Teachers' actual awareness of twenty-first-century skills: A Bahraini perspective

Abstract

This study aimed to recognize the extent to which secondary school teachers are aware of 21st century skills. The study also explored the differences in the secondary school teacher’s knowledge of the 21st skills according to their gender and experience. The study sample consisted of 281 female and male teachers of main school subjects from 10 schools which were selected randomly from different governorates in Bahrain. The teacher’s knowledge of the 21st century skills was measured by a questionnaire prepared by the researchers, titled the extent to which secondary school teachers use 21st century skills. It consisted of 38 items which cover 5 dimensions; knowledge, integration of contents, learning skills (creativity, collaboration, communication, critical thinking & problem solving), technology, professional & life skills. The study results showed that secondary school teachers know the 21st century skills, the sequence of knowledge of these skills are as follows; the learning skills came first, followed by the professional and life skills, the knowledge, the integration of content, and the technology. The results also showed that there was no difference in the teachers’ knowledge of 21st century skills according to gender. The results also revealed statistical differences in knowledge due to the years of experience. With these findings, the study recommends teachers have more knowledge of 21st century skills.