Challenges of education in the 21st century

The technological environment of the 21st century has a direct impact on education. Although our main domain is university education, we have to look more complexly on issues of basic education as well. Primary and secondary schools are our partners in common goal of raising experts for the future. Children, who start to attend schools today, will be employed as high skilled experts in 2034. We have no exact idea what kind of conditions, level of science and technology awaits them. Since we cannot predict the future, we should at least try to adapt teaching nowadays. Our basic task is to lead students to think critically, to work with high adaptability and flexibility and to support their individuality and creativity. Last but not least to increase intrinsic motivation of them about knowledge and learning of new ones. This article highlights the challenges of education in the 21st century. In the world we can see interesting solutions of these challenges, dealt with in today and future situations of education in Slovakia. Facing some of these challenges author sees the solution in effective application of information and communications technologies (ICT) and new pedagogical approaches.