Investigating+21+Century+Skills

This page will be for optional professional readings about these new technology literacies. Please add your own to the discussion section here or within the discussion section, please feel free to comment on any of these. I will add to the list as new ones become available and put them to the top of the list.


 * [|Adopt and Adapt: Shaping Technology for the Classroom] is an article from Edutopia that may be of interest. You might also want to check out [|Why Integrate Technology into the Curriculum] at this web site.
 * New Internet Literacies for Educators - This wiki provides you with resources and criteria of how these new literacies make our students 'independent learners.' Here are just two examples**:**
 * //**Self-directing**--we now have the ability to create our own, personal curriculum around the ideas or topics that we are most passionate about. We no longer require curriculum to be delivered to us. We need to help our students find their passions and pursue them in the context of online networks in ethical, effective, organized and safe ways. And finding a balance between the online and offline life is also a "literacy" in this age. There are so many ways to communicate these days (blogs, wikis, IM, text, etc.) that it's easy to get overwhelmed.//
 * //**Self-connecting**--in order to leverage the potentials of personal learning networks, our students must understand how to connect to others in safe, ethical, and effective ways//
 * [|21st Century Literacies: Tools for Reading the World] - In //Intelligence Reframed// Howard Gardner contends that "literacies, skills, and disciplines ought to be pursued as tools that allow us to enhance our [|understanding] of important questions, topics, and themes." This web site offers various ways to look at using the web and higher order thinking (Middle school and above) You can see in action how**//noodletools//** can be used as a teaching medium. You just click each slide to go to the next one.
 * [|Michael Welsh and the Future of Education] - An hour long presentation but gives you an overview of how one professor changed his style to meet the needs and utilize Web 2.0 tools. Here is a five minute look developed by one of his classes - [|Web 2.0...The Machine is Us/ing Us].
 * [|The Partnership for 21st Century Skills] - This is an initiative/collaborative effort by many outside businesses and teacher professional groups such as NCTE (National Council of Teachers of English) to move educational initiatives with technology along in the U.S. None of your states are currently involved in this initiative but you can checkout which ones are at the [|Route 21] link for resources, information and community tools.
 * The Global Achievement Gap by Tony Wagner ( [|Tony's website] ) - This is an [|online preview] of the book.
 * [|21st Century Learning] - This web site provides several Web 2.0 tools to help educators be aware of the learning skills as well as the technology tools and resources that can be used to support of current and future students.
 * [|The Emergent 21st Century Teacher] by Mark Treadwell. [|Mark Treadwell's web site] has over 5000 website reviewed by teachers WITH the grade level next to the web site!
 * [|The Metiri Group: What's So Different About the 21st Century?] - Overview of 'what's so different' - be aware the link does not work within the text. Downloadable files along the side do work.