Charles M. Garcia Walden University Blog 

     My first impression about www.P21.com is that it has a wealth of information.  At first it seems a little overwhelming and I was not sure where to start.  After reading the mission statement, it was clear the intent of the website was to build a collaborative environment between education, business, community, and government.  With the aid of this collaboration, students can begin to build 21st-century skills to thrive in the evolving workforce.  It is evident that the world we live in today is different from fifteen years ago, so it would stand to reason that the skills and the technology that is needed today are also different.

After exploring the site a little deeper, I was intrigued to find “21st-century student outcomes.”  These are the skills that students should display in order to succeed in life and in the workplace.  (1) Content Knowledge and 21st Century Themes is the first outcome listed.  It goes without saying that students should have a firm grasp of content knowledge.  The students should have skills in Math, English,  Science, and History to name a few.  In an effort to increase the rigor of these courses it is suggested to implement 21st -century interdisciplinary themes into the curriculum.  Some themes that are presented are Global awareness, financial, economic, business and entrepreneurial literacy, Civic literacy, Health literacy, and  Environmental literacy.  (2) The second outcome should be Learning and Innovation Skills.  This outcome should focus on  creativity, critical thinking, and collaboration.  Resources and additional information is provided to address each of these areas.  (3) The third outcome is information, media, and technology skills.  With the increase in the use of technology in the day-to-day operation of many jobs, students must become comfortable with the implementation of this technology (P21).

   It was refreshing to see how many companies and organizations participate in P21.  As a member, the companies have the opportunity to shape the landscape of how to implement the framework of 21st-century learning.  It is with this collaboration that change can begin to take place.  I found the abundance of resources to be the most beneficial to me.  As a teacher, resources that provide examples of what 21st-century learning looks like is a benefit.  The YouTube video titled “Above and Beyond” did a great job of demonstrating the possibilities when students communicate, collaborate, think critically, and implement creativity  into their projects.  This is a demonstration of what they call the 4C’s.    I was also impressed with a high school in Manor Texas, that infused Project Based Learning into their district.   It was shocking to hear that within a four-year period (9th – 12th) students will have participated in over 200 projects.  Each year students partake in about 50 projects, and students are required to complete 40 hours of community service.  The results of this project based learning are also very impressive.  Manor High School is graduating 98% of their student body with 100% of these students accepted into college (Nobori 2012).  I was enthused to see that a sample of the implementation of one of these projects which were provided by Edutopia, view sample at http://tinyurl.com/njf5ydd. 

After visiting P21, I am motivated to implement some of the great  ideas into my classroom.  While I have always been a big fan of project-based learning, I have been hesitant to immerse myself in the concept.  I am willing to make the commitment this year to address the 4C’s more frequently through project-based learning.  As an educator, I owe it to my students to provide tools that are necessary to succeed in today’s world.  While covering content still plays a valuable role in education, we must provide students with a deeper and more meaningful experience within the content.

Upon reading one of my students blogs, I learned that he was interested in creating an after-school gaming club.  Due to the early stages of this gaming club, he is in need of a sponsor.  I thought, what a wonderful opportunity to implement the 4C’s (communication, collaboration, critical thinking, and creativity)  into a subject matter that the group of students already enjoys.  Why limit students to just playing games when they can be creating the game.  My vision would be for students to communicate and collaborate in the design process.  During this design process, students could use critical thinking to develop their characters and environments.   The student would then have the opportunity to create their game using technologies such as sploder, gamemaker3D, and flowlab. While I am sure there will be challenges along the way, the students will benefit tremendously.