or component relates to others. Combining all of these skills, students are able to synthesize information and reflect critically. These methods of critical thinking help students evaluate information and data as well as relate existing knowledge to new learning.
Problem Solving
A visual diagram helps students solve problems by looking at the situation or issues from a systemic perspective. Having all of the components of a problem laid out visually can help students evaluate cause and effect, process the holes in a scenario and identify the appropriate questions to ask for effective problem solving. In addition, while students explore the unknown and seek new conclusions, their visual diagrams can work to help classmates communicate more effectively with others.
Communication
As the saying goes “a picture is worth a thousand words.” Communicating visually is an effective way to communicate and assess understanding and knowledge, especially for students that struggle with writing skills. Visual diagrams also assist students in communicating in diverse, ESL environments. Students are able to represent ideas with images and words assisting in understanding despite language barriers. Visual diagrams can be an effective tool for helping students to understand and communicate ideas and understanding.
Collaboration
Collaborating using visual diagrams can engage students, support participation and lead to greater understanding, knowledge and co-learning. Unlike lists or other collaborative brainstorming techniques, visual brainstorming supports the exchange of ideas and information where all ideas are presented equally and with the same level of importance. Visual collaboration also allows all levels of learners to participate as writing proficiency is not as necessary to explore ideas and share knowledge. Tools like Inspiration Software’s Webspiration Classroom™ Service support 24/7 exchange of ideas and knowledge as students collaborate on projects, peer review work and participate whenever they choose to study or work on assignments.
Consistent with each of the four essential skills from the “P21 Framework Definitions,” visual thinking and learning strategies:
- facilitate critical and creative thinking by drawing connections and organizing information
- improve the comparison of familiar and unfamiliar information in problem solving
- communicate meaning in nonverbal ways between students
- and engage students in collaboration for co-learning.
Visual thinking and learning skills integrated into your lessons can help students think critically, grasp concepts, engage in learning, and communicate more effectively, helping them achieve more in school and become 21st century ready. Check back next week to find out what it means to be a visual learner and how to accommodate this learning style in the classroom.
Mona Westhaver
President and Co-founder, Inspiration Software, Inc.
- “Framework for 21st Century Learning.” Partnership for 21st Century Skills. Partnership for 21st Century Skills. Web. 27 Aug. 2010. <http://www.p21.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=254&Itemid=120>. [↩]
- “P21 Framework Definitions.” Partnership for 21st Century Skills. Partnership for 21st Century Skills, Dec. 2009. Web. 27 Aug. 2010. <http://www.p21.org/documents/P21_Framework_Definitions.pdf>. [↩]
