What are the
skills that matter most in order for our students to be successful at learning,
working, and being a good citizen in today’s world? I have asked this question to many
individuals, groups, businesses, and staff since July. I also asked the School Board during our
recent strategic planning session. Most
everyone agrees in the importance of the four C’s: critical thinking,
creativity, collaboration, and communication.
Throughout
my blogs, I have emphasized and described these skills as ones that matter most
today. I want to be clear that I am not suggesting that we teach the four C’s
instead of content knowledge. You cannot teach critical thinking without
engaging students in challenging academic content. In today’s world, students can learn facts
about content from many sources other than the classroom teacher which is why it
is more important to learn how to critically think and apply that knowledge. I
believe we must integrate the 4 C’s every day in every classroom by teaching
and assessing students on how to use these skills.
Can our
students develop the skills needed to ask new questions, solve new problems,
and create new knowledge? We can if we are able to create a new learning
environment and culture within our schools in which students are motivated to
learn. Motivation is a critical component of learning but it has been damaged
by our emphasis on standardized multiple-choice assessments. Motivation is more
than thrill factor. I like to look at motivations
at having several components, including
grit, perseverance, and responsibility, all of which fall under the larger
umbrella of “habits of heart and mind”.
So, is the
current environment and culture of our schools diminishing student motivation
for learning and how do we know? One way is to talk directly to our
students. With the assistance of Donaghvan
Brown, student liaison to the School Board, I have conducted a focus group at
Smithfield High School to better understand student motivation, student culture,
and proposed new changes in education. I will be conducting a similar focus
group at Windsor High School with Noah Smith. In my next
blog, I will share my findings and some of the insightful observations made by
our students.
Our goal is
to provide educational change that will inspire students to acquire new skills they
can apply to any content knowledge throughout their lives, enabling them to be
successful in this era of innovation. I hope to find out from the student focus
groups just how we are doing with fulfilling that commitment to them.
