This is not an easy question to answer, or a simple topic to tackle. As educators, we often find our hands tied by the number and sequence of courses are students are required to take. Sometimes educators are limited even further by what programs or texts they must use. It is virtually ingrained in most adults that the way to do things is a K-12 education with high school being comprised of 22 (give or take) credits, often referred to as Carnegie Units, which are aimed at one target - being translatable to colleges and universities. So we see students taking the same required courses in high schools all over the country. This should be great for consistency right? It should mean that all high school graduates are prepared for the world that awaits them right?
I would love to trace the question of WHY that is the case back to it's source and then convince that person or persons that surely after 150 years it must be time to revisit that system. It in no way ensures that students can read, write, do math, or think for themselves. In the meantime, what is in the direct control of most educators, is finding ways to teach grade levels or content areas in such a way that the goal of having educated students is achieved, even if the rules haven't changed in over a century. STEM School Chattanooga focuses on Collaboration, Critical Thinking, and Innovation. Other schools and organizations refer to these processes as 21st Century Skills, or The 4 C's, or soft skills and so on.
So why does that matter? Because again and again businesses tell high schools, and colleges, that these are the qualities they are seeking, and that are lacking, in graduates. As an adult, think about it for a minute. At any point after high school did anyone ever ask you which courses you took? After college, did anyone ever ask you to show them your transcript? Did you put this information on a resume? The answer is likely no to all of those questions. What graduates of high schools and universities alike do often include on their resumes, and discuss with potential employers, are their leadership abilities, their 5 year plans, their ability to participate on a team, solutions to real or potential problems.
In an educational setting, we can use countless instructional strategies, lesson types, and activities, such as Project or Problem Based Learning, in order to use content to teach skills. If we reverse that order and use skills to teach content, we are missing the point. That equates to a fundamental mismatch in preparing students for life after school. As adults we use a variety of methods to learn content. If we aren't sure where the DMV is, we may ask a friend, or Google the location. If we need to fix a pip or switch out a fan belt, we may hire a professional, or watch a YouTube video. We may read a manual or directions from a box. We don't often use textbooks, but we do often use a variety of problem solving and analytical skills to gather, process, and make use of information.
It is these skills that prepare students for a rapidly changing and ever evolving world. It is possible, and necessary, to utilize them in conjunction with content areas, not instead of them. The world is asking us to always be learners, how do we as teachers bear that in mind?
I would love to trace the question of WHY that is the case back to it's source and then convince that person or persons that surely after 150 years it must be time to revisit that system. It in no way ensures that students can read, write, do math, or think for themselves. In the meantime, what is in the direct control of most educators, is finding ways to teach grade levels or content areas in such a way that the goal of having educated students is achieved, even if the rules haven't changed in over a century. STEM School Chattanooga focuses on Collaboration, Critical Thinking, and Innovation. Other schools and organizations refer to these processes as 21st Century Skills, or The 4 C's, or soft skills and so on.
So why does that matter? Because again and again businesses tell high schools, and colleges, that these are the qualities they are seeking, and that are lacking, in graduates. As an adult, think about it for a minute. At any point after high school did anyone ever ask you which courses you took? After college, did anyone ever ask you to show them your transcript? Did you put this information on a resume? The answer is likely no to all of those questions. What graduates of high schools and universities alike do often include on their resumes, and discuss with potential employers, are their leadership abilities, their 5 year plans, their ability to participate on a team, solutions to real or potential problems.
In an educational setting, we can use countless instructional strategies, lesson types, and activities, such as Project or Problem Based Learning, in order to use content to teach skills. If we reverse that order and use skills to teach content, we are missing the point. That equates to a fundamental mismatch in preparing students for life after school. As adults we use a variety of methods to learn content. If we aren't sure where the DMV is, we may ask a friend, or Google the location. If we need to fix a pip or switch out a fan belt, we may hire a professional, or watch a YouTube video. We may read a manual or directions from a box. We don't often use textbooks, but we do often use a variety of problem solving and analytical skills to gather, process, and make use of information.
It is these skills that prepare students for a rapidly changing and ever evolving world. It is possible, and necessary, to utilize them in conjunction with content areas, not instead of them. The world is asking us to always be learners, how do we as teachers bear that in mind?
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