Twenty-first century skills: meaning, usage and value

The idea of twenty-first century skills has been popular in higher education, and education in general, for the last couple of decades. At the heart of this idea is the belief that those leaving education for the workplace now require a particular skill set in order to succeed and help deliver an improving economy and society in an increasingly competitive and complex world. This article identifies and discusses the reasons for the popularity of the term. It examines successively the origins and meaning of twenty-first century skills, their development and usage over time, and the issues and critiques that have been raised concerning them. It then comes to some conclusions about the usefulness and validity of the term.