EAGLE MOUNTAIN MONTHLY
NEWS AND NOTES ABOUT EAGLE MOUNTAIN ELEMENTARY
EAGLE MOUNTAIN ELEMENTARY
Email: bmclain@ems-isd.net
Twitter: @bmacEME
Why Do We Need a New Model for Education in the 21st Century?
The forces instigating the inevitable changes on the horizon in education have been building for some time:
· The world is changing – The global economy, with its emerging industries and occupations, offers tremendous opportunities for everyone who has the skills to take advantage of it. There has been a dramatic acceleration in global competition and collaboration over the past thirty years, spurred by information and communications technology. The service economy, which is driven by information, knowledge, and innovation, has supplanted the industrial economy and reshaped business and workplaces. More than three-quarters of all jobs in the United States are now in the service sector. Manual labor and routine tasks have given way to interactive, non-routine tasks – even in many traditionally blue-collar occupations.
· Technology has replaced workers who perform routine work, while it complements workers with higher-level skills and empowers them to be more productive and creative. (Autor, Levy & Murnane, 2003)
· In this era of rapid change, the social contract prevalent for a good part of the last century doesn’t exist anymore. Doing well in school no longer guarantees a lifelong job or career as it did for previous generations of Americans.
· Today, people can expect to have many jobs in multiple fields during their careers. The average person born in the later years of the baby boom held jobs between the age of eighteen and forty-two, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
· The new social contract is different: only people who have the knowledge and skills to negotiate constant change and reinvent themselves for new situations will succeed. Competency in 21st century skills gives people the ability to keep learning and adjusting to change. Twenty-first century skills are the ticket to moving up the economic ladder. Without 21st century skills, people are relegated to low wage, low-skill jobs. Proficiency in 21st century skills is the new civil right for our times.
· U.S. schools and students have not adapted to the changing world – Our current public education system is not preparing all students for the economic, workforce, and citizenship opportunities – and demands – of the 21st Century. Many students are not engaged or motivated in school learning that seems out of step with their lives and irrelevant to their futures.
· Alarmingly, we now face two achievement gaps – one national and one international. This is especially troubling as the demographics of the United States are shifting, with minority populations growing at a much faster pace than the rest of the population.
· Today, a different set of skills – 21st century skills – increasingly powers the wealth of nations.
· A 21st century education must be tied to outcomes, in terms of proficiency in core subject knowledge and 21st century skills that are expected and highly valued in school, work, and community settings.
· Critical thinking, problem solving, creativity, and the other 21st century skills are the tools people need to move up the economic ladder.
· With 21st century skills, students will be prepared to think, learn, work, solve problems, communicate, collaborate, and contribute effectively throughout their lives.
· Students who can apply critical thinking and problem solving to math and science content perform better than those who cannot. In a 21st century education system, RIGOR must refer to master of content and skills.
· We need to move from consensus about the vision of 21st century learning to a thorough understanding of and commitment to the outcomes of 21st century learning.
· There is a danger, in fact, that a “21st century education” or “21t century skills” could mean anything. Many people equate technology-rich classrooms or modern schools or rigorous core subjects with 21st century learning, regardless of whether students are mastering 21st century skills.
· In reality, the ability to use digital devices in no way means that students know anything about global awareness or health literacy, learning and innovation skills, life and career skills, or even media literacy skills.
· Similarly, many educators claim that they already teach 21st century skills, even though these skills are not systemically infused into standards and assessments, curriculum and instruction, or professional development and learning environments.
· The most important next step is to agree on outcomes in terms of proficiency in 21st century skills.
THIS PICTURE IS A GOOD REPRESENTATION OF WHAT I WANT EVERY STUDENT TO BE AT EME.
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