Read the article Ten skills every student should learn at
http://www.eschoolnews.com/2011/08/11/ten-skills-every-student-should-learn/print/
In the comments section of this posting, please respond to the following:
1) Identify which two skills are the most important to the success of students
2) Identify which skill is not being addressed well in U.S. schools
3) Pick one of the skills and give a specific example how you will address this in your teaching
4) What necessary skill is missing? Why?
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this article, I find that the ability to question, number 5, and the ability to be resourceful, number 6, are the two most important skills to the success of students. The ability to question the validity, reliability, and content of information is innately en route to critical thinking and shows student motivation to learn. The bonus of analyzing information due to the questioning also lends itself to the ability to imagine alternative outcomes and create new hypotheses. Thus, questioning provides the resources to use a higher-order thinking process. Number 6 on the list, being resourceful, is also essential to student success because students need to be able to discern between relevant and inaccurate information. Today’s students are inundated with too much information from sketchy sources; by being resourceful, students can chose only the most valid resources. Resourcefulness also teaches the student to self-advocate and be active in their learning process. Of course, gleaning through difficult text requires suitable reading comprehension skills. I believe that reading, number 1 on the list, is not addressed very well in U.S. schools. I believe that students are given out-of-date and inappropriate reading lists in their English classes and this facilitates student disengagement from reading. For example, the reading lists of most high school English curriculums have not changed drastically over the last 30 years! Yes, The Catcher In the Rye by J.D. Salinger is an American masterpiece of literature, but it not relevant or interesting to the modern American student. The themes, subject matter, and existential undertones are possibly above the student’s capacity to synthesize at the high school level. This is simply because these students have not been trained to read at this level! If the students honed in on their reading skills at an earlier age, then maybe this text would be more appropriate. At this time and in this century, texts like this mostly serve to alienate and disinterest students from gaining pleasure to read. What I will do in my personal classroom is afford students the opportunity to read entertaining material, in French or English, whether it be French or Canadian magazines or youth literature. I will make a concerted effort to use only the most current media that would interest high school students. The idea here is to make reading fun, interesting, and like it’s not from a reading list. One skill that I think is not clearly specified in the article is the ability to self advocate. Students, seemingly, have become apathetic, disengaged, and too quick to say “I don’t know”. Somewhere along the way, students have become terrified of failure and creating their own work. Time and time again, I see students copying sentences straight out of the text book when having them answer reading comprehension questions. At first, I thought it was sheer laziness. After observing my students over a few weeks, I see that it may not just be laziness; they are terrified of making grammatical mistakes and therefore think the textbook, which to them is always right, will make them look smarter. Herein is the problem; students are meant to make grammatical mistakes at this level of language learning and that’s what I expect to see! By self-advocating and not being afraid to create original work, I believe students will be much more successful and retain more knowledge.
I think Janine made some really excellent comments. Reading is at the top of my list, too. In my opinion, reading and being resourceful are the two most important skills from the list given. Reading for obvious reasons -- every student needs to be able to read well in order to be successful in any class. It also extends to your success in life, regardless of what you may do. Being resourceful is also extremely important. Too many kids are lazy and just want to know the answer...or to be told where to find the answer. They need to gradually gain independence and take responsibility for THINKING about how THEY can figure something out! Yes, this ties in to some of the other skills listed, but I felt that several of those other skills fit under the resourcefulness umbrella.
ReplyDeleteI think that reading is, unfortunately, also the skill that is not being addressed well in U.S. public schools. Perhaps it's assumed that kids in junior high and high school know how to read, and thus it's not focused on enough? But based on adult illiteracy rates, there's a big ball that is being dropped somewhere along the way.
When I'm teaching, my math kids WILL be reading and writing weekly if not daily in class. I plan on using the books and other materials, and quite frankly, don't care if students might think it silly to "read around the room" like they did in grade school. They all need the continued practice!
The skills I think are missing from this list are logic/reasoning skills, study skills, time management, and interpersonal skills. I'd put logic at the top of the missing skills list because the ability to apply reason and logic to problem solving is a "common sense" skill that everyone should have and it can be applied to a myriad of situations.
ReplyDelete1) Identify which two skills are the most important to the success of students
I think it is most important for students to know how to read and to be resourceful. I agree that if you can read you can learn anything. If you are resourceful you can not only solve any problem that comes your way, but also know where to find the information to solve it!
2) Identify which skill is not being addressed well in U.S. schools
I think that accountability is the skill that is not being addressed well in U.S. schools. Teachers are put on the line for high-stakes testing, but what about the accountability of the students? Their parents?
