21st Century Learning
http://www.21stcenturyskills.org
This website is an informative site that is working to make 21st century learning a focus in schools. They offer their findings and ideas on how to make students 21st century ready.
I found this site to be pro education in the area of literacy by using technology. The site is supporting students becoming ready to leave the classroom and be prepared to handle being in the 21st century. The site is very useful in telling what should be done to start getting student prepared for the world that they are heading into. One area that I don’t see a great deal of information on is how to make all of it happen. I do like that they have a mission statement. To me it shows what they are about and what they hope to accomplish.
I was surprised to see how many corporations support them. It would be nice to see what they are doing to help education become 21st ready. It is one thing to have their logo posted on the site and say they support what is going on and it is another to actually see what they are doing to help.
I don’t really disagree with anything on the site. I wish that they would promote all areas of school using technology in the classroom. They focus on the core classes but students spend just as much time in other classes so we should be making all areas of learning part of the 21st century. I would also like to know where their funding comes from. I found where it said the federal government is on board but not where the money is coming from. Are the corporations funding them? If so I don’t know if I agree with that. Companies always have something up their sleeves.
I feel that PARTNERSHIP FOR 21ST CENTURY SKILLS is doing a good thing by getting the word out about what should be happing in our schools because it is affecting our country. I look forward to following what Partnership will be doing in the future and if my state will be one of the states to join them. I know something has to be done to get students ready for the world they are going to be facing and if this is a way of doing it then I am on board.
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ReplyDeleteAllison, I thought you might find this interesting. It's the results of a survey that 21st did about technology. The results mirror what we've been learning in class; society is changing and education is far behind.
ReplyDeleteResults
Click on View the 21st Century Skills Poll Highlights for the results
One thing I would like 21st Century Skills to do is give steps in the application process for technology needs in any district. Tell what is needed to apply and how long it will take before changes are made. What else needs to happen is for 21st Century Skills to circulate its mission through all forms of media to every district and not to a select few. If we are to be successful as a nation, we need to be equipped and prepared just as other nations are pulling their resources and conforming to our changing society. Time for us to get with the program and roll with the punches!
ReplyDeleteAllison,
ReplyDeleteYou are completely right! Something has to be done in order to get all schools across the nation on board and equipped with the technology necessary to foster 21st century skills in the classroom. The question that always follows is what? I personally believe it takes an administration that desires a change. Teachers can speak until they are blue in the face, but it appears to go no where. In addition, it is going to take money, which let's face it, is not available.
On Amy's blog, I mentioned that it will take a grass roots effort, but do you think that this is an effective way to go about making change? I am curious as to what you think. How can educators help make a change with very limited support? I guess I just get frustrated when talking about a serious issue that is getting little awareness.
Doug
You alluded to some of my biggest concerns with the Partnership for 21st Century Skills.
ReplyDeleteWhere is the beef?
It seems like all the educational jargon, flow charts, and mission statements sound good. It is very difficult to argue with them. It is nice that so many corporations are presumably financing this Partnership, but you are right the big question is "how to make it all happen?"
Teachers are the ones that make it all happen. While the ideas of the partnership are well-researched, well-organized, and well-said, it still takes a classroom teacher to figure out what the implementation of these catch phrases looks like in the classroom. It would be nice if their were more specific examples of how to successfully integrate the 21st Century Skills in a real classroom. I really like the 21st Century Skills, I just wish I knew if I am using them properly in the classroom. I also think that the 21st Century Skills are universal skills that all learned individuals and societies have possessed throughout human history, so the misnomer "21st Century" confuses me. I feel that most teachers teach the "21st Century Skills" they are just not always called that.