Jackie Gerstein

Web 2.0 and emerging technologies are creating a new learning landscape.  They are changing the methods that today’s students, the digital native generation, learn, and are altering or should be altering the way educators teach.  Learning is collaborative, participatory, collective, and synergistic.  The 21st century learners often turn to Wikipedia or YouTube when they want to explore a topic of interest and blog, tweet, record, and text their friends about what they discovered.

In their framework for 21st Century Curriculum and Assessment, the National Council for English Teachers state “assessment of 21st century products of learning may be different because of technological tools.”  But, as Silva (2008) points out “Standing in the way of incorporating 21st century skills into teaching and learning are widespread concerns about measurement” (p. 1).  Some educators who would like to embrace technology and integrate it into their day-to-day classroom pedagogy are concerned, even fearful, about implementing an assessment process that may be incongruent this type of learning and that may not meet the standards established by NCLB.  But the creative and knowledgeable educator can use these same learning technologies as assessment measures. Silva (2008) believes that “models of assessment that measure both basic skills and more advanced skills are emerging to challenge the assumption that such skills cannot be measured and to move us toward an assessment system that is more aligned with what students now need to know” (p. 6).    

When selecting and developing assessments for 21st century learning, the National Council for English Teachers believes the following should be considered:
• Students’ greater proficiency with tools or formats may generate outcomes not anticipated in an assessment rubric.
• The scope of collaboration, in the classroom and globally, leads to a greater need for processes that assess progress and achievement of both individuals and groups.
• The assessments need to support and celebration of the increasing diversity in students’ talents, imagination, perspectives, cultures, and lived experiences.
• The assessment should provide recognition that the processes of learning and doing are as important as the quality of the final product.
• The students’ self-evaluation and reflection on process and product should be integrated into the learning process and contributing to students’ continued growth.

To expand on how the 21st century should be perceived and approached, Helfant proposes that good assessment should meet the following criteria:
• Did the assessment tool allow for students to demonstrate 21st century skill mastery? (meaning the assignment itself was cognizant of 21st century literacies)
• Did the assessment process provide feedback that could be utilized during the learning process to ensure a satisfactory ending?
• Did the assessment truly measure student understandings of essential questions and skills?
• Can we move forward without a satisfactory student performance?
• Did the assessment double as a learning tool?

Helfant provided some examples of the types of assessments that used current technologies.  These were used as springboards to some ideas I have about authentic 21st century assessments:
• Writing Group Reports with Wikis  (http://pbwiki.com/academic.wiki or http://www.wikispaces.com/)  
• Lecturing with a Back Channel participation through Twitter (http://twitter.com/)
• Creating a Bibliography of Relevant Research Links: Bookmarking with  Diigo (http://www.diigo.com/) or Delicious (http://delicious.com/)  
• Creating a Shelfari of Content-based Books – (http://www.shelfari.com/)
• Ning for Group Discussion (http://www.ning.com/)
Self Reflecting and Evaluation with Self-Produced Rubrics (http://rubistar.4teachers.org/)
• Simulation Based Assessments through Virtual Worlds like Quest Atlantis (http://atlantis.crlt.indiana.edu/)

The learning community, itself, both learners and educators would decide upon acceptable level of performance.  But this level would have to remain flexible and open to revisits and corresponding revisions as the nature of these learning technologies is that they are emerging and evolving.   “Creating an assessment centered learning environment that fosters a love of learning and develops a growth mindset that requires that teachers understand what the emerging literacies are and give students ample opportunities in the assignment and assessments they create to acquire those skills” (Helfant).

I have found a group of people - I believe they are so as I found them in Second Life - from all over the world who celebrated  December 10, 2008.  It has been 60 years since the Declaration of Human Rights has been signed.  Here is what I learned today -

http://pth.amnestyusa.org/#/home/

Heartbreakingly beautiful and powerful. Are we our brothers' (and sisters') keepers?

