Discovering the website, Partnership for 21st Century Skills, http://www.21stcenturyskills.org/, has been an eye opening experience for me. This site features articles, resources and skills-related information about utilizing 21st century technology tools. The site is easy to navigate and has a tremendous amount of information on the role of education and the incorporation of technology into our schools. The home page gives a brief overview of the latest published articles while a navigation bar on the left of the page offers easy links to indices within the site.
The organization, comprised of several well known and respected US companies, such as Apple Computer, Sisco Systems Inc., Dell Computer Corporation, Microsoft Corporation, the National Education Association as well as the US Department of Education, was formed to "provide an online interactive tool that demonstrates how 21st century skills can be supported through standards, professional development, assessments and curriculum and instruction". Over 5000 members have joined this free, on-line organization.
One article, I found especially interesting, focused on the evolution of education throughout the ages. From an agrarian society to a industrial society, education changed to meet the ideologies and philosophies of the people. Education has also reflected our "growing understanding of how people learn." These concepts and the use of technology into our everyday lives has created a rapidly changing network of skills needed for success in life.
There are other informative and instructional resources found on this website. It is well worth your time to peruse and discover all that Partnership for 21st Century Skills has to offer.
Final Reflection – 6715 Sanders D.
14 years ago
Caroline,
ReplyDeleteI agree that this website has an abundance of great information and is very worth while to visit. Had you heard of it before our assignment? I had not! I was pleasantly surprised to find that a handful of states had taken the initiative to ensure that technology be used in classrooms to teach the core curriculum. I was disappointed that more states haven't gotten on board yet, but hopefully with the support of so many major businesses supporting this movement, other states will realize how important technology is in schools.
You posted the names of the corporations that are participating in this program, and it makes many people realize that this should be very useful in our students' education. I think the many reason is because these are the most successful and respected companies in our country. Sometimes my student feel that because my expertise is in education that I don't know that much about the tools that they will need outside of the school setting. However, If a large successful and respected corporation is saying the same things that we preach to our students I feel that our messages will only be that much more powerful. Do you feel that your students sometimes just need that little bit of reassurance to know that what they are doing is going to be beneficial to them?
ReplyDeleteI agree it was eye opening to me as well. The site does contain a lot of information. It got me thinking about what my state was doing to prepare students for the 21st century. Have you looked at your state?
ReplyDeleteHow do you feel about these corporations being involved in this partnership? Are they doing it to help better prepare today's students for the workplace of the future? Do they want to help the education system? What is in it for them?
ReplyDeleteI think that the companies are doing it for all these reasons. They see the need to prepare our students to work for companies like theirs and push them into the next century.
What do you think?