February 12, 2017

February 12, 2017

21st Century Students and Teachers

The 21st century learner is not the same as their parents as learners.  According to Couros,  to be successful, the 21st century learner need different types of  opportunities to be successful.  These opportunities include:

• Voice - the opportunity to share their learning.
• Choice - the opportunity to choose how and what they learn.
• Time for Reflection - the opportunity to reflect of what they have learned.
• Opportunities for Innovation - the opportunity to create.
• Critical Thinkers - the opportunity ask questions and to challenge what they see.
• Problem Solvers/Finders - give students a chance to find and solve problems with a purpose.
• Self Assessment - help in letting students understand what they know.
• Connected Learning - allowing experts on various subjects share their knowledge.

Technology is not required to offer these opportunities to students but it does open more sources for the learner.

The 21st century learners are digital natives who use technology in their daily lives.  For the most part, schools today do not allow the use of students' personal devices.  The students use Internet for learning outside of school.  Social Media and Web 2.0 tools are used for communication outside of school but these options are not allowed in school.  Students disconnect from the traditional methods of learning.  The mind set of educators needs to change in order to reach the 21st century learner.  Educators will need to provide opportunities for students to learn 21st century life and career skills.

With the shift in school culture due to technology, school leaders need to promote a positive school culture.  Communication is the key when initiating changes in technology.  In exchange, a school culture can support or limit a school leader.  School leaders need to realize that by distributing leadership, there will be a better acceptance or 'buy in' of the changes in the school culture.  The school leader will also need to model and use new technology.  The 21st teacher will  need develop technology rich lessons based on data.  Professional development needs to focus on student-centered teaching strategies with follow up activities.  

Technology is here and ever changing.  In looking at my current school,  technology has been available for several years.  In the  last year or so, devices have become more abundant for student use.  The infrastructure has been updated and can handle more devices.  With the positive changes, it varies how much time students spends on devices.  Some teachers/classes still rely on the lecture method while others use more technological methods to deliver instruction.  There is discussion on developing school/teacher social media sites as  a way to improve communication.  While we are moving forward, I think we are not as advance as other schools or districts in the use of technology in the school.