In the US, the Partnership for 21st Century Skills has created a Framework for 21st century Learning, which they view as a holistic teaching and learning framework, defining student outcomes and support systems. This organization was formed in 2012 through efforts of the U.S. Department of Education, and several large tech sector corporations (http://www.p21.org/about-us/our-mission/history). Thei mission is : "To serve as a catalyst to position 21st century readiness at the center of US K12 education by building collaborative partnerships among education, business, community and government leaders." (http://www.p21.org/about-us/press-kit)
The P21 blog can be accessed here: http://www.p21.org/tools-and-resources/p21blog The interesting thing about this group is that it has a strict use policy? : "Permission for use of the Framework for 21st Century Learning or other information produced by the Partnership for 21st Century Skills must be made in writing with a clearly defined request and description of how the material will be used. Permission will be granted provided that the content remain unchanged and that attribution be given to the Partnership for 21st Skills.
Please send all requests to requests@p21.org ." (http://www.p21.org/overview/use-of-p21-content), which is usually not the case with government sponsored efforts at spreading the word for educational reform.
The Center for 21st Century skills at Education Connection, consisting of a team of US educators who define their work as a vision for innovation in education using 21st century skills in teaching and learning. The organization is a not-for-profit, receiving funding from federal, state, and private funds. They build and sell curricula, training, and support to schools in Connecticut and Massachusetts, in the United States. They too define their work as "developing a generation of successful American innovators to encourage the converagence of art, business, creativity, innovation, engineering, and science. " (http://www.skills21.org/). They define six critical that form the foundation for C21 success: information literacy, collaboration, communication, creativity and innovation, problem solving, and responsible citizenship. This organization offers professional development, conferences, and courses. They have partnered with the Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences to develop a series of courses that can be easily included in any high school curriculum. The Academy funds technology and student events.
The Academy courses include Algebra21, Geometry21, Earth and Energy Essentials (E3), Bio21, Chem21, Physics21, Foundations of Health Science and Technology, and Public Health. They are conducting a longitudinal study, in partnership with the Education Development Center (EDC), of the effects of their courses, with the research question: "Do high school students who participate in the Academy demonstrate a greater interest in and college career readiness in STEM areas than comparable students who do not participate in the Academy?" (http://www.skills21.org/programs/the-academy-of-digital-arts-and-sciences/research/)
The ATCS, the Assessment and Teaching of 21st Century Skills, http://atc21s.org/, is an Australian effort at defining C21 skills, headquartered at the University of Melbourne. This effort reaches across Europe, in March 2012, holding a pan-European event, with real time events in Finland and the Netherlands.
The framework for the ATC21S structure is more broad-based, defining the four categories of skills as ways of thinking, ways of working, tools for working, and skills for living in the world. (http://atc21s.org/index.php/about/what-are-21st-century-skills/). The proposal for moving the conceptual skills into the practical world are only two: collaborative problem-solving and ICT literacy -- learning in digital networks. (http://atc21s.org/index.php/about/what-are-21st-century-skills/)
ATCS's white papers on C21 skills is available here: http://atc21s.org/index.php/resources/white-papers/. ATC project is funded by Cisco, Intel, Microsoft and founder countries Australia, Finland, Singapore, and the United States, and the project is being conducted by the University of Melbourne. (http://atc21s.org/index.php/resources/white-papers/). Authors for these white papers include academics and researchers from all over Europe, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States. This highly diverse group is creating a "country kit" to be adapted to any country or region of the world. The website states that the kit will be available in 2012, after data trials. (http://atc21s.org/index.php/resources/country-toolkit/). It seems that this group has a broader pedagogical base, and a vision for global education. The ATC has created a series of white papers, developed by more than 60 of the world's leading education researchers. The topics are 21st Century Skills; Methodological Issues; Technological Issues; New Assessments and Environments for Knowledge Building; and Policy Frameworks for New Assessments. ATC has internationally known and respected researchers and educators working on their program, writing white papers. In fact, Linda Darling-Hammond, the co-director of the Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education (SCOPE), wrote the original policy white paper. The paper describes policy assessment system frameworks in Australia, Finland, Singapore, and the United Kingdom. (http://atc21s.org/index.php/resources/white-papers/#item5). A new book has been published, Assessment and Teaching of 21st Century Skills, edited by Patrick Griffin, Barry McGaw, and Esther Care, by Springer, 2012. (http://www.springerlink.com/content/978-94-007-2323-8#section=975448&page=4&locus=64) I've just ordered the book, even though the cheapest price I could find was $138 at Amazon (ouch!). The online reading available is only the table of contents, and front matter.
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