Reaching and Preparing 21st Century Learners

The Big Questions What should the classroom look like? What should teachers be doing? What should students be doing? All teachers in Davidson County schools have had immense training in 21st century skills. We understand what they are but three big questions always emerge. (Read slide)

LEARNING TARGETS The Power Of Unity I can describe what I should see in a 21st century skills classroom. I can identify the attributes of a 21st century teacher. I can determine the skills students need to be 21st century learners. Here are the learning targets for this session: The Power Of Unity

Let’s Meet the Croods Make sure video is downloaded from the link on the Wiki before trying to show.

The Characters (Read slide) www.thecroodsmovie.com

The Characters (Read slide) www.thecroodsmovie.com

The Characters (Read slide) www.thecroodsmovie.com

The Characters (Read slide) www.thecroodsmovie.com

Which Croods character describes you? Go to assigned corners of the room and discuss why you chose that character. (This integrates communication, collaboration, movement, and possibly some humor.) Which Croods character describes you? Go to the corner of the room that represents your chosen character. Discuss the reason for your choice. with others.

We will revisit the Croods at the end of our presentation. Stay Tuned... www.thecroodsmovie.com We will revisit the Croods at the end of our presentation.

What is your vision of a 21st century classroom, teacher, and student? What aspects of this vision are a reality for you? How can this vision become more of a reality? (Ask questions to the staff). Teachers will record and discuss their thoughts with one another. You can use Evernote or your teachers can record differently. Record your thoughts.

A Vision of a 21st Century Teacher (Make sure movie is downloaded from the link on the Wiki before you try to show it).

21st Century Learning and Support Systems (Quickly review the 21st century skills and themes). The yellow portion is the learning and innovation skills. These are the keystone aspects of 21st century skills. Everything can fall under these four areas. Because of this, these will be our focus areas for the 2013-2014 year for both teachers and students.

What Does It Look Like? Davidson County Schools has created a document to support teachers in measuring the progress of schools in defining, teaching, and assessing the 21st century skills. (Share Learning and Innovation Skills Milestones handout)

Learning and Innovation Skills Milestones NC Professional Teaching Standards: 3d. Teachers make instruction relevant to students. 4c. Teachers use a variety of instructional methods. 4d. Teachers integrate and utilize technology in their instruction. Creativity and Innovation (Review slide) Milestones Demonstrating originality and inventiveness in work. Developing, implementing, and communicating new ideas to others. Being open and responsive to new and diverse perspectives. Using ____________, brainstorm additional teacher and student examples of creativity and innovation in Davidson County Schools. NC Education- Connecting 21st Century Learners

Learning and Innovation Skills Milestones NC Professional Teaching Standards: 3d. Teachers make instruction relevant to students. 4c. Teachers use a variety of instructional methods. 4d. Teachers integrate and utilize technology in their instruction. Creativity and Innovation Milestones Teacher Examples Demonstrating originality and inventiveness in work. Developing, implementing, and communicating new ideas to others. Being open and responsive to new and diverse perspectives. Teachers prepare diverse lesson plans for students with detailed instructions using digital technology. Teachers create an atmosphere where students become responsible for their own learning. Teachers use digital tools to gather and evaluate data to access student achievement. (Review slide) (Add grade band appropriate examples- where is this occurring in your school?) Example if needed- Teachers are beginning to use Evernote to record writing and reading conference notes. This makes them easily transferrable to parents, administrators, and colleagues when examining performance. Using ____________, brainstorm additional teacher and student examples of creativity and innovation in Davidson County Schools. NC Education- Connecting 21st Century Learners

Learning and Innovation Skills Milestones NC Professional Teaching Standards: 3d. Teachers make instruction relevant to students. 4c. Teachers use a variety of instructional methods. 4d. Teachers integrate and utilize technology in their instruction. Creativity and Innovation Milestones Student Examples Demonstrating originality and inventiveness in work. Developing, implementing, and communicating new ideas to others. Being open and responsive to new and diverse perspectives. Students use a variety of sources for their projects (blogs, podcasts, SKYPE). Students participate in class by using alternative forms of interactive technology. Student work demonstrates evidence of choice and originality, instead of designated forms. (Review slide) (Add grade band appropriate examples- Where is this happening in your school?) Examples if needed: Edmodo in the classroom to collaborate. Performance tasks that ask students to create a product that demonstrates an opinion about a real life problem. Students have the ability to choose from a menu of product options (written text, movie, comic, keynote, etc.) or create their own. Using ____________, brainstorm additional teacher and student examples of creativity and innovation in Davidson County Schools. NC Education- Connecting 21st Century Learners

