Linking religious literacy to 21st century skills

Abstract

The cultivation of 21st-century skills has been integrated into various curricula in educational fields such as sciences and mathematics. However, a question remains in the field of religious education as to which 21st-century skills are cultivated during the development of religious literacy in learners. The process of answering this question in this study includes constructing a comprehensive conception of religious literacy based on a synthesis of diverse scholarly perspectives. The conception is further analysed through Grimmitt’s dual attainment targets of religious education and Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy. The analysis allows extraction of religious literacy skills, which are mapped onto categories in the framework of the 21st-century skills developed by the Assessment and Teaching of Twenty-first Century Skills (ATC21S). The religious literacy skills can be linked to the skills of critical thinking, problem-solving, and decision-making, and learning to learn in the category of ways of thinking; the skills of communication in ways of working; and the skills of citizenship, and personal and social responsibility in ways of living in the world.