During the past decade, 21st Century Skills
have been described, debated, and, unfortunately, downplayed when one considers their overall impact on instruction and assessment practices in our public schools. Organizations such as the Partnership of the 21st Century and the former North Central Regional Laboratory have successfully articulated a set of well-defined skill sets targeting needed student outcomes for the 21st Century workplace; yet, a careful scrutiny of district curriculum manuals, pacing guides, and scope & sequence charts reveals little evidence of their existence.
The original LoTi (Levels of Teaching Innovation) Framework was initially developed in 1994 as a conceptual model to articulate specific stages of teaching innovation in the classroom. Over time, the LoTi Framework has become synonymous with 21st Century learning. During this evolutionary process, the acronym, LoTi, has also been transformed from Levels of Teaching Innovation to Levels of Teaching Innovation.
- LoTi Level 0 - Non-use
- Pedagogical Emphasis
Teacher-centered
- 21st Century Skill(s)
None
- 21st Century Theme(s)
None
- Instructional Focus
No instructional focus or direct interaction between students and teacher. Students are primarily involved in independent silent reading, independent study, or a self-paced tutorial program.
- LoTi Level 1 - Awareness
- Pedagogical Emphasis
Teacher-centered
- 21st Century Skill(s)
None
- 21st Century Theme(s)
21st Century Theme(s) including Global awareness; Financial, Economic, Business and Entrepreneurial literacy; Civic literacy, and Health literacy used as a lecture guide to support student information acquisition (e.g., Global Awareness Week).
- Instructional Focus
Instructional focus emphasizes information dissemination to students (e.g., lectures, teacher-created multimedia presentations) and supports the lecture/discussion model of teaching. Teacher questioning and/or student learning typically focuses on lower cognitive skill development (e.g., knowledge, comprehension).
- LoTi Level 2 - Exploration
- Pedagogical Emphasis
Teacher-centered
- 21st Century Skill(s)
Information, Media, and Technology Skills including Information literacy, Media literacy, and ICT (Information, Communications & Technology) literacy used by students to retrieve and showcase information to different audiences (e.g., teacher, students).
- 21st Century Theme(s)
21st Century Theme(s) used as topics for students to collect, discuss, and present information.
- Instructional Focus
Instructional focus emphasizes content understanding and supports mastery learning and direct instruction. Teacher questioning and/or student learning promotes lower cognitive skill development (e.g., knowledge, comprehension). There is a pervasive use of student multimedia products to present content understanding.
- LoTi Level 3 - Infusion
- Pedagogical Emphasis
Teacher-centered with limited student choices
- 21st Century Skill(s)
Information, Media, and Technology Skills and Learning and Innovation Skills including Creativity and Innovation Skills, Critical Thinking and Problem Solving Skills, and Communication and Collaboration Skills used by students to analyze and evaluate information, solve problems, and make decisions.
- 21st Century Theme(s)
21st Century Theme(s) used as topics for students to investigate and analyze information.
- Instructional Focus
Instructional focus emphasizes both the content and process skills involving higher order thinking (i.e., application, analysis, synthesis, evaluation) and supports the concept attainment and inductive thinking models of teaching. Student products emphasize complex thinking strategies (e.g., problem-solving, decision-making, reasoning) using a variety of technology-related applications (e.g., spreadsheets, graphic organizers, simulations).
- LoTi Level 4a - Integration: Mechanical
- Pedagogical Emphasis
Student-centered
- 21st Century Skill(s)
Information, Media, and Technology Skills and Learning and Innovation Skills, and Life and Career Skills including Flexibility & Adaptability, Initiative & Self-Direction, Social & Cross-Cultural Skills, Productivity & Accountability, and Leadership & Responsibility used by students to solve authentic, real-world problems or situations.
- 21st Century Theme(s)
21st Century Theme(s) used as topics for students to investigate and analyze while solving real-world problems.
- Instructional Focus
Instructional focus is on applied learning to the world outside of the classroom and supports an inquiry-training model of teaching. Student products are authentic, relevant and embed complex thinking strategies. Student-generated questions dictate the content, process, and products. Teacher experiences management concerns with the successful integration of 21st Century Skills and/or Themes.
- LoTi Level 4b - Integration: Routine
- Pedagogical Emphasis
Student-centered
- 21st Century Skill(s)
Information, Media, and Technology Skills and Learning and Innovation Skills, and Life and Career Skills used by students to solve authentic, real-world problems or situations.
- 21st Century Theme(s)
21st Century Theme(s) used as topics for students to investigate and analyze while solving real-world problems.
- Instructional Focus
Instructional focus is on applied learning to the real world and supports an inquiry-training model of teaching. Student products are authentic, relevant and embed complex thinking strategies. Student-generated questions dictate the content, process, and products. Teacher is within his/her comfort zone with the successful integration of 21st Century Skills and Themes.
- LoTi Level 5 - Exploration
- Pedagogical Emphasis
Student-centered
- 21st Century Skill(s)
Information, Media, and Technology Skills and Learning and Innovation Skills, and Life and Career Skills used by students to solve authentic, real-world problems or situations involving two-way collaborations extending beyond the classroom.
- 21st Century Theme(s)
21st Century Theme(s) used as topics for students to investigate and analyze information and solve real-world problems.
- Instructional Focus
Instructional focus is on applied learning to the real world and supports an inquiry-training model of teaching. Student products are authentic, relevant and embed complex thinking strategies. Student-generated questions dictate the content, process, and products. Two-way collaborations extending beyond the classroom are employed for student authentic problem-solving and issues resolution.
- LoTi Level 6 - Refinement
- Pedagogical Emphasis
Student-centered
- 21st Century Skill(s)
Information, Media, and Technology Skills and Learning and Innovation Skills, and Life and Career Skills used by students to solve authentic, real-world problems or situations involving two-way collaborations extending beyond the classroom.
- 21st Century Theme(s)
21st Century Theme(s) used as topics for students to investigate and analyze information and solve real-world problems.
- Instructional Focus
Instructional focus is on applied learning to the real world and supports an inquiry-training model of teaching. Student products are authentic, relevant and embed complex thinking strategies. Student-generated questions dictate the content, process, and products. Teacher is within his/her comfort zone with the successful integration of 21st Century Skills and Themes. Two-way collaborations extending beyond the classroom are employed for student authentic problem solving and issues resolution. There is no limit to technology availability or use.
