Educating People in a Service-Based Economy
The Partnership for 21st Century Skills has released 21st Century Skills, Education & Competitiveness. The new report condenses the organization's ongoing work to make a clear statement linking economic success with a 21st Century Education system.
The shift from a manufacturing to a service economy makes educational change imperative. Information services, in particular, offers a provocative scenario of growth. The sector has grown from from 36 percent to 56 percent of the economy during from 1967 to 1997. Significantly, those jobs are higher paying than the manufacturing jobs they replaced. They also require more education. As the report explains:
The United States leads the world in several high-growth, ICT-intensive industries, including technology, media and telecommunications, and could dominate in emerging industries, such as advanced manufacturing, biotechnology, digital media, geospatial technology, nanotechnology, photonics and renewable energy.
To overcome achievement gaps within the nation and between the US and other countries, the report encourages "NCLB plus," a combination of teaching problem solving and other creative habits of mind along with core subjects. A list of local, state and national policy recommendations support the plea.
The report is designed to help advocates advance change. In addition to providing a clear economic summary, the margins overflow with motivational quotes. Consider
"Your ability to act on your imagination is going to be so decisive in driving your future and the standard of living of your country. So the school, the state, the country that empowers, nurtures, enables imagination among its students and citizens, that's who's going to be the winner."
-Thomas L. Friedman, New York Times columnist"Creativity is as important in education as literacy and we should treat it with the same status."
-Sir Ken Robinson, international creativity expert, 2006
Source: The Partnership for 21st Century Skills, 21st Century Skills, Education & Competitiveness
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Beyond the basics, students will need 21st century competencies to survive and thrive in the future. They will have to know how to think critically, apply knowledge to new situations, analyze information, understand new ideas, communicate effectively, collaborate, solve problems, and make decisions. School districts are looking for ways to help students acquire these new skills while they also address NCLB mandates.
This 21st Century Connections site links students, teachers and administrators to the latest resources, creative tools and educational leaders behind digital learning. Provided by Lenovo, Adobe, Intel and Futurekids, the site is hosted by Technology & Learning, NewBay Media.
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Almost ten years into the 21st century, schools try to promote new ways of teaching and learning and then evaluate how well their efforts have led to results. New insights emerge from research and observation all the time. ![TechLearning.com [Logo]](/files/u9/tllogo.jpg)