3) Pick one of the skills and give a specific example how you will address this in your teaching
I will teach my students how to be resourceful by asking them to provide multiple types of references for papers and projects. I can also encourage resourcefulness by using open inquiry assignments, leaving out part of the procedure, so that they have to think about the whole issue and how to solve it.
4) What necessary skill is missing? Why?
How to help others. It is important to know when someone needs help, and when they do, how to provide it.
The two skills I think are the most important to the success of students are the ability to read and be accountable. Reading is important in all aspects of life and no matter what students do with their life after high school; they will need to read. I also think accountability is important because students are so quick to make excuses. They also do not assume any responsibility for their actions and do not take the initiative upon themselves to do homework and do it well. I agree with Janine, they are very quick to just say “I don’t know.” I think we need to hold students more accountable and expect more out of them.
ReplyDeleteI also do not think accountability is being addressed well in the U.S. Teachers can do everything in their power to create engaging lesson plans, incorporate all different methods of teaching, and provide example after example, but if the students aren’t accountable and don’t expect more out of themselves, it will not matter.
One skill that I think is extremely important, especially after reading some assignments last week, is writing. Reading and writing are both important because no matter what technology comes out, you will still be required to express yourself. I will address writing in my business classes by having students submit article reviews. I will also make sure they present their articles to the class. Students need to learn how to take responsibility for their work and reread what they wrote. I will also incorporate more anticipatory activities where the students have to express in writing how they feel about a current issue in our community or nation.
I think flexibility/adaptability is a skill that is missing because students need to learn how to make adjustments and still be able to do their work. We hear it over and over how much technology is going to change the way our students learn, but they also have to be willing and ready to accept those changes. And not only in technology, but also just the ability to work with different people and be successful. Sometimes things will not go your way, but how are you going to respond? I hear it in the classroom all the time; “Mrs. So&So doesn’t do it that way.” Well, this is my classroom and this is how I do things. When students go off to college, the workplace, the military or wherever they choose, they will encounter others who do not do things the same way as them, but they still must get the job done. I also think teaching students adaptability will teach them to be more accountable. I think the majority of students are lazy and they have no idea how to work for what they want. We heard it in our last video, the content students learn will change by the end of their 2nd year, so let’s teach them how to adapt and be flexible so they can continue to learn new ideas and be open to change and innovation.
First of all, great idea to copy and paste the questions in your answers Kelly. That makes it so much easier to complete this. You are a time saver and for that I am going to copy your style :)
ReplyDelete1) Identify which two skills are the most important to the success of students
-I think the two most important skills that are most important are to Be happy and Being accountable. If we do not hold our students accountable for doing what is asked of them then we might just as well not ask them to do anything. In order for more learning to take place I believe it is important to make things enjoyable and insure that that students are happy because some of the best learning occurs when students are having fun. There is nothing wrong with making school fun as crazy as that sounds.
2) Identify which skill is not being addressed well in U.S. schools
- I think that both skills are not being address as much in schools today, and but I feel that accountability is worsening as time passes. Students are being let off the hook easily and feel that they can always pass the blame to someone else regardless of the situation. Wendy and I have talked about this issue in regards to coaching and we both agreed that some kids today want prizes in sports but they don't actually want to play the sport. This just shows how accommodating adults are becoming and this is not good because it makes our youth think they are entitled to things.
3) Pick one of the skills and give a specific example how you will address this in your teaching
-I am going to pick Being Happy because I am a firm believer that school needs to be enjoyable if we want to get students to be successful. Not only should we make the subject we are teaching fun but we should try to relate it to the students lives. There is too much passive learning that goes on in schools because we have some unhappy teachers that shouldn't be teaching and some teachers that are just teaching to a test so they can pass the NCLB requirements. In my class I am going to make sure most of my examples are student generated and that we focus on things that are current. By having a classroom that is discussion oriented I can help get students talking which is always a good way to get them to learn without noticing that learning is taking place. After reading the article it is very important to me to also be mindful that some students have some issues in their personal lives and that it is my responsibility as an educator to help them deal with these issues, but to always not let these issues take away from their learning
4) What necessary skill is missing? Why?
I think a skill that is missing is presentation speaking. I picked this because a lot of students get nervous to present in front of classmates and new people, so some confidence in that area would be great. Even adults get nervous so it is very important to get students to present more in classrooms that way they are better prepared for the future.
