Students’ exposure to so-called 21st-century skills correlates positively with “perceived quality of work” later in life, a study released last week by the polling firm Gallup Inc. finds.
For the study, which was commissioned by Microsoft Partners in Learning and the Pearson Foundation, Gallup asked 1,014 individuals ages 18 to 35 how much experience they had with certain advanced learning skills during their last year of school, including college or graduate school. Those skills included collaboration, knowledge construction, global awareness, use of technology for learning, real-world problem-solving, and skilled communication.
Respondents who had a comparatively high degree of exposure to such skills in their last year of school were twice as likely to strongly agree that they are successful and valued in their current jobs.
While 59 percent of the respondents said the skills they use in their current jobs were developed entirely outside of school, that response was particularly prevalent among those with only high school diplomas.
