Virtual classrooms, cell phones that are also used as computer processors, cars that steer themselves! It all sounds like a futuristic world, but do not be fooled for these are all parts of the world we live in. My first sentence actually reminds me of the Disney movie, "Zenon: Girl of the 21st Century." The movie came out in 1999 but was set in the year 2045 making it very futuristic with virtual teachers and such. Little did Disney know (or maybe they did know, it IS Disney) that some of their "futuristic twists" were not too far off from what we would see in the near future.
Technology is changing the world rapidly and due to this the workforce is not the same as it was 15 years ago. As society changes, employers' expectations of their employees change as well. As educators, it is our job to not only teach students the academic content, but to prepare them for the future as well. This is when 21st Century Skills come into play. The website, "The Partnership for 21st Century Skills" is completely dedicated to changing education through the passing of knowledge and the sharing of resources so that students are taught the 21st Century Skills.
I found this site to be very colorful and informative and almost overwhelming. It is quite wordy, which can sometimes make it less appealing, though, who am I to judge with my lengthy blog posts and all? I like how the site really defines the various aspects of their mission making it very black and white about what they wish to accomplish.
I have visited this website due to other courses at Walden, so I already had an idea of what to expect. However, I was surprised to see that such major companies contributed to the founding of this organization (just to name a few: AOL Time Warner Foundation, Apple Computer, Inc., Dell Computer Corporation, and Microsoft Corporation.) Many of the council members are also representatives from various prominent companies, such as Verizon, Lego Group, Walt Disney Company, and McGraw-Hill the textbook company. Seeing these big names really points out how well-connected and influential this organization must really be.
A "disagreement" or rather question I have for this site is why is it limited to only a few states? Being a Californian, I was a little disappointed that it was not on the list of states this organization works with. Is this a work in progress or is California closed off to this? I suppose that may be why I never heard of this website until my time at Walden.
When I think about this website and the implications it has for my students, I think, "Wow, we have a long ways to go." Luckily, as a contemporary teacher/substitute there are many resources, such as this website, that can help me teach the 21st Century Skills more effectively.
www.p21.org
Heather I found the site to be very interesting as well. I have saved it as a favorite and plan on using it with my teachers in our Professional Learning Community (PLC). The site provides a wealth of information which can be used as a layout to plan for instruction no matter what state we are in. I like the fact that the professional development information is made available to those who did not attend a conference. The rationale for the committment made me look at lesson planning in a different perspective. We must plan with the end in mind. The end for our students is to have them tech savvy enough to enter into the world. The issue is not just showing them how to use the technology; but, showing them why they need to use it. They also need choice. They need to be able to differentiate when to use what skills. I believe that P21 will help us to help our students.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you completely on the website being a little too wordy. I found another website (within this one) that is much simpler and explains the same things. You might want to check it out. It is http://www.p21.org/route21/index.php
ReplyDeleteEnjoy!