ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND THE 21ST CENTURY SKILLS: ANALYSIS OF THE LESOTHO GENERAL CERTIFICATE OF SECONDARY EDUCATION SYLLABUS
Abstract
Under the lens of 21st-century skills, this study examined the applicability of English Language instruction for the Lesotho General Certificate of Secondary Education (LGCSE), as well as its context in Lesotho, the world, and this period. The LGCSE English Language syllabus document was subjected to a qualitative document analysis. The findings demonstrated that a representation of each of the four ATC21s is available for each of the four aims proposed by the syllabus. In each aim, new methods of thinking, ways of living, ways of working, and ways of thinking arise. All goals appear to address 21st-century talents, according to these outcomes, which provide confirmation. The way these talents are represented in the four curriculum aims varies just a little. For example, all four of the goals included examples of communication, life, and professional skills. However, only aims 1 and 4 featured collaboration. Similar to this, aim 1, 3, and 4 solely considered critical thinking and metacognition as subskills. Only aims 2 and 3 have information literacy in them. Only aim 2 selected creativity and innovation. These findings offer corroborating proof and solidly establish the English Language as a legitimate subject with a place in the LGCSE curriculum.Learning ideas like heutagogy, which refers to managing learning for self-managed learners, can be utilized to design teaching and learning strategies that are in line with learners’ desire to choose their own goals and provide methods for achieving those goals.
Downloads
References
Arslan, H. (2018). An introduction to education. Cambridge Scholar Publishing.
Ballam, N. D., Perry, B., & Garpelin, A. (2017). International perspectives on the pedagogies of educational transitions. In N. D. Ballam, B. Perry, & A. Garpelin (Eds.), Pedagogies of Educational Transitions: European and Antipodean Research (Vol. 16, pp. 1–12). Dordrecht, Netherlands: Springer. http://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-43118-5_1
Bell, D.V.J. (n.d.). Twenty first Century Education: Transformative Education for Sustainability and Responsible Citizenship. From
https://unece.org/fileadmin/DAM/env/esd/10thMeetSC/Documents/Twenty_first_Century_Education_through_an_ESD_Lens_as_presented_to_CMEC_DMs.pdf on the 28th January 2023.
Binkley, M., Erstad, O., Herman, J., Raizen, S., Ripley, M. Miller-Ricci, M. & Rumble, M. (2012).Defining twenty-first century skills.InAssessment and teaching of 21st century skills, Springer, 17–66.
Correa, M. (2011). Advocating for critical pedagogical approaches to teaching Spanish as a heritage language: some considerations. Foreign Language Annals, 44(2), 308-320. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1944-9720.2011.01132.x
Creswell, J. (2014). Research design: qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches. Thousand Oaks, California: SAGE Publications, Inc.
Czerkawski, B., & Berti, M. (2020). Language learning in the 21st century: current status and future directions. In B. Dupuy and M. Grosbois (Eds), Language learning and professionalization in higher education: pathways to preparing learners and teachers in/for the 21st century (pp. 11-35). Research-publishing.net.https://doi.org/10.14705/rpnet.2020.44.1100
Education. (n.d.). Lesotho Education Policy. Accessed from https://www.gov.ls/education/ on the 25th January 2023.
Flick, U. (2014). An introduction to qualitative research(5th ed). London: Sage publications.
Garrett-Rucks, P. (2013). A discussion-based online approach to fostering deep cultural inquiry in an introductory language course. Foreign Language Annals, 46(2), 191-212. https://doi.org/10.1111/flan.12026
Hakim, F., & Chiani, S. H. (2019). Pengaruh Mempelajari Bahasa Asing Terhadap Perkembangan Otak Anak. Ganec Swara, 13(2), 332. https://doi.org/10.35327/gara.v13i2.100
HALI. (2014). Education for the 21st Century: Executive Summary. Cambridge, MA. Accessedfromhttps://globaled.gse.harvard.edu/files/geii/files/2014_education_report_web.pdf on the 27th January, 2023.
Jha, S. (2014). Shall We Teach English as a Subject or as a Language? Education Practice and Innovation, 1, 17-24. 10.15764/EPI.2014.01004.