I am not actually using this as a major blogging area, but continue to add media pieces that support/reinforce my vision of a world driven by global stewardship.  So I am posting this video I found - It is beyond verbal description and needs to be visually experienced.

Millions of parents, teachers and children around the world are calling on their governments to provide free, good quality, basic education for all the world's children. They are part of the Global Campaign for Education; we add our voice to their call."
- Nelson Mandela and Graca Machel, April 2002.

Education is a basic human right and fundamental to the fight for human dignity and freedom. For 72 million children and 774 million adults, that right is violated everyday.

Go visit the Global Campaign for Education to learn more about the initiative to change this statistic.

Not directly addressing 21st century trends in the actual school culture means we are doing our students a major, almost unethical disservice.  Our young students will not be prepared for those jobs that don't even exist yet.  I started a Wiki on "Trends for 21st Century K12 Education".  Go visit and add some more content.

The 21st century students are different than the students that preceded them.  They are connected, multi-taskers, aware, and engage in digital based communications - all day, every day when on their "own" time.  Social networking, personal blogs and wikis, and Facebook are obviously filling some gap (or possible a bottomless chasm) in the lives of young people..Educators not only should, but they have an obligation to bring these tools, ideas, and ways of interacting in the world.  I am an advocate of global stewardship and when given the opportunity so are many young people.  Some powerful initiatives are evolving that use social networks for social good in the classrooms.  One such initiative is Taking It Global.

7,000: The number of students nationwide who drop out of school every day. Schools known as dropout factories produce more than half of our country's dropouts. 2,000 dropout factories produce almost three-fourths of African American students and two-thirds of Hispanic students who didn't finish school.  Studies show that dropouts dim not only their own economic future but also that of their communities. The 1.2 million students who should have graduated with the class of '07 will cost the nation $329 billion in lost income over the course of their lifetimes. About two-thirds of all prisoners are high school dropouts.
Source: http://www.edutopia.org/stat-high-school-dropout-rate

If we want to change these statistics and ultimately, the course of American Education, then educational reform cannot be just a whim of a few, it needs to become a necessity demanded by the majority.

According to a new report, To Read or Not To Read: A Question of National Consequence. released by the National Endowment for the Arts, Americans — particularly young Americans — appear to be reading less for fun, and as that happens, their reading test scores are declining. At the same time, performance in other academic disciplines like math and science is dipping for students whose access to books is limited, and employers are rating workers deficient in basic writing skills.“The study shows that reading is endangered at the moment in the United States, especially among younger Americans … and not merely the frequency of reading, but the ability to read as well,” The emphasis in many schools on bolstering reading skills and preparing students for tests, he added, is insufficient for nurturing an appreciation of reading.The NEA says this decline has “civic, social, and economic implications” and points out in their study that “nearly two-thirds of employers ranked reading comprehension “very important” for high school graduates. Yet 38 percent consider most high school graduates deficient in this basic skill.” And, “Literary readers are more likely than non-readers to engage in positive civic and individual activities – such as volunteering, attending sports or cultural events, and exercising.”
References:
http://www.nea.gov/news/news07/TRNR.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/19/arts/19nea.html

