The Partnership for the 21st century skills website was very intriguing in the sense that these 21st century skills are all laid out into very detailed maps that are teacher friendly. I enjoyed reading the articles posted about how many states in the U.S. are really attempting to apply these standards into their schools. I congratulate the teachers that are trying to make our classrooms more 21st century friendly. One question for me is, why was I not aware of these standards before taking this class? Florida is not one of the states that is named for having adapted these standards. It seems that if this is a growing problem among our schools, then why are these not federal guidelines, or at least an outline of goals on what we are striving for?
Our children are the reason why we do the job we do. One of the hardest things as a teacher is differentiating instruction to fit all learners. As we all know, children are engaged in different types of multimedia that draws all of their attention to it. When teachers try to engage students for a long period of time, it doesn’t always work. One of the things that the 21st century skills suggests is to get rid of “long periods” of seat work, lectures, and or teaching time to focus on adjusting the length of instruction depending on your learners. In the outside world, most schedules are flexible because we live in a more global society and have business partners from other countries. I do know that my young learners thrive on having a definite schedule. They know what is coming next and that is pretty much all the stability that some of my learners have in their lives.
Another thing that shocked me was how the outlook is on changing the architecture of our schools. Widening up classrooms so students and teachers can interact in more diverse settings and get to know one another. I don’t know where they will get the money for this project because with these hard economic times, who can afford to give more in taxes? There is talk about installing moveable furniture to have students quickly moving around.
I’ve learned that as an educator my students and I should always be flexible and welcome change. I also look forward to how schools will be able to make that shift from the industrial age to the information age. I know that my students need to be engaged in order to learn most from their environment and that I should be open to try different strategies and settings. Allowing my students to virtually master concepts such as vocabulary using Kid Pix where they can show they know the vocabulary word through drawings is age appropriate for the early childhood classroom. I also believe that it is important to involve the parents by posting updated blogs about what we are learning. Certainly communication is key in the 21st century learning environment.
