TVETipedia Glossary

Transversal skills

Skills that are typically considered as not specifically related to a particular job, task, academic discipline or area of knowledge and that can be used in a wide variety of situations and work settings (for example, organizational skills).

Source:
IBE, Glossary of Curriculum Terminology, 2013
IBE, Glossary of Curriculum Terminology, 2013
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The main purpose of the UNESCO IBE Glossary of curriculum-related terminology is not to establish standard universally applicable definitions. Rather, it is intended to be a working reference tool that can be used in a range of activities and help to stimulate reflection among all those involved in curriculum development initiatives.
Based on the feedback to the consultation document, a new version of the Glossary has been prepared. The final document has been further revised by a small editorial team comprising: Mr Massimo Amadio and Ms Ruth Creamer, UNESCO IBE; Ms Dakmara Georgescu, Programme Specialist, UNESCO Regional Bureau for Education in the Arab States and Cluster Office (Beirut); Mr Jan Berkvens; Mr Alexandru Crisan (Romania), Lead Education Consultant, World Bank and Kuwait Government Partnership Programme for Education; and Mr Philip Stabback.

Transversal skills are those typically considered as not specifically related to a particular job, task, academic discipline or area of knowledge but as skills that can be used in a wide variety of situations and work settings (IBE 2013). These skills are increasingly in high demand for learners to successfully adapt to changes and to lead meaningful and productive lives. Examples include:

Critical and innovative thinking
Inter-personal skills (e.g. presentation and communication skills, organizational skills, teamwork, etc.)
Intra-personal skills (e.g. self-discipline, enthusiasm, perseverance, self-motivation, etc.)
Global citizenship (e.g. tolerance, openness, respect for diversity, intercultural understanding, etc.)
Media and information literacy such as the ability to locate and access information, as well as to analyse and evaluate media content (UNESCO 2014c)

Source:
UNESCO Education Policy Brief (Vol.2), 2014: Skills for holistic human development

Definition of ‘transversal competencies’ has six domains: 1) critical and innovative thinking, 2) interpersonal skills, 3) intrapersonal skills, 4) global citizenship, 5) media and Information literacy, and 6) others. The domain ‘others’ was created as a way for researchers to include competencies, such as physical health or religious values, that may not fall into one of the other.

Source:
UNESCO 2016: School and teaching practices for twenty-first century challenges: lessons from the Asia-Pacific region, regional synthesis report;2014 regional study on transversal competencies in education policy and practice (Phase II)