Junaidi, N. (2016). Integration of the 21st Century Skills in the Malaysian Curriculum. Procedia – Social and Behavioural Sciences, 235, 397-403
Kurata, L., Mokhets’engoane, S.J., & Selialia, M. (2022). Content analysis of LGCSE Religious Studies syllabus: to what extent does it address the 21st century skills. Eurpean Journal of Education and Pedagogy, 3(6),
Lekhanya, N. D., & Raselimo, M. G. (2022). Exploring Alignment Between the Lesotho Secondary DS Teachers’ Pedagogical Practices and Work Related Skills. European Journal of Teaching and Education,4(3): 13-27.https://doi.org/10.33422/ejte.v4i3.737
Martin, A.J. (2017). 21st Century Skills, Teacher Education, and National Curriculum Reform. Asia
Pacific Journal of Education, 37(2), 217-230
Moea, K. S. (2022a). Problems Faced by Lesotho Piloting High School Teachers in implementing the 2009 Curriculum and assessment policy. Merit Research Journal of Education and Review, 10(4), 69- 73.
Moea, K. S. (2022b). The Curriculum Ideology of the Lesotho General Certificate of Secondary Education Literature in English. American Journal of Arts and Human Science (AJAHS), 1(4), 1-9.
Moea, K. S. (2023a). An Analysis of the Curriculum Ideology in the Lesotho General
Certificate of Secondary Education English Language Syllabus. Innovare Journal of Education, 11(1), 42- 46.
Moea, K. S. (2023b). The Literature in English Syllabus through the 21st Century Skills Lens: A Hermeneutic Analysis. International Journal of Research Publication and Reviews, 4(1), 1681-1689.
MOET. (2009). Curriculum and assessment policy: Education for individual and social development. Maseru: Ministry of Education and training.
Nishanthi, R. (2018). The Importance of Learning English in Today World. International Journal of Trend in Scientific Research and Development, 3(1), 871–874. https://doi.org/10.31142/ijtsrd19061
Noddings, N. (2016). Philosophy of Education (4th Ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429494864
Nunan, D. (2003). The impact of English as a global language on educational policies and practices in the Asia- Pacific region. TESOL Quarterly, 37(4) 589- 613.
Partnership for 21st Century Skills. (2010). 21st century knowledge and skills in educator preparation. Accessed from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED519336.pdf, on the 27th January 2023.
Putra, E. (2020). The Importance of Learning English Nowadays. Research Gate, 7.
Raselimo, M., & Thamae, C. G. (2018). Content analysis of the LGCSE Geography and Sesotho syllabi for alignment with the Lesotho Curriculum and Assessment Policy. South African Journal of Education, 38(3), 1-10. https://doi.org/10.15700/saje.v38n3a1481
Riel, M. (2000) Education in the 21st Century: Just-in-Time Learning or Learning Communities in Emirates Centre for Strategic Studies and Research (Ed). Education and the Arab World: Challenges of
the next millennium. Abu Dhabi: Emirates Centre for Strategic Studies and Research, p137-160
Rinenggo, A., & Kusdarini, E. (2021). Moral values and methods of moral education at Samin community. Media Kaijan Kewarganegaraan, 18, 26-37.
Sampath, V. & Phil, M. (2018). Is English a Subject or Language?-Practical analysis. ResearchGate.
Saavedra, A. R., & Opfer, V. D. (2012). Learning 21st-century skills requires 21st-century teaching. Phi Delta Kappan, 94(2), 8-13.
https://doi.org/10.1177/003172171209400203
Ulfah, M. (2018). The Integration of the 21st Century Skills in the Indonesian Curriculum. Journal of Physics: Conference Series, 1005(1), 012024
Van Laar, E., van Deursen, A. J. A. M., van Dijk, J. A. G. M., & de Haan, J. (2020). Determinants of 21st-Century Skills and 21st-Century Digital Skills for Workers: A Systematic Literature Review. SAGE Open, 10(1). https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244019900176
Wallace, S. (2015). Dictionary of Education. Oxford University Press.
Yamada, E. (2010). Reflection to the development of criticality: an empirical study of beginners’ Japanese language courses as a British university. Intercultural Communication Studies, 19(2), 253-264.
Author(s) and co-author(s) jointly and severally represent and warrant that the Article is original with the author(s) and does not infringe any copyright or violate any other right of any third parties, and that the Article has not been published elsewhere. Author(s) agree to the terms that the GPH Journal will have the full right to remove the published article on any misconduct found in the published article.