The term 'learning dispositions', sometimes called 'habits of mind' or 'dispositions to learning', refer to the way in which learners engage in and relate to the learning process. Learning dispositions affect how students approach learning and therefore the outcomes of their learning.
Different research identifies different dispositions but there is consensus about the importance of the learning dispositions furthering skills, engagement and deep understanding. (State of New South Wales (Department of Education), 2019)
On this page you will find commonly identified learning dispositions that are particularly important for ensuring students are prepared to thrive in the future.
Persistent students stick to a task until it is completed and don't give up easily. They are able to analyse a problem, and develop a system, structure or strategy to attack it. They have a repertoire of alternative strategies for problem-solving and are comfortable in employing a wide range of these strategies for the one task. These students often have systematic methods for analysing a problem and are comfortable in ambiguous situations. Persistence is a key attribute for students to develop as it encourages a positive attitude towards tasks and a resilience for examining different ways a problem can be solved, rather than just giving up at the first sign of failure. This resilience is undeniably a necessary skill that students needs for success in the 21st century. (State of New South Wales (Department of Education), 2021)
Successful individuals in the 21st century possess a deep sense of motivation and drive to continually undertake new learning experiences. Highly motivated students are often characterized by their enthusiasm and engagement in the classroom, their interest and involvement in a wide range of learning areas and their ability to actively cope with challenges and setbacks. They will often seek out additional learning experiences in order to learn as much as possible. Student motivation can be internally or externally driven but, most commonly, it is a combination of both which underpins students' approach to their learning. (State of New South Wales (Department of Education, 2021)
One of the distinguishing characteristics of students who are well prepared for 21st century learning is their inclination and ability to find problems to solve and ask useful questions to enhance their knowledge and understanding. Effective problem solvers know how to ask questions in order to fill in gaps between what they know and what they do not yet know. They also pose questions about alternative points of view and often make causal connections between people, events or situations. Effective problem-solving and questioning also requires learners to pose hypothetical problems characterized by 'if' questions and to recognize discrepancies and phenomena in their environment which require further investigation. (State of New South Wales (Department of Education), 2021)
Collaboration is a recursive process where two or more people work together towards an intersection of common goals by sharing knowledge, learning, and building consensus. The action of working with one or more other people to produce or create something (Lomas, 2008).
Leadership can be defined as one's ability to get others to willingly follow (Hakala, 2009) he best leaders consistently possess these 10 essential leadership qualities:
Center for creative Leadership (https://www.ccl.org/articles/leading-effectively-articles/characteristics-good-leader/)
Empathy is the ability to understand another person's view and feelings. It is “to walk in someone else’s shoes” and see the world from their perspective rather than our own. Empathy allows people to build social awareness and to build connections with others. By understanding what people are thinking and feeling, we are able to respond appropriately in social situations. (https://tinyurl.com/mr396r63)
Flexible students have the capacity to change their minds as they receive additional information. They often consider alternative points of view or deal with several sources of information simultaneously. Their minds are often open to change based on additional information, new data or even reasoning that contradicts their beliefs. Flexible thinkers display confidence in their intuition and tolerate a reasonable degree of confusion and ambiguity. They are often willing to shift their thinking to ensure their approach to problem-solving is creative and productive. (State of New South Wales (Department of Education), 2021)
Metacognition is the process of examining our own thoughts as we engage in them. It is commonly referred to as 'thinking about thinking'. In the classroom, it is characterized by students' ability to plan a strategy for producing the information that is needed, the awareness of their own learning process and their ability to reflect on and evaluate the productiveness of their own thinking. Students need to be able to question themselves about their own learning strategies and evaluate the efficiency of their own performance in order to be successful learners in the 21st century. (State of New South Wales (Department of Education), 2021)
Curiosity is an intense desire to know and to understand; the disposition to inquire, investigate, or seek after knowledge; the desire to gratify the mind with new information or objects of interest; inquisitiveness. (Perry, Bruce (2011) “Curiosity: The Fuel of Development.” Early Childhood Today, NY, Scholastic)
Initiative and Entrepreneurialism refers to an individual's ability to turn ideas into action. It involves creativity, innovation and risk-taking, as well as the ability to plan and manage projects in order to achieve objectives.
Effective Oral and Written Communication is being able to communicate one’s thoughts clearly and concisely, but also being able to create focus, energy, and passion.
Assessing and analyzing information is the skill of not only gathering information on a certain topic, but also analyzing the quality of that information.
Students with the ability to assess and analyze information are able to do the following:
In general, to be ethical means to act in a principled and honorable way. To have a sense of civic responsibility is to be an active citizen, to be knowledgeable about public affairs, to vote in elections and to be involved in your community. (San Diego State University, tinyurl.com/yc6mkbe9)
We empower lifelong learners to take on challenges and thrive, care for others in our diverse international community and think globally and creatively toward a better future.