Essay “What am I going to do as an English teacher to engage with the 21st century skills? “
материал по английскому языку на тему

What am I going to do as an English teacher

to engage with the 21st century skills?

by Olga Zhamoyda

What are the 21st century skills and what am I going to do as an English teacher to engage with them?

Many people are convinced that the 21st century teacher needs to be an information technology expert, a technician, an artist and an actor. From my point of view teacher’s role really needs to shift towards becoming a modern teacher. It is connected with changes not only in digital technology, but also in educational system, which is designing to teach modern students.

Mark Prensky (2001), in his study of Digital Natives and Digital Immigrants, makes it clear that today’s students, surrounded  by and using computers, videogames, digital music players, video cams, cell phones, and all the other toys and tools of the digital age, have changed thinking patterns. It means that they prefer their graphics, pictures, videos, sounds before their text rather than the opposite. They receive information quickly from multiple sources. Mark Prensky (2001) notes that “they like to parallel process and multi-task…. They prefer random access (like hypertext). They function best when networked. They thrive on instant gratification and frequent rewards”.  Certainly the teacher, who teaches slowly, step-by-step, one thing at a time and seriously, has to develop new skills to teach modern students.

Firstly, I am going to identify modern English teacher’s skills. According to Lysette Taplin (2015), today, being an English language teacher is not just about teaching students the language, but teaching them how to think critically, how to communicate and collaborate, and how to be creative: the famous 4Cs. I suppose that the main English teacher’s skills of the 21st century are: critical thinking, coherence, flexibility,  eloquence, fluency of speech, good organizational skills, making content clear and easy to understand.

Secondly, it is necessary to emphasize the importance of shifting modern English teacher’s role towards becoming a facilitator. Lysette Taplin (2015) calls this type of teaching “student-centered learning”, and says that “it puts the students’ learning experience at the center”. So, a facilitator gives students an idea, a topic to discuss and provides them with the confidence to communicate.

Therefore, we must always keep in track and upgrade ourselves. Planning lessons by including power point slide shows, videos, pictures, audio will certainly help to focus students in the class. As for me, I would prefer inserting technology in teaching as this will arouse students’ attention during the lesson. I believe technology in the classroom is not just a new fad, but rather a vital empowering tool that engages students and brings discovery, excitement and fun into the classroom.

In conclusion I would like to say that to engage with the 21st century skills as an English teacher I am going to continue my education. I mean self-education during collaboration with colleagues, students and modern sources of information. Developing new skills in changing world is hard lifelong work.

“Teachers can't teach someone successfully if at the same time they don’t educate themselves”

(Ali Apsheron)

References

1. Prensky, M. (2001). Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants from On the Horizon. MCB University Press.
2. Taplin, L. (2015). Mexico Teacher’s Day: The Role of the Teacher in the 21st Century from  http://oupeltglobalblog.com/2015/05/15/teachers-day-the-role-of-the-teacher-in-the-21st-century/