Partnership for 21st Century Skills: http://www.p21.org/
This is an excellent website for teachers trying to teach their students skills needed for the 21st century. The framework and definitions are very clear for any teacher to follow to teach these skills to students. I really liked the explanation of the student outcomes (http://www.p21.org/documents/P21_Framework_Definitions.pdf) for the framework. It was very clear to me that it is important for students to learn these skills. This site provided excellent resources for teachers such as videos that show 21st century skills in action in classrooms, blogs, and many other resources that are valuable for teaching these skills. I am concerned that these skills are not seen to be valuable enough to be testing the students on standardized tests. If these skills are extremely important, then why don't we have standards to teach these skills and why aren't these skills tested?
I was curious to know exactly how much learning out of books is still present in these classrooms. This concerns me because I think that students may rely on technology and those skills so much that they will be lost without the technology. Students still need to know how to find information and learn without the use of technology. I am afraid that they may become too accustomed to using the technology. The money needed to implement a program such as this also concerns me. This idea would have to be completely accepted by the district, then by all the teachers. It would be up to the teachers to sell the idea to the students. Teaching 21st century skills according to the framework would require a major change in some of my teaching methods. I would be open to the idea, but I would also have to have reliable technology, which is not always the case.
It surprises me that states have become 21st century states. I am amazed that they have the resources to become technologically advanced. I wonder if the state wants all schools to teach 21st century skills, or if all schools are required to teach these 21st century skills.
I think that this site is awesome for teachers. Following a program like this would be excellent for students. I would not to rely 100% on technology because I do not want my students to lose the ability to work without technology, but I would love for them to become more advanced in working with technology.
I teach in Iowa and we are one of the states that are on board with 21st Century Skills. We have just begun the process of implementation but all secondary schools are expected to be aligned with curriculum by 2012. We have not received any new technology or a way to assess the skills. It is said that the skills will be assessed by an authentic form of assessment set by each district rather that a standardized test. This is all so new I wish I could tell you more but I am just learning the expectations.
ReplyDeleteI am happy to hear that the district will create the assessment rather than the state. The district will know exactly what the teachers have to work with, so the assessment will be fairer to both the students and the teachers.
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