Developing Life Skills

Mickey RogersMickey Rogers

Think about the last time you worked in a group… What was your role? How could you have performed better ?

Think about a problem you had at work recently… How did you solve it?

Describe a situation where you showed amazing speed of

thought and self control in the face of persistent

and irrelevant questioning.

Interviews are not like they used to be…

Make a guess:What percentage of employers place high importance on each of the following things?

• The ability to appreciate an alternative point of view• Communication skills and the ability to work in teams• The ability to grasp complex information• The right academic qualifications

Source GRADdirect, 2008

What skills are required outside the classroom?

Make a guess:What percentage of employers place high importance on each of the following things?

• The ability to appreciate an alternative point of view• Communication skills and the ability to work in teams• The ability to grasp complex information• The right academic qualifications

Source GRADdirect, 2008

What skills are required outside the classroom?

42%

Make a guess:What percentage of employers place high importance on each of the following things?

• The ability to appreciate an alternative point of view• Communication skills and the ability to work in teams• The ability to grasp complex information• The right academic qualifications

Source GRADdirect, 2008

What skills are required outside the classroom?

42%62%

Make a guess:What percentage of employers place high importance on each of the following things?

• The ability to appreciate an alternative point of view• Communication skills and the ability to work in teams• The ability to grasp complex information• The right academic qualifications

Source GRADdirect, 2008

What skills are required outside the classroom?

42%62%68%

Make a guess:What percentage of employers place high importance on each of the following things?

• The ability to appreciate an alternative point of view• Communication skills and the ability to work in teams• The ability to grasp complex information• The right academic qualifications

Source GRADdirect, 2008

What skills are required outside the classroom?

42%62%68%27%

The Four Cs of the Business World

Critical thinking

Communication

Collaboration

Creativity

Critical thinking

Categorizing Evaluating argumentsEstablishing priorities Developing empathyMaking choices Comparing & contrastingEstimating and guessing Being aware of yourselfProblem solving Evaluating explanationsThinking creatively Organizing an argumentThinking logically Recognizing contradictionIdentifying opportunities Identifying bias

Communication

Understanding forms Doing researchMaking a clear plan Focusing a presentationTaking effective notes Preparing a presentationActive listening Using graphic organizersPersuading others Synthesizing informationReporting information Recognizing plagiarismProtecting digital privacyEvaluating claimsIdentifying information sources

Collaboration

Managing time & schedules Motivating a teamMaking plans Developing empathyBrainstorming Building communitiesWorking in a team Maximizing potentialHaving cultural awareness Understanding decision-Listening actively making stylesDiscussing alternatives Understanding rights &Reaching a compromise responsibilitiesGiving & receiving feedback Persuading others

Creativity

Doing research Developing curiosityBrainstorming Categorizing creativelyEstimating & guessing Making personal changeThinking “out of the box” Solving problemsAvoiding stereotypes Preparing an argumentDeveloping empathy or a presentationTurning problems into Contributing ideas to aopportunities team Maximizing your potential

What skills do you need in your profession?

Congratulations! You have been promoted!

You have been asked to help recruit someone for your present position.

Think about the kinds of things you do every day and list the key skills your successor will need.

What skills do you need in your profession?

Congratulations! You have been promoted!

You have been asked to help recruit someone for your present position.

Think about the kinds of things you do every day and list the key skills your successor will need.

Group 1: Organization and planning skills

Group 2: Collaboration skills

Group 3: Information and research skills

Group 4: Thinking and problem-solving skills

Group 5: Self-direction and learning skills

Reaching a compromise Being assertive Managing your time Thinking creatively Understanding statistics Persuading others Identifying resources Preparing presentations Being self-aware Establishing priorities

Decide which main skill area each sub-skill in the green list corresponds to.

Organization and planning skills• Managing your time• Preparing presentations

Collaboration skills• Reaching a compromise• Persuading others

Information and research skills• Identifying resources• Understanding statistics

Thinking and problem-solving skills• Thinking creatively• Establishing priorities

Self-direction and learning skills• Being assertive • Being self-aware

Is education keeping up?

