This website has a wealth of information for anyone for anyone in a community. It allows many people outside the realm of education to come and join educators, policy-makers and business people to help close the gap on 21st century innovation and its ability to supplement education.
Ken Kay, the head of the website, explained to those visiting the site that core subjects are very important to the 21st century. I do not know if this was surprising as much as it was refreshing. Him saying that cores need to be a part of technology is exactly what we as educators should be trying to stress to our students all the time. Students will never live in a world where they are only required to know one discipline. Some might say that engineers do not need to know how to write but if they truly believe this the must not think that engineers need to fill out a resume. If life does not allow students to put their learning into separate compartments then we should not prepare them for their future that way either.
Route 21 makes me a little wary of the site. Granted, no one has to buy any materials from the link, nor do they have to even look at it, but whenever interests become mixed with monetary gain I become skeptical of whether those interest are self serving, which I am sure they are in many cases, or for the greater good of the community. It is great to see a learning community made up of so many different types of people and groups, but again, I am always critical when for profit groups are involved with education.
All that being said; I think this is a great resource for the community in general and should help close the gap between technology and its use in education. I am excited to follow this site and can’t wait to discuss it with my students and the parents of those students.
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Eric,
ReplyDeleteI can see why you would be wary of profit groups becoming involved in education. I would not be as wary of these groups becoming involved if they were using some of the profits that they make to help the education world.
You mention how we should use technology to teach the core subjects. In today's world of curriculum, many of the companies offer resources that utilize technology to teach the skills and concepts. For example some companies offer online textbooks and activities. With the support or companies such as these it may make connect the core subjects and the 21st century skills.
I always have my guard up when reading anything and thought the site was pretty genuine and having educations best interests at heart. It is good thing that business is trying to help show what skills are needed for our country to remain globally competitive. Technology is fueling growth in every sector and we need companies like Apple and Microsoft to invest in our future. The panel of members on the partnership of 21st century skills was quite impressive and I think it is a great step in the right direction.
ReplyDeleteI agree, it is refreshing to see that head of the website supports the need for the core subjects need to be integrated with technology. I feel sometimes that educators get too focused on the up-and-coming technology and will sometimes forget the actual core that has worked for so many years. This is definitely not the case with this website.
ReplyDeleteYou also made a great point with the engineer example. In today's workplace, everyone is a specialist in some form. We can't forget that in order to be successful, you need knowledge in every facet of education, not just your specialty.