Wk.+4+-+Application+Task

**Introduction**
Modern society is now global, digital, and saturated with information. The work environment is becoming more reliant on technology to collaborate, shifting away from the industrial models of productivity. It stands to reason that the skills and dispositions needed in the digital age to successfully navigate this new work environment might also be different from those needed in the past. Are we properly preparing our students to be successful throughout their careers given the structures and standards of our education system? Are we teaching skills to students that have value in a computerized workplace? This week’s resources will elucidate the skills, dispositions, and competencies that will be critical to teach and foster in our students so that they will be prepared for a successful future, much of which has yet to be defined. You will familiarize yourself with an organization that is dedicated to helping educators teach students the skills that they will need to compete in the labor market. You will also identify the barriers that teachers must address and formulate ideas that utilize technology and instructional practices in order to teach essential skills that are not covered in current core standards.

**Learning Objectives**
Candidates will:
 * Identify and describe the barriers that educators face in teaching skills that are not addressed in core standards, and formulate methods to address these barriers with technology and instructional practices
 * Evaluate the role technology can play in building 21st-century skills
 * Explore the Partnership for 21st Century Skills website, and analyze the implications of teaching 21st-century skills for students and educators

**Evaluating 21st-Century Skills**
//The Partnership for 21st Century Skills has emerged as the leading advocacy organization focused on infusing 21st-century skills into education. The organization brings together the business community, education leaders, and policy makers to define a powerful vision for 21st-century education to ensure every child’s success as citizens and workers in the 21st century. The Partnership encourages schools, districts and states to advocate for the infusion of 21st-century skills into education and provides tools and resources to help facilitate and drive change.// —Partnership for 21st Century Skills Save your Application as a “.doc” or “.docx” file with the filename “APP4+last name+first initial”. For example, Sally Ride’s assignment filename would be “APP4RideS”. Choose the **Week 4: Application** basket, and then add your Application as an attachment.
 * Step 1:** Spend some time exploring the website of the Partnership for 21st Century Skills. Familiarize yourself with their mission, the members of the partnership, and the various resources available on their site.
 * Step 2: //By Wednesday,// post** the following to your blog:
 * Your reaction to the website
 * Information on the site that surprised you or helped you develop a new understanding of the issues surrounding 21st-century skills
 * Information or opinions on the site that you disagree with along with an explanation of why you disagree
 * The implications for your students and for you as a contemporary educator
 * Step 3: //By Sunday//**//**,**// **read** through a sampling of the postings in your learning community’s blogs, focusing particularly on those to which you can add relevant or insightful comments that expand the discussion.**Step 4: Respond** to two or more of the postings, reflecting on further implications on 21st-century teaching and learning.
 * Step 5:** Copy and paste the URLs for your blog and the blogs you responded to into a Word document. Clearly label the URL for //your blog// and the blogs you //responded to.// Submit the Word document to the Dropbox by **Sunday**.
 * //Reminder://** Your blogs are part of your graded course work and, as such, should reflect professional work. Please proofread your entries carefully.