Having 21st century skills means having lots of skills: “You know, like nunchuck skills, bow hunting skills, computer hacking skills..” (Napoleon Dynamite) But seriously, the pace at which our society is moving is insane. Being able to adapt and handle change without a melt down is vital. Also being able to communicate clearly- even effectively would be nice- the ability to collaborate is essential.
I wonder how much of this kind of education kids are really getting in school... My daughter finished Kindergarten this year and all they focused on was letters, reading, numbers, and beginning math. I may be a hard ass, but I would have loved to have seen some kind of group collaboration going on. I was there plenty... and would have gone crazy with the teacher during group activities, believe me- but I think it would have been worth it. Is there such a thing as too early to begin learning to collaborate?????
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2 comments:
Your title certainly caught my attention. Having student taught in kindergarten, the cooperative learning activities involved how best to get along with others,sharing resources and building essential skills. At times, I think it is vital to determine what the ultimate goal will be.
On a personal note, in graduate school I found forced collaboration activities a challenge and even in teaching middle school there is an art to pulling off such activities. Learning to work collaboratively is not an easy task and maybe you have a point with introducing such things at an earlier time.
Just like technology, our kids have grown up with it being embedded in day to day life, thus cooperative activities would be easier to adapt to.
Brooke,
You have a great point, and it's difficult to determine without observing the class, but I'm wondering, like Liz, if cooperation and sharing wasn't a hidden part of the curriculum. On the other hand, perhaps it should be more deliberate? One wonders if this is more representative of the teacher's, the school's, or the district's philosophy of kindergarten?
Virginia
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