This report describes key skills that increase deeper learning, college and career readiness, student-centered learning, and higher order thinking. This includes such skills as critical thinking, problem solving, collaboration, effective communication, motivation, persistence, and learning to learn. 21st century skills also include creativity, innovation, and ethics that are important to later success and may be developed in formal or informal learning environments.
This report also describes how these skills relate to each other and to more traditional academic skills and content in the key disciplines of reading, mathematics, and science. In addition, this report summarizes the findings of the research that investigates the importance of such skills to success in education, work, and other areas of adult responsibility. In this report, features related to learning these skills are identified, which include teacher professional development, curriculum, assessment, after-school and out-of-school programs, and informal learning centers such as exhibits and museums.