http://www.21stcenturyskills.org/ is a very informative website that I think all educators need to be aware of. For me, it gave me a better understanding of what is to be expected from me as an educator that will help me gear my students to be the children of tomorrow. I was very shocked to see that only 9 out of our very own 50 states gave a commitment to revise their standards, create assessments, and implement the 21st century skills in their classrooms. No wonder our nation’s students are being outperformed by foreign countries. If we want our students to adapt and be able to use these skills we need to be able to provide them with the necessary tools on a daily basis.
I do not disagree with anything on this website. I wish more people would get on board with implementing the 21st century skills in the classroom. Team work is a big part of these skills and if our government, school boards, administrators, teachers, and community can not work together as a team how do we expect our students too? Again, implications that I see my district running into, is not have the technology resources needed in order to make our students successful for life beyond high school. Not only do we need to get these students ready for the real-life we need to get our students ready and wanting to go to college. They are going to need these skills for both.
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I was also surprised that only 9 out of 50 states gave a commitment to revise their standards, create assessments, and implement 21st century skills in their classrooms. I wonder if it is because we are under so much pressure to do well on standardized tests. I know that I personally feel this pressure in our district. Currently my middle school is one of the few in our district that is meeting AYP. Luckily, my school is a technology magnet school so we are committed to integrating technology too. Unfortunately, not every school in our district is as committed.
ReplyDeleteIt is very dramatic to see that only 9 states plan on making their standards better than what they were before. This probably is why students today are at a disadvantage. They are not held to do better and improve. We need to give more resources to our students so that they can learn and be ready for life when they graduate. College is important, but if some don't attend, what will happen to them when they don't understand how to use technology.
ReplyDeleteIt is hard to believe that only nine states have made the commitment to incorporate 21st century skills into their schools. I hope the other 41 states get on board soon. In my school district in Ohio, I have heard "talk" about technology standards for the last few years; however, we are still concentrating on math, language arts, science and social studies. I was happy to hear that several administrators and teachers from our district will be attending a technology conference in Columbus, Ohio this coming week. I am looking forward to hearing about it from those who are attending and I am hopeful that this is an indication that we are heading in the right direction.
ReplyDeleteIf your state has developed standards or not, I believe it all comes down to implementation. Just because our state education department hasn't written these skill sets down on paper doesn't mean that we as educators can't begin to find opportunities to begin integrating them into our instruction. It may take a grassroots effort to make people see that in the long run these skills will effect test scores in a positive way. If we only focus on making AYP, how are we ever going to make it out of this vicious cycle. Luckily organizations like the Partnership for 21st Century Learning, because of there size and credible influence, they can represent us with a "louder voice" for administration to hear.
ReplyDeleteEmily, It is also a shame that many of us had never heard of this website or that states as a collective are working on creating the 21st century classroom skills and how to teach them. Hopefully the other 41 states will take the initiative and start working together on trying to keep the United States competitive in the education system and in the work force. America’s students , work force, and educational system need to be revamped to live and thrive in the new flatter globe.
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