After viewing P12's website, I was excited about the information that was provided about transforming our students into 21st century learners based on the skills that each child needs to be successful. This website dissect all the important facets of the tools that are being asked of this competitive economy. Our students are already behind students in other nations. I think it is valuable for an organization like P12 to create a mission, objective, goals, and to assist the American Education system to help bridge this gap.
The information on this website that helped me develop a great new found understanding on the issues surrounding 21st century skills was the Framework Component. Basically this component breaks down the education system after the passing of NCLB in 2001 and gear these academic components towards higher order thinking skills as well as innovative skills. Creating standardized tests that avoids the paper and pencil will allow students to be free and express their knowledge in a creatively. In a nut shell, P12 knows that everyone may not master a standardized test but that does not mean that they did not master the skill or concept.
One of the most valuable aspects of P21 is its multidisciplinary character; education organizations and industries and other sectors corporations are involved. Somehow that guarantees a holistic view of what educational goals should be and gives us a clear horizon of what the future work world is expecting from them. In suggest you explore the route 21 for specific resources on how to implement the framework and check the MILE guide to have a general idea of the different issues that must be consider to transform your practice into a 21st century skills enhancing practice.
ReplyDeleteNikisha,
ReplyDeleteI like your point about not every student being able to show knowledge through paper/pencil standardized tests. As a poor test-taker myself, I hope that students will be able to show their knowledge through other, more creative means. I do wonder what this will look like in a regular classroom. We will find out in due time.
I recently attended a three day conference about how Maryland will incorporate the new Common Core Standards and how our standardized testing will change. The Partnership for 21st Century Skills has resources for teachers regarding the new standards which I found helpful. If Tennessee is adopting the Common Core Standards, you might want to look at the toolkit on their website. There are lesson ideas which are linked to the new standards already.
ReplyDeleteYou said it perfectly Nikisha! Mastery of standardized testing does not necessarily mean that students have mastered the concept and skills. When it comes to high stakes testing it makes me ill because I don’t feel that it is a valid way of showing that a child has mastered a skill or concept. Personally, I have always been a very poor test taker. I was always a very successful student and did very well in the classroom and all throughout school. However, when it came to standardized testing, I just really struggled. I feel that it is so unfair to place such emphasis on high stakes testing. There are better ways to assess students and what they know instead of placing a 3 hour test in front of them for three days and asking them to complete it. It is very stressful and is a lot of pressure. P21 really does a good job and has a good initiative in talking about how important it is that we teach our students 21st century skills and how to think critically and problem solve. We must teach our students skills that will benefit them and teach them how to think critically and solve problems. Standardized testing does now show if students can do these skills, at least not to the extent that they would need to be successful for an unknown future.
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