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toc =Increasing Student Comprehension and 21st Century Skills=

"Adolescents entering the adult world in the 21st Century will read and write more than at any other time in human history. They will need advanced levels of literacy to perform their jobs, run their households, act as citizens, and conduct their personal lives." ([|Adolescent Literacy: A Position Statement], p.3) One of the factors forcing this demand for advanced literacy is evolving Information Communication Technology. Think of how we communicate today compared with 10 years ago...then imagine how much different that might look 10 years in the future! As educators, we need to "future-proof" our students by assuring that they develop the skills necessary to succeed in the 21st Century. ([|i.e. interactive educator, Summer 2007]) These 21st Century skills include:
 * problem solving
 * analytical thinking
 * collaborating
 * communicating
 * finding and evaluating information

Decoding the words on the page is important, but without immersion in activities that require students to analyze and comprehend what the text really means, students will not develop the skills they need. ([|Partnership for 21st Century Skills])

How are our students doing?
These are the District's results from the Dakota STEP test in 2006 on the sections of the test that deal most directly with these skills:
 * **Grade:** || **Standard** || **% correct** ||
 * 3 || R4S1: Gather information to research a topic. || 72% ||
 * 3 || R4S2: Utilize a set of directions, a model, or a diagram in order to carry out a project. || 55% ||
 * 4 || R4S1: Gather and organize information for study and research purposes. || 71% ||
 * 4 || R4S2: Use text and graphic features to categorize information and to gain meaning from informational materials. || 66% ||
 * 5 || R4S1: Locate and determine the importance of information for use in study and research. || 60% ||
 * 5 || R4S2: Use information from a variety of formats to make inferences and draw conclusions. || 58% ||
 * 6 || R4S1: Use reference sources to retrieve information. || 78% ||
 * 6 || R4S2: Compare and contrast information on one topic contained in several sources. || 47% ||
 * 6 || R4S3: Determine the quality of material in informational texts. || 81% ||
 * 7 || R4S1: Distinguish which reference sources will provide the best information for the assigned task. || 67% ||
 * 7 || R4S2: Analyze and organize information from various sources. || 70% ||
 * 7 || R4S3: Evaluate the accuracy and credibility of information about a topic contained in multiple sources. || 56% ||
 * 8 || R4S1: Determine the appropriate strategy to gather and organize information. || 73% ||
 * 8 || R4S2: Combine new information with existing knowledge to form interpretations. || 64% ||

Goals for this Project

 * All 4,435 students in grades 3-8 of the Sioux Falls Public Schools will be engaged in at least one instructional unit that uses the computer to incorporate extensive research, collaboration, and communication.
 * Teachers will use instructional strategies that incorporate 21st Century Skills through using computers (and, for grades 3-5, SMART Boards).

When your students complete the projects you will be creating during the Intel Essentials Course, they will be actively involved in problem solving, gathering and evaluating information, analytical thinking, collaborating, and communicating new knowledge. You will be further honing your instructional skills so you are more comfortable using 21st Century Tools (computers, web resources, SMART Boards, blogs, wikis, etc.).

This project is made possible through a grant awarded to the Sioux Falls School District in Sioux Falls, South Dakota through the [|Enhancing Education Through Technology (Ed-Tech)] program.

Follow-up

 * We will be creating a video using clips filmed over the course of the workshop. Principals will view this video in the fall, hear a summary of the training, and discuss the goals of the project.
 * Principals will receive a checklist to help them recognize effective use of technology and 21st Century Skills.
 * During your collaboration time, department meetings, and grade level meetings discuss how you are using what you've learned in this workshop. Let your colleagues know what worked and what didn't work when your students complete your project.
 * As part of curriculum development, "significant tasks" will be identified that require deep thinking and address multiple content standards. Those tasks may be chosen from the projects completed during this workshop.
 * Units will be shared through this wikispace.