For me it is difficult to deem only 2 skills as more important to one's success. I feel it is a strong combination of all that are critical to one's achievement. Reading is most certainly the most important academic skill, however, in life, I personally deeply value communication (including questioning), critical thinking, accountability, and mutual respect. As Ariko pointed out, happiness is often overlooked as a factor in one's learning. I, however, think of happiness as more than just a warm-fuzzy feeling. It is a state of being we control through our thoughts which I feel is not something children are taught in US schools. One's happiness is intrinsically controlled whereas, we are taught to believe it is linked extrinsically to things beyond our control. Essentially, positively changing your thoughts and perspective on something that ales can alter your perception of happiness. Acquiring this skill not only changes one’s perceived happiness, but also broadens the mind and sparks curiosity to seek new experiences and learning. Additionally, learning to control your thinking also links to deep & critical thinking, accountability and communication. It is far easier to speak on teaching such skills than it is to apply in the classroom. I suppose the best way to implement this would be leading by example as adults, accepting & encouraging risks & mistakes from our youth and utilizing role-playing in lessons.
ReplyDeleteI feel interpersonal relations is a crucial skill lacking in today’s students as well as young adults. It seems that too few people look beyond themselves when interacting with others. I feel interpersonal relations among youth is more easily seen in sportsmanship. The true meaning of competition has gone from putting your best against another’s best to mean discount your competitors skills to make you look or feel better about your skills or lack thereof. Instead of seeing short comings as opportunity to improve, too many use it as opportunity to place blame or excuses on circumstances and to put down the hard work & accomplishment of their competitor. As parents and educators, we need to embrace mistakes and show them as opportunities to learn & improve. We should judge each other less and be compassionate enough to other's view points so we may learn and collaborate with each other to craft a better future. Everyone has a unique view of the world around them which is what enriches our own experiences in life if we choose to allow it.
1) Identify which two skills are the most important to the success of students
ReplyDeleteThe two most important skills to me are reading and communicating effectively with respect. Reading is obvious to me because it's the foundation for learning in all subject areas. The more effectively students can read and comprehend, the better they will learn anything they try. I also said that being able to communicate effectively and with respect is most important because it plays a vital role in students being able to implement what they've learned in the real world. It also helps with the saying, "It's not what you know, it's who you know." How can you know them without effective communication skills?
2) Identify which skill is not being addressed well in U.S. schools
It seems to me that reading is not being addressed well in U.S. schools because of the drop in literacy rates. This may have something to do with the new testing styles, but I have also seen some evidence of this in my classroom observations. I have graded papers for our students already and a lot of them seem to struggle with writing. To me, writing skills directly relate to their ability to read.
3) Pick one of the skills and give a specific example how you will address this in your teaching
To help students with their reading skills I will have them read for 10 minutes right when they come into class. Since my class is Journalism, they will be reading newspapers and story articles. If I end up picking up an English endorsement (I'll most likely have to), Reading and comprehending novels will be a huge part of our curriculum.
4) What necessary skill is missing? Why?
I think being independently resourceful is a necessary skill missing in our schools today. I have already seen so many kids read through something once and say they don't get it. They never stop to reread or look for other sources for help on the information. Instead of being resourceful and searching for the answers, students often times sit around and wait to be spoon fed the answers. Being resourceful is so very necessary for life after high school, it's frightening to see how reluctant they are to find the answers for themselves.
I think the ability to question and knowing how to learn are the most important. The ability to question is essentially the root to all learning because it is the driving force or the motivation one has to learn. After reading through the other skills, I believe that knowing how to learn can lead to many of the other skills, including being resourceful, accountable, and thinking critically. Without the ability to know how to learn and think for oneself, the skills of writing, reading, and typing are irrelevant.
ReplyDeleteI think that most of these are not addressed well in US schools, but if I could only pick one, I would say the skill of questioning. Once again, I think that questioning is the driving force behind learning and if students could question (make connections, evaluate validity, imagine different views, etc.), the other skills would naturally fall into place.
Given that science is basically looking at the world (observations), asking questions about it, and validating ideas, I think it would be appropriate to focus first on questioning skills, then on knowing how to learn, and thinking critically. In my classroom, I plan on using problem-based learning to nail down concepts learned through other means.
The necessary skill that is missing is definitely awareness. In science we say "observations" and in sociology they may call it "sensitivity," but it is generally the ability to see likeness, differences, and connections. Before my science students can ask "Why does this flower look different than that flower?" they must even be aware of the fact that they are different.