The Best Gift To My Son By James Patterson

James Patterson, the author, writes a letter to his son.  It about the best gift he could give to his son - the love of reading.  This letter can easily be one the teachers should be writing to their students.  It should be a promise that all teachers make to their students. Dear Jack (Jackster, Boo, Bud), I have something grand to tell you—not dreaded advice or a boring lecture, just something cool as ice that I want to share. It’s a gift from your old dad—maybe the best one I’ll ever give you.  Jack, I want you to become a passionate reader for life, and not because you have to or because it might make you more successful or get you into Harvard or Stanford. I’m talking about real passion here, like the way you currently go crazy over The Simpsons and The Incredibles. It’s true—books can make you crazy—but in a good way. Now, I have a confession to make. Truth be told, I wasn’t exactly a gangbusters reader when I was your ripe old age of 9. I didn’t have a prodigious vocabulary like you do. And, of course, I didn’t know how to roam the Internet. Hey, I was just starting to ride my bike around the streets of Newburgh, N.Y.  Anyway, I think the main reason I didn’t read too much as a kid is because my parents and the nuns who taught at my school didn’t introduce me to books that I couldn’t put down. This was pretty much true of all my friends too. We read because we had to, not because we wanted to. But, Jack, there are so many wise, funny, exciting, magical, chilling and enlightening stories out there to read. There are the Harry Potter and Lemony Snicket books, of course; ev- erybody who isn’t a complete Muggle already knows about them. But there are other absolutely terrific, glue-you-to-the-page books. A great French writer named Gustave Flaubert once said, “It is a delicious thing to write, to be no longer yourself but to move in an entire universe of your own creating. Today, for instance...I rode in a forest on an autumn afternoon under the yellow leaves, and I was also the horses, the wind, the words my people uttered.” Jack, that’s how I feel when I write, and it’s also how you’ll feel when you read a great book. It’s truly one of the best things in life!  I believe that getting you to read is my responsibility, my job. In fact, it’s the responsibility of all parents, grandparents and teachers.

That’s why I’m doing my homework now and searching for some terrific books that I know you’ll love. Why? Because, Jack, with all due respect, you probably won’t do it yourself; neither will most other kids. And so, every Christmas, you will get at least one book from me—at least one. What loving parents wouldn’t get their kids a book to read over the holidays? And every summer, I’ll also find at least a couple of books that you’ll devour just like Chunky Monkey ice cream and that you’ll never forget. Maybe someday you’ll tell your kids about them in a letter. Well, that’s my gift to you, and I can’t think of a better one. If I do my job right, reading will bring you happiness and satisfaction every day for the rest of your life. I love you, Jack. Always have, always will. Your Pop

The 2001 No Child Left Behind Act requires technological literacy among all 8th graders.Most schools acknowledge the importance of technology to their students' futures, but while many have made significant gains in building the infrastructure required, the shifts in policy and practice needed to ensure that all students learn to use technology effectively have been harder to achieve. Technological literacy is an essential component of job readiness, citizenry, and life. Students must not only become competent in the use of technology and associated applications, they must be able to apply their skills to practical situations. Most experts agree that students should develop technological skills in the context of standards-based learning. National standards and guidelines have been developed for technological literacy. Key to many of these is the International Society for Technology in Education's (ISTE) National Education Technology Standards, used in K-12 schools nationwide.

So with the focus on increasing  literacy and math scores, has this part of this part of the NCLB mandate been met?  WASHINGTON, DC - Oct. 10, 2007 - A new, nationwide poll of registered voters reveals that Americans are deeply concerned that the United States is not preparing young people with the skills they need to compete in the global economy. An overwhelming 80 percent of voters say that the kind of skills students need to learn to be prepared for the jobs of the 21st century is different from what they needed 20 years ago. Yet a majority of Americans say that schools need to do a better job of keeping up with changing educational needs. In its report, the New Commission on Skills of an American Workforce warned of dire consequences should the country not adopt a strikingly bold approach. “If we continue on our current course, and the number of nations outpacing us in the education race continues to grow at its current rate,” it said, “the American standard of living will steadily fall relative to those nations, rich and poor, that are doing a better job.” - see http://www.skillscommission.org/news.htm for more articles.  Schools need a relentless focus on the results that matter for student success in the 21st century according to The Partnership for 21st Century Skills (the Partnership). The Partnership issued a new national report outlining a compelling framework for 21st century learning: Improving schools requires the nation to redefine “rigor” to encompass not just mastery of core academic subjects, but also mastery of 21st century skills and content.  Today’s graduates need to be critical thinkers, problem solvers and effective communicators who are proficient in both core subjects and new, 21st century content and skills. These 21st century skills include learning and thinking skills, information and communications technology literacy skills, and life skills. Twenty-first century skills are in demand for all students, no matter what their future plans — and they will have an enormous impact on students’ prospects.