Homework: 21st Century Skills

Good afternoon. Our last homework assignment is generating a very thoughtful discussion. If you haven't weighed in yet, I hope you will. If you have offered your thoughts on how some of the capabilities we identified translate to school, the workplace, etc. please feel free to continue the discussion.

We have one more homework assignment to get through before our next meeting on April 1. Please read this article, "21st Century Skills." Think about our other readings, the list of capabilities and our past discussions as you read it.

After reading the article, share your thoughts or questions in the comments section.

Homework: Translating student capabilities

Good afternoon. The last SPS Learning Model Advisory Team meeting was a success, and we’re very excited for our next opportunity to meet on April 1.

Following up on the discussion from the Feb. 18 meeting, here is the team’s next homework assignment. You can always count on presence of homework, no matter how much education changes.

Below is the list of possible capabilities for students that the team identified at the last meeting. Your assignment: pick one capability from the list below and briefly explain how that capability might translate to the following areas: the classroom, the workplace, higher education, at home and within the community. Leave your answer in the comment section below. (For more about how to leave comments on this page, read this post).

• Constantly changing technology applied to problem-solving
• Global thinking/acceptance of other cultures and societies (8)
• Collaboration (7)
• Ability to maintain positive interdependent relationships (2)
• Ability to discern good/reliable information from bad/unreliable information (6)
• Critical thinking skills (8)
• Capability to communicate clearly among various media
• Problem-solving abilities (7)
• Realize where they are and where they want to be and develop a plan to get there
• Value others opinions (2)
• Open to new ideas
• Pay attention in class
• Ability to learn new things (5)
• Technology understanding (6)
• Flexibility (3)
• People/social skills (3)
• Hard work ethic (2)
• Occupational mobility/Willingness to relocate (4)
• Perseverance
• Greater understanding of media outlets
• Creativity (4)
• Self-criticism
• Physical fitness & preventive healthcare (2)
• Empathy (2)
• Building social capital & effective civic engagement
• Prioritizing/procrastination
• Effective communication (writing, speaking, listening) (7)
• Multi-talented (back-up plans)
• Open-minded to various careers
• Environmental Issues
• Use all opportunities that are provided to increase knowledge and skills
• Information transferred to application
• Risk taking
• Self Advocacy
• Reading
• Understanding self and others
• New media literacy
• Lifelong learners

A note about commenting on the site

As you know, the SPS Learning Model Advisory team not only encourages everyone to leave comments for discussion on this site, we're actually making it part of the homework assignments. Here's a short primer on how to use the commenting feature here.

When you click on the comment link directly below each post, you will see a screen that says "Post a Comment" with an empty box below it. Type your comment in that space.

Below the comment box, there is a drop down menu with several options. Select "Name/URL" from that list. Another box will appear on the screen asking you to fill in your name and the URL of your web site. You can leave the URL line blank, but you should fill in your name so that the other members of the team will know who left the comment. You can also comment anonymously, which doesn't require you to leave any information when posting a comment. If you choose to comment that way, please include your name along with the text of your comment.

After typing your comment, hit the button that says "post comment." That's it.

One more note about the comments. When you leave a comment, it will not appear on the page instantly. We moderate and approve all comments because of spam (i.e. unsolicited bulk messages). So, when you leave a comment, we get an email that says you left a comment. From there, we log in, make sure it's not spam, hit the approve button and your comment then appears on the site.

If you're still having trouble with the comments, just send us an email at rlvanbibber@spsmail.org. You can even submit your comment that way, if you like, and we'll post it for you.

There are also a few other options for commenting, including signing in with your Google account, if you have one, or several other web services. If you use those services, feel free to leave your comment that way, but the easiest is to select the "Name/URL" option from the menu.