1) Identify which two skills are the most important to the success of students
ReplyDeleteTwo skills that are most important to the success of students are to read and to be resourceful. When one can read you can find contextual clues as to the direction you need to head in. Being able to read is a quality that is essential for everyday life from reading grocery prices, reading directions, and reading applications for potential jobs. Teaching a child to be resourceful will help them with your lesson you are trying to teach and in future classes and real life experiences. Non-classroom related for example: my one year old is learning to be resourceful with climbing. He has learned “no” and many times won’t take that for an answer. If I leave the room he has pushed over an object to be able to climb on something I had just barricaded off. He is being resourceful by attaining other results. Being resourceful and reading will almost assuredly always get you the results that you need if learned correctly.
2) Identify which skill is not being addressed well in U.S. schools.
I think that being held accountable is not well addressed in U.S. schools. In my observation period at school I see kids being lazy because of the policies in place. They know that they can get away with it or that their parents will take care of it.
3) Pick one of the skills and give a specific example how you will address this in your teaching
I will address reading in my teaching. With a foreign language classroom there is a vast amount to pick and choose from. I intend to take passages from favorite books they are reading for English, incorporate other content areas to help understand material for other classes, and allow students to start with children’s books or like Janine said magazines and go from there. It’s important to tap into the interests of students and try to incorporate that into the classroom.
4) What necessary skill is missing? Why?
I think study skills are missing. I believe that if students truly knew how to study then the rest of the work would come much easier. Being able to study well will help the student boost their confidence when they can answer correctly. If they get the right answer more students are willing to be engaged in the class/do well on assessments and homework and overall have the confidence and know-how to be successful not only in my class but in other content areas also.
1) Identify which two skills are the most important to the success of students
ReplyDeleteTwo skills that are most important to the success of students are to read and to be resourceful. When one can read you can find contextual clues as to the direction you need to head in. Being able to read is a quality that is essential for everyday life from reading grocery prices, reading directions, and reading applications for potential jobs. Teaching a child to be resourceful will help them with your lesson you are trying to teach and in future classes and real life experiences. Non-classroom related for example: my one year old is learning to be resourceful with climbing. He has learned “no” and many times won’t take that for an answer. If I leave the room he has pushed over an object to be able to climb on something I had just barricaded off. He is being resourceful by attaining other results. Being resourceful and reading will almost assuredly always get you the results that you need if learned correctly.
2) Identify which skill is not being addressed well in U.S. schools.
I think that being held accountable is not well addressed in U.S. schools. In my observation period at school I see kids being lazy because of the policies in place. They know that they can get away with it or that their parents will take care of it.
3) Pick one of the skills and give a specific example how you will address this in your teaching
I will address reading in my teaching. With a foreign language classroom there is a vast amount to pick and choose from. I intend to take passages from favorite books they are reading for English, incorporate other content areas to help understand material for other classes, and allow students to start with children’s books or like Janine said magazines and go from there. It’s important to tap into the interests of students and try to incorporate that into the classroom.
4) What necessary skill is missing? Why?
I think study skills are missing. I believe that if students truly knew how to study then the rest of the work would come much easier. Being able to study well will help the student boost their confidence when they can answer correctly. If they get the right answer more students are willing to be engaged in the class/do well on assessments and homework and overall have the confidence and know-how to be successful not only in my class but in other content areas also.
1) Identify which two skills are the most important to the success of students
ReplyDeleteI would say reading and questioning. if you can combine these two, and read on the internet about the questions you're trying to answer, then you can learn anything these days.
2) Identify which skill is not being addressed well in U.S. schools.
Writing...we teach this dumb four part essay that no one really writes in the real world...I wish we just taught kids to get a point across clearly and in plain language.
3) Pick one of the skills and give a specific example how you will address this in your teaching
I want to do more reading within the actual classroom, reading in "literature circles" where students can choose their own books and discuss them in ways that are relevant to their lives.
4) What necessary skill is missing? Why?
Information technology...if this is where the jobs of the future are then we should spend more time with our kids on computers.
I think that the two most important skills that students need to know are reading and the ability to communicate effectively and with respect. It has been eye opening to me just how low the reading level is of many of the students. They could really some remedial help with their reading. Also, many of the students I have been in contact with have very low skills when it comes to effective communication. Again, they could really benefit from some help in this area.
ReplyDeleteAn area I will strive to help my students is in their reading. Science textbooks are written a grade or two above the class level, further hurting kids with low reading levels. I hope to use several textbooks and resources that use have information at an appropriate level.
I think that the area that needs to be addressed is the kids ability to utilize a questioning strategy. I feel that many of the students want help with their coursework, but lack the ability to ask. They get frustrated and don't ask when they need help