Every child in America needs 21st century knowledge and skills to succeed as effective citizens, workers and leaders in the 21st century.

There is a profound gap between the knowledge and skills most students learn in school and the knowledge and skills they need in typical 21st century communities and workplaces.

To successfully face rigorous higher education coursework, career challenges and a globally competitive workforce, U.S. schools must align classroom environments with real world environments by infusing 21st century skills.

-From the Mission Statement of the Partnership for 21st Century Skills (http://www.21stcenturyskills.org)

I have included the above message because I do not want to forget what it says. I need to remember that I am not teaching my students just to survive in today’s world, I am preparing them to build tomorrow’s world.

I am impressed by the ideas set forth by the Partnership for 21st Century Skills program. I found their website to be informative and interesting.

I was most surprised to learn that my home state of Wisconsin has a 21st Century Skills initiative led by the Department of Public Instruction. I linked to their website and saw some wonderful ideas. I was disappointed, though, to think about how these ideas are not being shared amongst educators at a local level. Our schools do not talk about these big ideas (I spent twenty minutes in a meeting today talking about bathroom breaks). I would like us to shift gears and use the 21st Century Skills to build from. It seems that, instead, we are starting with content-specific standards and letting them drive our curriculum; whatever time is left (which is never enough) can be used for social skills, technology, or project-based learning. What I am noticing is that the 21st Century Skills are all value-based and if we can help our students to learn the value of skills such as collaboration, work-ethic, etc., then we will have a much easier time teaching them content-related skills.

In my fifth grade classroom, I have thought about using a blog for students to summarize novels they have been reading. My students are expected to read at home and during a short Silent Reading time during the school day. We discuss the many purposes for reading, but it still seems that there are many students who remain unmotivated to read on their own. I feel that, for most of my students, if they were allowed some time to share about what they have read with other students, perhaps in a blog format, they might be motivated to read. The benefits for the students may include; increased time spent reading, improved decoding and comprehension strategies, knowledge about different book titles, authors, and genres, improved writing skills, and positive social interaction. Blogs can give the students a chance to share work with their peers and provide them many opportunities to learn. (Laureate, 2008)

Laureate Education, Inc. (2008). Program number 5. Understanding the impact of technology on education, work, and society [Motion Picture]. Spotlight on technology. Baltimore.