Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Application 4: Evaluating 21st Century SKills
I spent a considerable amount of time, exporing http://www.21stcenturyskills.org/. This is a site dedicated to informing others on the process and importance of incorporating an adequate level of innovation in the world of education. It focuses on bringing "together the business community, education leaders, and policymakers to define a powerful vision for 21st century education to ensure every child's success as citizens and workers in the 21st century"(http://www.21stcenturyskills.org/). Upon first viewing this website, I thought it seemed like a valuable resource. However, as I looked a little closer, I realized that I was unable to view a large portion of the content. I realized that it required a written request for some of the subject matter, stating your intent. It also needed a state wide committment to be considered as a "P21" school. So therefore, although I think this site has a lot of valuable information, I really wish that I was able to see it. I did enjoy the "Online Tools" and the "Publications". Route 21 was very informative, I liked reading about and exploring this section. I was surpised to see that it contained a professional development link, and I was very curious to know what resources it provided. I really do disagree with the requiremnts needed to view most of the site. I definitely agreed with the site's mission statement, as well as the content that I was able to view. In the 21st century, we as citizens of this country, must be better educated than in the past. Our current state curriculums do not include the skills that Americans need today. As a teacher, I think it is imparitive to take responsibility for myself and my students. I have committed to being a life-long learner, and the need for 21st century skills to be implemented in education, is a perfect example of an issue that requires me to be. I believe that I must be my students, and my own, advocate. I need to seek out learning opportunities and find ways to start providing skills and meeting the needs of my 21st century students.
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Sarah,
ReplyDeleteI mentioned in my blog how the high stakes standardized test that No Child Left Behind has generated makes it difficult for today's teachers to truly equip our students with the 21st century skills they need. But until our state leaders understand that our students need to be schooled on more than what these current test gauge, it will be up to us to go the extra mile to provide them with the all the skills they need. Like you I have also committed to be a lifelong learner. I hope in my county we will start being provided with professional development that addresses these 21st century skills.
Jerry Brown
Hello Sarah,
ReplyDeleteMy feelings of the site were similar to yours. I did see some good resources and even found an article which is of interest to me. The Middle School Journal was very informative. I teach at this level and printed a few copies for the teacher’s room. I wasn’t aware of the requirements needed to view most of the site. After reading your posting I went back and checked this out. I was also unable to view a large portion of the content. This can be very frustrating when you have a limited amount of time to research a topic. Like most resources there is positive and negative aspects, all things considered it is a valuable resource but not the only one. I enjoyed reading your posting.
Thanks,
John M
Sarah,
ReplyDeleteI think that a professional development section of the website is a good idea and I agree with you that the difficulty in accessing some areas was very frustrating.I do think the concepts put forward in the project are wonderful and being able to read other states' obstacles and achievements could motivate those of us ho see the use of technology in the classroom as a valuable tool for learning.
I do wonder whether there would be any national implications if all states would engage in the partnership.
Minty
Hi Sarah,
ReplyDeleteIt is unfortunate that you have to meet so many criteria to be able to use (or even look into using) parts of the site. And it sounds like the red tape that you would have to go through is not something that a lot of teachers would want to be required to do. The last thing teachers need is more hoops to jump through. We need to be able to investigate resources, evaluate them for effectiveness, and make our decisions about implementing them or not, all while keeping all of the other things we are juggling still going.
I like the mission statement, as well, and wish that I could access part of the content for possibly using things from the site, too. Since my state is not a partner state, I imagine that this would be impossible for me, though.
Trina