The goal of the education system from grades pre-k through 12 should shift it's focus from "producing university professors", as Sir Ken Robinson states, to creating productive, successful, and multi-talented members of society. How can that goal be accomplished? An answer may be by giving students the "thinking tools" necessary to achieve this, such as critical thinking, analytical process, comprehending new ideas, and collaborating with other people of a variety of different backgrounds to solve problems and make decisions. The focus of education should revolve around the question: "what can the school system teach, so students optimize their time spent in the school system and walk out with skills most beneficial to the workforce and real life? The idea is to stray from memorization and "fact cramming", and starting teaching ways to apply information. It's the method of applying new material that will be the most useful to students throughout their lives. The 21st century skills movement describes ways that schools can mold into this trend.
"The best learning happens "when students learn basic content and processes and at the same time they learn how to think and solve problems". (M.Banta, 2009). Going beyond core subject matter and integrating technology to help students develop crucial life skills are what supporters of 21st century skills are in favor of. However, it is easier said than done. Integrating most of or all of the skills that the 21 century skill movement dictates is nearly impossible for teachers because of the standards that educators need to meet under NCLB. However, the 21st century skills movement provides a great means for brainstorming lesson plans that promote deep learning. Sir Ken Robinson gives three points of intelligence, one being that intelligence is diverse. When teachers use different methods of teaching and different methods of assessments, more students will benefit in the long run.
Critics argue that 21st century skills aren't effective because there are certain constraints and simply that skill centered knowledge without the knowledge base will never work. I do agree that time constraint and having trouble assessing these skills are roadblocks to the 21st century movement, but there are ways to make room for this method of teaching in schools. One possible solution to the problem that there isn't enough time in the year to implement 21st century skills is to have teachers blend teaching content and the application of skills together. For example, teachers can have class time to teach certain skills, for example simple addition is math such as 4 plus 4. However, on assessments can be more problem based to promote critical thinking. For example, when assessing the knowledge of 4 plus 4, teachers can phrase the question in such a way: "If somebody has 4 apples and a friend brings over 4 more how many apples will the two friends use to make an apple pie".
Personally, I have learned the most skills taken with me into the workforce from being active in the music program for 10 years while in the school system. Supporters of the 21st century skills movement state that the experience that students have in the creative subjects such as art, music, and drama are "the most beneficial in the long run" (McLester S., McIntire T.). These subjects spark creativity in students, and also help them develop collaboration and problem solving skills that are necessary for life after school in the workforce. Due to lack of funding, time, and other various issues that school districts may face, these subjects get left behind. A question that ties into the 21st century skills trend is how can teachers incorporate these subjects into core subjects so that student learning gets optimized? I have had teachers throughout my education experience who have made that possible, therefore I am confident that future teachers can do that as well. The most memorable teachers I have had, are the ones who have fostered a classroom environment based on critical thinking, and those are the classes that I have gained the most from. The 21st century skill movement empowers more teachers to do just that, and with enough brainstorming and a little bit of creativity teachers can make room for that in schools.
References:
Sir Ken Robinson- Schools Kill Creativity
Banta, M. "The Value of Teaching 21st Century Skills" The Boston Globe. February 24, 2009
McLester, S. McIntire, T. "The Workforce Readiness Crisis" Technology & Learning
I liked the comment about making university professors, most of my science professors were so offended when they were called professors and not doctors. Because even at the university level teachers for the core subjects like science still think that fact cramming is the most important thing. The only difference between high school and college is that in college you have laboratories which make you use those 21st century skills. You must learn how to do science, apply it, and use programs to make predictions and so on. This is a good example of blending a core subject and the skills without sacrificing any content.
ReplyDelete"What can the school system teach, so students optimize their time spent in the school system and walk out with skills most beneficial to the workforce and real life?" - This quote I think is very important for teachers to understand and have their students accomplish. No matter what subject, students are needing to gain skills that will help them succeed in the outside world during and after college. Student need not to be told what the answer is right away. They need to be able to critically think and come up with reasonings for their answers by themselves. Becoming problem solving is key because there are many problems they will face in the real world that will not have a direct answer given to them.
ReplyDeleteI naturally agree with your comments on the importance of music education. Studies show that music helps student to excel in other areas such as math and on standardized tests. But I also don't see why there is such a divide between content and thinking skills. I think it is clear that a hybrid of the two approaches works best.
ReplyDeleteI’m glad you bought up the video of Sir Ken. I think he brings up a good point about nurturing the creative side to a person that from a broad perspective might be looked upon as not normal or cumbersome behavior. I do feel exasperated as a future teacher though, because while I agree with Sir Ken’s statements, I think in my head, “are teachers supposed to be superheroes and do all these things?!”
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