In this video, 21st century education is about creativity, cultural awareness, problem solving, innovation, civic engagement, communication, productivity, collaboration, accountability, exploration, initiative, responsibility, and leadership. I am interested in creativity, cultural awareness, and exploration. As a Chinese immersion teacher, I hope students can apply what they have learned to create their own works. For example, when students understand “represent”, they can design an "animal country flag". Cultural awareness is essential, too. Students learn Chinese and China through their teachers everyday.

I also faced challenges in preparing this video. When it comes to what characteristics I should develop with my students, it’s really hard for me to pick one or two. All of them should be strengthened! I chose exploration because it drives students’ learning. Experienced teachers may have some ignorance on fixed topics. People’s passion on exploration decreases as they grow up. Then my question is, how to stay curious about familiar things? 

References:

21st Century learning. The JCS Family. (2020, May 2). Retrieved October 2, 2022, from https://www.jcs-inc.org/21st-century-learning/

EFSmithsonian. (2012, March 15). What is 21st Century education? YouTube. Retrieved October 2, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ax5cNlutAys&ab_channel=EFExploreAmerica

YouTube. (2022, October 2). 【what it means to be a 21st century learner?】21世纪学习者该有的品质|首个全英文视频. YouTube. Retrieved October 2, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iooL1MXxpRI&t=15s&ab_channel=LucyLovesTeaching%E7%BE%8E%E5%9B%BD%E4%B8%AD%E6%96%87%E6%B2%89%E6%B5%B8

你是否想过现在的很多职业，在20年前根本不存在？比如用户体验官，自媒博主等等。那么20年以后的职业，是否也是现在的我们无法猜测的呢？作为老师，在培养21世纪学习者以前，先要提升自己的能力，成为21世纪的教育者。

通过这个星期的学习，我了解到了很多关于21世纪学习者的知识。这个视频列举出了21世纪教育的13个品质，包括：创造力、文化意识、解决问题的能力、创新、公民参与、人际沟通、生产力、合作、责任心、探索精神、主动性、责任意识、和领导力。其中的创造力、文化意识和探索精神让我很有共鸣。作为中文沉浸的老师，我非常希望学生能够学以致用，用自己所学的知识，创造出属于自己的作品。视频中提到当学生了解了“代表”的含义，就可以自己设计一面“动物国国旗”。文化意识在中文沉浸的项目中显得尤为重要，学生每一天都在通过老师，学习中文和了解中国。探索精神对于学生和老师同等重要，保持好奇心可以让我们的课堂越来越丰富多彩。

在准备和录制这期视频中，我也遇到挑战。当想到有哪些品质是我应当培养学生的，我实在很难选出一个或两个。我觉得每一个都需要加强！但是我最终选择了探索精神，学生的好奇心有内在的驱使，也有老师的引导。即使是教书很多年，经验丰富的老师，对固定的课题也一定有不了解之处。随着年龄的增长，人们的探索精神也会减少。如何保持对熟知事物，或者课程的好奇心呢？