The Other Hat: Teaching Discernment in the Twenty-first Century

Abstract

The 21st century is placing new demands on teachers and schools. Children are growing up in a society that is characterised by exponential change, escalating social issues and everchanging technology. Because of this rapidly changing culture, our students will face challenges that do not currently exist, when they reach the workplace (Davies, McNulty & Maddox, 2011). These factors have shifted the perceived necessary skill base from knowledge based to thinking based skills such as creativity and flexibility. One area of education that is continuing to receive attention is the area of critical thinking, or mental flexibility (Davies et al., 2011). This article explores one model of teaching mental flexibility and evaluates its effectiveness for teaching discernment in a Christian environment.