Learning and Innovation Skills Milestones NC Professional Teaching Standards: 4e. Teachers help students develop critical thinking and problem solving skills. Critical Thinking and Problem Solving (Contextual Learning) (Review slide) Milestones Exercising sound reasoning in understanding. Making complex choices. Understanding the interconnections among systems. Framing, analyzing, and solving problems. Having the ability to take advantage of education in a variety of contexts both inside and outside the classroom; understanding that knowledge is acquired within context.

Learning and Innovation Skills Milestones Critical Thinking and Problem Solving (Contextual Learning) NC Professional Teaching Standards: 4e. Teachers help students develop critical thinking and problem solving skills. (Review slide) (Add grade band appropriate examples- where is this happening at your school?) Example if needed- Math instruction should be problem based and based on real problems in the classroom, school, or community. Milestones Teacher Examples Exercising sound reasoning in understanding. Making complex choices. Understanding the interconnections among systems. Framing, analyzing, and solving problems. Having the ability to take advantage of education in a variety of contexts both inside and outside the classroom; understanding that knowledge is acquired within context. Teachers provide evidence of student engagement in higher level thinking skills. Teachers design, develop, and evaluate authentic learning experiences and assessments incorporating contemporary tools and resources.

Learning and Innovation Skills Milestones Critical Thinking and Problem Solving (Contextual Learning) NC Professional Teaching Standards: 4e. Teachers help students develop critical thinking and problem solving skills. (Review slide) (Add grade band appropriate examples- where is this happening at your school?) Example if needed- Problem Based learning - Students will have the opportunity to engage in a real problem, make choices, and think critically about possible solutions. Milestones Student Examples Exercising sound reasoning in understanding. Making complex choices. Understanding the interconnections among systems. Framing, analyzing, and solving problems. Having the ability to take advantage of education in a variety of contexts both inside and outside the classroom; understanding that knowledge is acquired within context. Students engage in exploring real-world issues and solving authentic problems using digital tools and resources Students take virtual field trips and never leave the classroom

Learning and Innovation Skills Milestones NC Professional Teaching Standards 4f. Teachers help students work in teams and develop leadership qualities. 4g. Teachers communicate effectively. Communication and Collaboration (Review slide) Milestones Articulating thoughts and ideas clearly and effectively. Demonstrating ability to work effectively with diverse teams. Being willing to be able to make necessary compromises to accomplish a common goal.

Learning and Innovation Skills Milestones NC Professional Teaching Standards 4f. Teachers help students work in teams and develop leadership qualities. 4g. Teachers communicate effectively. Communication and Collaboration (Review slide) (Add grade band appropriate examples- where is this happening at your school?) Possible Example- QR codes on take home folders, cards, or letter to parents to access a weekly newsletter on parent’s SMART phones. Teachers can send a card home at the beginning of the year and it can be displayed on the fridge. Milestones Teacher Examples Articulating thoughts and ideas clearly and effectively. Demonstrating ability to work effectively with diverse teams. Being willing to be able to make necessary compromises to accomplish a common goal. Teachers provide students and parents with a weekly update on class assignments and/or activities via digital tools. Teachers share lessons with teacher colleagues from around the globe. Teachers select and use the appropriate digital tools to communicate with an intended audience.

Learning and Innovation Skills Milestones NC Professional Teaching Standards 4f. Teachers help students work in teams and develop leadership qualities. 4g. Teachers communicate effectively. Communication and Collaboration (Review slide) (Add grade band appropriate examples- where is this happening at your school?) Example if needed- How well are the speaking and listening standards in the Common Core being taught? If they are being taught well, this evidence in student behavior will be easy to note. Another example if needed- Peer revision checklists for written products, Edmodo for collaboration outside of the school building. Milestones Student Examples Articulating thoughts and ideas clearly and effectively. Demonstrating ability to work effectively with diverse teams. Being willing to be able to make necessary compromises to accomplish a common goal. Students reflect using collaborative tools to clarify their learning. Students work on collaborative projects with students outside of their school.

