I liked the honest viewpoint that Will Richardson presented in "Why School?: How Education Must Change When Learning and Information are Everywhere". One of the parts that resonated with me the most was when he began to talk about the push from the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) to have students to become proficient in 21st century learning skills. I strongly believe that these values are some (not all) of the very important lessons that we as educators should be learning. I agree that, "What doesn't work any longer is our education system's stubborn focus on delivering a curriculum that's growing increasingly irrelevant to today's kids." We need to become successful in values such as developing proficiency in technology, problem solving, sharing information globally, etc., in order to create a future generation of people who are able to navigate our 21st century society.
I believe that the idea if unlearning is a great outlook on how we need to perform as educators. In my past three semesters of student teaching, I found that it is so easy to fall into learned patterns of successful teaching and not feel the need to look towards better or newer ways of thinking. I am inspired by reading about educators such as Shelley Wright and Brian Crosby who are examples of successful testimonies of teachers who can learn to unlearn. This concept is truly an individual thing process that needs to take place, as it is only something that a person can do by themselves.
In summary, I agree that there is a strong need for teachers in the 21st century to realize that, “What’s needed for reading and writing literacy is evolving far beyond traditional definitions.” While I think that it would be great if these principles and thoughts were immediately able to put into practice, it is rather something that takes a lot of effort to make a reality.
I believe that the idea if unlearning is a great outlook on how we need to perform as educators. In my past three semesters of student teaching, I found that it is so easy to fall into learned patterns of successful teaching and not feel the need to look towards better or newer ways of thinking. I am inspired by reading about educators such as Shelley Wright and Brian Crosby who are examples of successful testimonies of teachers who can learn to unlearn. This concept is truly an individual thing process that needs to take place, as it is only something that a person can do by themselves.
In summary, I agree that there is a strong need for teachers in the 21st century to realize that, “What’s needed for reading and writing literacy is evolving far beyond traditional definitions.” While I think that it would be great if these principles and thoughts were immediately able to put into practice, it is rather something that takes a lot of effort to make a reality.