After reading Wagner’s “The Global Achievement Gap” I feel that I understand the need of the 21st century students. I have learned that students in the 21st century need instant gratification with respect to results or information. Therefore, I need to create ways in my classroom to meet the needs of my students and not restrict them to the traditional ways of teaching. I have incorporated technology in my class as much as I can and have students explore the concepts being covered in class using Desmos or TI-Nspire apps on the class set of iPads. This lets the students obtain instant solutions by graphing or using the tables instead of doing it by hand. However, I believe that both skills are important, because in order to accurately use technology one has to have an understanding of how to solve the problem manually.
If I could come up with my seven essential survival skills for the 21st century they would be the following skills:
· Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
· Collaboration
· Effective Oral and Written Communication
· Thinking Abstractly and Intuitively
· Leadership
· Perseverance
· Curiosity and Imagination
Students need to be able to think critically and problem solve because not every problem they are faced with will have a simple solution. Students need to understand that the world around them is extremely collaborative and they need to understand that skill and I believe that it begins in the classroom. Effective oral and written communication is important for students to learn so that they can communicate in any environment. There are going to be times when students will have to think abstractly or need to have an intuitive approach to a problem. Students need to learn to take leadership in order to successfully complete certain tasks. I believe that one of the most important skills to have is for students to persevere and to never give up. Lastly, students need to have curiosity and imagination and not be restricted within a box.
I believe that Wagner is missing perseverance as an essential skill. Students need to be to persevere through problems and struggle to eventually arrive at a solution. This skill is important in solidifying content for students. Students learn best by investigating and in order to successfully investigate one has to persevere to overcome any obstacles.
If I implemented the seven essential skills that I believe are important, my class would function with plenty of group worthy tasks. Students would collaborate with one another through written or oral communication, be curious and imaginative, take leadership, and persevere through problems by thinking abstractly or having an intuitive approach in order to problem solve.
I can commit to these seven essential skills this year by providing my students with plenty of time to collaborate and helping them have a growth mindset where they know that they can persevere through any problem. I can assign roles so that they are captains for a week for their tables and require them to read and write more frequently to improve their communication skills. I will measure success based on the assessments that I make throughout the school year either informal or formal. I would be most interested in the formative assessments because that will guide my teaching for the next lesson.
If I could come up with my seven essential survival skills for the 21st century they would be the following skills:
· Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
· Collaboration
· Effective Oral and Written Communication
· Thinking Abstractly and Intuitively
· Leadership
· Perseverance
· Curiosity and Imagination
Students need to be able to think critically and problem solve because not every problem they are faced with will have a simple solution. Students need to understand that the world around them is extremely collaborative and they need to understand that skill and I believe that it begins in the classroom. Effective oral and written communication is important for students to learn so that they can communicate in any environment. There are going to be times when students will have to think abstractly or need to have an intuitive approach to a problem. Students need to learn to take leadership in order to successfully complete certain tasks. I believe that one of the most important skills to have is for students to persevere and to never give up. Lastly, students need to have curiosity and imagination and not be restricted within a box.
I believe that Wagner is missing perseverance as an essential skill. Students need to be to persevere through problems and struggle to eventually arrive at a solution. This skill is important in solidifying content for students. Students learn best by investigating and in order to successfully investigate one has to persevere to overcome any obstacles.
If I implemented the seven essential skills that I believe are important, my class would function with plenty of group worthy tasks. Students would collaborate with one another through written or oral communication, be curious and imaginative, take leadership, and persevere through problems by thinking abstractly or having an intuitive approach in order to problem solve.
I can commit to these seven essential skills this year by providing my students with plenty of time to collaborate and helping them have a growth mindset where they know that they can persevere through any problem. I can assign roles so that they are captains for a week for their tables and require them to read and write more frequently to improve their communication skills. I will measure success based on the assessments that I make throughout the school year either informal or formal. I would be most interested in the formative assessments because that will guide my teaching for the next lesson.