Partnership for 21st Century Skills

The Web site for the Partnership for 21st Century Skills is a very detailed site including information on the importance of 21st century skills, tools and resources, states involved in the partnership, and an overview of the partnership. I would encourage any educator who is interested in implementing 21st century skills into their curriculum to visit this site.

The variety of businesses involved in the partnership is very impressive. They are large, truly global companies whose information I would value in regards to what employers are looking for in workers of the 21st century. Some of these entities include: Cisco, Dell, Lego, Ford, Adobe, and the NEA, just to name a few. I found a very informative PowerPoint presentation titled “21st Century Skills in Education: What does it look like in the states?” More disappointing than surprising to me was the statement that businesses felt recently hired high school students were deficient in written communication skills, followed by leadership, work ethic, critical thinking and problem solving, and self direction. This statement makes it clear that the current education system needs to further develop these skills in its students.

I was also surprised to see that Iowa is one of the ten states identified in the initiative. Iowa is currently working on a core curriculum where 21st century skills will be integrated. Implementing the Iowa Core Curriculum will be taking up the majority of our professional development time in the near future. Local school districts have not begun work with the Iowa Core but it is exciting that 21st century skills are being included.

The entities in the partnership point to skills in critical thinking, I.T., health and wellness, collaboration, innovation, and personal finance as areas that will be growing in importance in the next five years. This has direct implications for students and educators. It is clear that there is a growing need for teachers to utilize technology to enhance the critical thinking and decision making skills of our students so that they can be successful in the workplace.