Partnership for the 21st Century Skills is a website that focuses on teaching students the 3 R's along with the 4 C's. I know the 3 R's, but what are the 4 C's? The 4 C's are critical thinking and problem solving, communication, collaboration, and creativity and innovation. All of these skills are necessary for success in the global economy. So many more skills are needed to be successful and students need to be able to perform and compete with a global world that is extremely intelligent and talented. The United States faces a tough challenge of keeping up with other nations that are very strong in many academic areas. The website is full of information and articles about education and what is being done to provide the most effective learning environment and experiences necessary for success. Guidelines and strategies are provided that will help students gain the necessary skills that the 21st century world requires.
I immediately went to the state listings to see what was specific to the state of California. I was surprised to see so few states listed as participating states in the program. I question why other states including California have not gotten involved with this organization. The vision of the organization is powerful and seems to be important to all states. It makes sense to have a partnership of the private sectors along with public and government organizations all working together for the good of all students in this country. I am curious as to why only 15 states seem to be on board at this time. I love the idea of teaching students how to collaborate and work together to solve problems and feel that this can be done in a simple way and integrated into all areas of the curriculum.
There are many professional articles, videos, and resources to aid in developing a 21st century classroom that support the organizations vision of learning. I feel one problem is that the state already provides such strict standards that must be followed and met. My state is not part of this organization so it would be hard to implement the additional standards and guidelines at a large level. There is not a lot of flexibility in teaching anymore with the rigid standards and demands made by standardized testing. Time and resources are so limited and class sizes continue to grow. Trying to redesign the curriculum to implement more skills would be difficult. If the standards are aligned with the current state standards, then it would not be as big of a challenge to implement additional skills. The website is nice in that all the tools and guides are readily available to print and use.
I teach in one of the states that has begun the implementation process of 21st Century Skills. It has been an interesting process. At times, it is difficult finding ways to address all areas, at all levels and then be able to assess that skill. However, I believe it will lead to more productive members of society.
ReplyDelete~Jocelyn Kyte
My school received a substantial amount of money this year to buy technology, so that we can use technology to foster these 21st century skills. I do believe that covering the standards along with addressing these skills can be difficult. I have managed to take small steps to incorporate learning activities in my lessons that foster these skills. However, I have not been able to do this on a daily basis. Implementing these changes can be very time consuming, so I believe that it will take time to make the necessary changes.
ReplyDeleteHi Kerri,
ReplyDeleteIt can be very challenging to move students toward higher order thinking skills--sometimes students do have very limited experience in problem solving and decision making--in drawing inferences and making hypotheses.
Standardized tests don't always focus on these skills, but I wonder what we can do to address the standards in the context of creative, higher order tasks--without creating new curriculum. I find projects and problem-based activities are often helpful in meeting this goal.
I enjoyed your posting.
Susan