Discuss those components with your table after viewing the clip. Let’s Revisit.... Use the Arizona video that is available in the Download Link on the Wiki. http://21stcenturyskillsbook.com/ Using your checklist as a guide, take notes about what components of the learning and innovation skills you observe in this classroom. Discuss those components with your table after viewing the clip.

Use your checklist as a guide! Our Turn Using the brainstorming link, work with your table to identify examples in your school that address any of the Learning and Innovation milestones. http://tinyurl.com/m4yzgbo Use your checklist as a guide! These examples will populate into a database for DCS. **You may need to sign in to your Davidson County Schools Gmail account before the link is accessible.

Here is the link to our results: The responses you shared have been entered into a K-12 document that is shared with every school in our district. Here is the link to our results: http://tinyurl.com/kz3m8dc (Read Slide) **You may need to sign in to your Davidson County Schools Gmail account before the link is accessible.

Technology and the Common Core Review that technology is embedded into the Common Core standards. Focus on the standards that are appropriate for your grade level.

Web 2.0 Tools http://bit.ly/padagogy We need to be aware that apps and Web 2.0 tools address various levels of Bloom's Taxonomy. There is so much more that can be done with these technology tools other than "research". We need to take the time to explore other uses for technology that will truly engage the learner.

Time for Our Communication and Collaboration Theory to Practice What is your next step? Teachers should reflect on their next steps regarding 21st Century Skills in their classroom. They can use chart paper or another way to share with the entire group. The most important key is that teachers are communicating and collaborating with one another. Time for Our Communication and Collaboration

LEARNING TARGETS The Power Of Unity I can describe what I should see in a 21st century skills classroom. I can identify the attributes of a 21st century teacher. I can determine the skills students need to be 21st century learners. Review learning targets and have participants write their thoughts in their Read Write Talk Journal. Choose one that you are most uncomfortable with and record your thoughts. The Power Of Unity

SMART Goals Overall SMART Goal: . By 2015, 100% of teachers at _______ will deliver ___lessons that represent 21st Century Learning and Innovation skills such as Creativity/Innovation, Critical Thinking/Problem Solving, and Communication/Collaboration. By 2015, all students will be assessed on 21st Century Learning and Innovation skills through the use of rubrics created from the DCS milestone documents through the use of walkthroughs and lesson plans. Share overall SMART Goal. Notice there is a goal fof teachers and students. The rubrics will be created from the Milestones document provided on your Wiki. SMART Goals

SMART Goals Target SMART Goal: . By 2014, ____% of teachers at _______ will deliver ___lessons that represent 21st Century Learning and Innovation skills such as Creativity/Innovation, Critical Thinking/Problem Solving, and Communication/Collaboration. By 2014, all students will be introduced to rubrics based on the DCS milestone documents to measure 21st Century Learning and Innovation skills as evidenced through walkthroughs and lesson plans. Share Target SMART Goal- notice, again, there is a goal for teachers and students. SMART Goals

In Other Words The Bottom Line Teachers will be able to integrate the 4Cs (Creativity, Collaboration, Communication, Critical Thinking) in daily lessons. (Read slide) If the lessons and assessments of students do not eventually show evidence of independently collaborative and creative students who think critically and communicate in a variety of ways, we will need to work in PLCs to more effectively plan lessons, resources, and assessments that will produce this result.. Students will be creative, be collaborative, think critically, and communicate daily so that their work products show evidence of independent use of 21st century skills. The Bottom Line Our students should be producers of 21st century skills, not just consumers of them.

Sample Action Steps • August 14, 2013- All K-12 Administrators receive training regarding the Learning and Innovation Milestones • August 20, 2013- All certified teachers receive professional development including an overview of the Learning and Innovation Milestones • Utilize video clips on the CD in the book, 21st Century Skills • Monthly staff development sessions spotlighting 21st century classrooms within the school • Monthly walkthroughs to assess classroom environment, lesson plans • Bi-weekly administrator involvement in school-based PLC meetings • Develop rubrics for specified areas Student assessment of rubrics (May be deleted for school presentation) Share SMART Goal Possible action steps

Sample Evidence Lesson Plans Walkthrough Data PLC Minutes Classroom Environment Observations Performance Tasks/Assessment Samples Professional Development Logs Student Work School Improvement Plan (May be deleted for school presentation) Share SMART goal sample evidence.