Learning: past, present, and future

In the mid-90s:

“We are currently preparing students for jobs that don’t yet exist . . . using technologies that haven’t yet been invented . . . in order to solve problems we don’t even know are problems yet.”

Richard Riley, Secretary of Education under President Bill Clinton

The future of work and careersAre today’s graduates better prepared to work?

“… students graduating from secondary schools, technical colleges, and universities are sorely lacking in some basicskills and a large number of applied skills:

• Oral and written communication• Critical thinking and problem solving

• Professionalism and work ethic• Teamwork and collaboration

• Working in diverse teams• Applying technology

• Leadership and project management

American Management Association(about 2008)

• Brought up on “teaching to the test”, students can lack the meta-skills – initiative, teamworking capability , etc. – required in the fast moving world of modern business.

• Meta (or transferable) skills such as teamworking, effective communication, and adaptability are becoming increasingly important to employers. They are vital in the modern labour market, as employees are increasingly required to move between quite different projects and roles.

The Mobile Economy, Reform (think tank), 2008

• Noam Chomsky

Linguistic Competence (1965)

The system of linguistic knowledge possessed by native speakersof a language

Tradition and innovation

• Dell Hymes

Communicative Competence (1966)

A language user's grammatical knowledge, as well as social knowledge,about how and when to use utterances appropriately.

Tradition and innovation

Innovation

Learning to….

UNESCO: Four Pillars of Education, 1996

Learning to…know

Learning to…do

Learning to…live together

Learning to…be

InnovationThe Partnership for 21st Century Skills

The 21st Century FrameworkCore Subjects: -Language arts, foreign languages, science, math,

history, etc.PLUS

21st century topics:-Global awareness, civic literacy -Learning and innovation skills-Information, media, and technology skills-Life and career skills

http://www.21stcenturyskills.org/

The big challenge…

How do I teach life skills/soft skills/competencies and still teach the present perfect?!

Competency development activities…

- are content / outcome based and not focused on accuracy or the use of specific language.- make the process at least as important as the product.- take into consideration the students’ age and intellectual capacity while keeping the language at an appropriate level.

For example…

Target skill: thinking creatively(the ability to think in new, innovative ways; “thinking outside the box”)

Understand the problem Open your mind and be creative Identify the best solution

To: Product design team

Subject: New product features Hi, guys. As you know, the C-600 has been on the market for some time now. I think we should start thinking about the features for our next cell phone, the C-710 – apart from a camera and text messaging, of course!

I want to hear as many ideas as possible. Please have a meeting to come up with a list of ideas. Then we can get together and discuss possible features.

Good luck, and be creative! Remember – even crazy ideas might work!

Gillian EdgarProduct manager

Technique 1: “Random word” techniqueOpen a book at random to any page.

Pick a word from that page (nouns work best).

Focus on that word and use it to inspire ideas.

Technique 2: “Different hats” technique

Look at the problem from different perspectives.

Consider each of these people in turn and decide what features each one might find most attractive.

the party animal

the busy mom

the student

the sports fan

Which features will……everyone be interested in?…people use most often?…probably be too expensive or too impractical?…people probably not use very often?

Features to keep:1 __________________________________________2 __________________________________________3 __________________________________________

Apply your creative thinking to the real world. Think about the features you have come up with and answer these questions. Then choose

three features you want the new cell phone to have.

Summary

The skills students generally acquire in the classroom may not represent the “whole picture”; i.e., they may not be the skills that employers value most highly and that give students the most flexibilityin their future careers.

We can help our students develop both their English-language skills and their“transferable skills,” or “life skills,” by including systematic work on these skills as a part of our regular syllabus.

Here’s how…

The Mind Series for the 21st Century classroom

lifeSkills in openMind

Steps / description of what is involved in the skill

Help with phrases & a reminder to use language from the unit

Reflection on the process &/or ways to apply the skill

masterSkills in masterMind

Language competence + general competencies =

success!