Welcome the the New Technologies & 21st Century Skills website. This website is an ongoing project created and maintained by the Laboratory for Innovative Technology in Education (LITE) in the College of Education at the University of Houston.
ABOUT THE WEBSITE
21st century skills are an important consideration for every educator as we are striving to prepare today’s students to become prepared for the competitive global market of tomorrow. This website seeks to provide a resource that allows educators an opportunity to easily navigate educationally relevant Web 2.0 tools, resources, and examples of standards alignment. Connecting these skills to familiar frameworks, such as Bloom’s Digital Taxonomy, can assist educators who are transitioning into meaningfully integrating technology into their classrooms.
WHAT ARE 21ST CENTURY SKILLS?
Everybody seems to be talking about learning 21st century skills, but what does it all mean for the classroom teacher who needs better technology in education and more resources for tomorrow's mathematics or history lesson?
Concerned about preparing today's children for tomorrow's world, the Partnership for 21st Century Skills and International Society for Technology in Education have drafted frameworks and guidelines that outline what our students need to know to meet the challenges of the modern age. Mastery of core content areas, such as language Arts (including English language arts, reading, Spanish, etc....), mathematics, science and history, remains the centerpiece. But these two organizations emphasize the importance of cultivating interdisciplinary themes, such as global awareness and financial, civic and health literacies, and weaving key skill areas (creativity and innovation, communication and collaboration, research and information fluency, and critical thinking, problem solving and decision making) into core subject matter. Read more
"In order to thrive in a digital economy, students will need digital age proficiencies. It is important for the educational system to make parallel changes in order to fulfill its mission in society, namely the preparation of students for the world beyond the classroom. Therefore, the educational system must understand and embrace the following 21st century skills within the context of rigorous academic standards "
NCREL & Metiri Group, 2010
21ST CENTURY TOOLS
One can easily become overwhelmed by the variety of Web 2.0 tools that are available online today. In order to effectively choose the appropriate tool, being aware of your intended instructional outcomes is key. To assist you in this search, educationally relevant Web 2.0 tools have been grouped into categories below, which are reflective of 21st century skills.
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