Life competencies stand indispensable for the educated segment of any nation to guarantee its progress in the times to come. In ELT, our role, as well as our domain, expands a great deal. We are entrusted with not only teaching the language but also training our students on ways to develop their abilities and maximize their potentials.
Technological advancement happening in the 21st century led to the need to equip students with a set of competencies called Life Competencies (Cambridge University Press, 2018) including Critical thinking, communication, collaboration and creativity. The European Union asserts that the requirements of the changing world can be met through the key life competencies (European Union, 2008) which can help students to excel if mastered (Voogt & Roblin, 2012). This study aimed to contextualize Cambridge Framework for life competencies (CamFLiC), which has six competencies, in the Saudi EFL context. This paper addresses the following research question: (1) to what extent do EFL practitioners understand, support, and apply life competencies? The findings related to EFL practitioners' awareness, preferences, and implementation of life competencies (males and females from each of Umm AlQura University (UQU) and Taif University (TU) will be presented. Additionally, findings about the potential change students in HE may make in their knowledge of, attitudes towards, and skills in life competencies and their language proficiency after taking part in an experiment will be introduced. This research paper will help to equip students with life competencies needed in the 21st century. It will inform EFL practitioners and policymakers of the competencies they need to focus on in the 21st century.
