Do You Remember

SCCBOE Meeting

Brandi Caldwell
Moody High School
July 2008 B. Caldwell

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 School Classrooms

July 2008 B. Caldwell

Straight rows, wall to wall students, repetition, boards, shelves.

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 Libraries

July 2008 B. Caldwell

Card catalogues, rows, shelves, cubicles, taking notes, checking out

books

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 Things have changed since
we were in school…

July 2008 B. Caldwell

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 July 2008 B. Caldwell

The video shows how the way we aquire information has changed. It is
no longer static or hard to access.
Students have changed. They live in a world totally different than ours.
Their future is so different we cannot predict it.
The job market has changed. It is not skilled/unskilled; blue collar/white
collar- It is marketable and unique vs. the masses.
Let’s look at these three major changes and how they fit into this idea of
21st century learning.

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 “Digital Natives”

Internet
“I’m not
1982-2000
Attention Deficit;
I’m just not listening.”
- Slogan from a t-shirt
Computers
Cell Phones

July 2008 B. Caldwell

Students today- Marc Prensky in his book Digital Game-Based

Learning called our our kids Digital Natives. We are the immigrants and
they are the natives. They were born between 82-2000; Have always
known a world with computers, cell phones, internet. ; That is hard to
fathom!
Although I am not a fan of the “attitude” t-shirts that kids are wearing,
this slogan has some merit. Students have enough engaging choices
in their life; they choose not to listen to the things that don’t concern or
have relevance to them.

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 Job Market

July 2008 B. Caldwell

The job market is so different now. It is no longer 9-5; it is 24 by 7

(blackberry, email, laptops). It is also different because of what Daniel
Pink in his book, A Whole New Mind, calls the three A’s. Abundance,
Automation, and Asia.
Abundance because our society has so many choices. You can go to
WalMart and choose from a variety of brands and levels of quality. The
common man can own something that use to be reserved for the rich ().
The same applies for the work force- today and in the future there are
an abundance of high school and college educated individuals to
choose from.
Automation- Look at the jobs that use to require more manpower and
time that now require so little- mechanics have to go to school to learn
the computers in the cars; construction workers use nail guns and pre-
fabricated pieces; grocery clerks scan rather than key in.
Asia- Have you called technical assistance lately for something? You
likely talked with a nice person with a foreign accent. Many of our jobs,
even skilled highly technical jobs, are being outsourced to China and
India just to name a couple of countries. China has more honors
students than we have students in all of North America. If we shipped
every job currently held in the US to China, they would still have a labor
surplus. Soon China will be the largest English speaking country in the
world.
The job market is changing.
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 Every 29 seconds…

60% of all new jobs in

the 21st century will
require skills that are
possessed by only
20% of the current
workforce..

July 2008 B. Caldwell

Every 29 seconds a high school student gives up on school. That

equals 1 million drop outs per year. Most students report that they drop
out because they are slowly less engaged throughout school and find
no emotional or social connection.
Drop outs are more likely to be unemployed, living in poverty, and
parenting children who also drop out.
Because of the changing job market, a high school drop out will likely
be unemployable in comparison to the skilled and trained highschool
and college graduate.

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 Is School Changing?

July 2008 B. Caldwell

Straight rows, graduation exam, papers, textbooks, longhand, sitting

still, listening…

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 Should it be?

July 2008 B. Caldwell

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 Your Thoughts

July 2008 B. Caldwell

Check out the laptop in front of you. Read the 21st century skill sets.
Choose which quadrant you think is the most important for job security
in the 21st century.

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 A B

C D

July 2008 B. Caldwell

Look at on your laptop. These are the skills that companies say they
look for in students.

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 The 21st Century Learner
Is…

July 2008 B. Caldwell

By nature- connected, engaged, global

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 Connected In Life

July 2008 B. Caldwell

Myspace, facebook, text messaging

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 Connected In School
Old way New way
Recess Collaborative
groups

Passing Notes Class blog

July 2008 B. Caldwell

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 Engaged In Life

July 2008 B. Caldwell

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 Engaged In School
Old way New way
Board of Create podcasts
Education or videos

Busy work Teamwork

projects

July 2008 B. Caldwell

Passive engagement- by force or by ritual

Authentic engagement- create and apply; community goal

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 Global In Life

July 2008 B. Caldwell

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 Global In School
Old way New way
Geography class Skype with class
in another
country
“We Are the Collaborate on a
World” project with
students across
the globe

July 2008 B. Caldwell

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 July 2008 B. Caldwell

You have a chat window open in a tool called Skype. I want you to use
that to add your thoughts right now. You have heard the evidence,
seen our mission and vision, and seen the enthusiasm of our
Superintendent and staff. How do you answer the question, So now
what? What are your reactions to this information? Are you interested,
confused, enlightened, overwhelmed? Type into the white box at the
bottom and hit enter. You can add more than one idea. Each time you
hit enter, you get a new clear typing space. Have at it!

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How do we guarantee a 21st
century learning experience
and not keep our students
stuck in the past?

July 2008 B. Caldwell

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 The Basics
Equipment

Accessibility Connection

July 2008 B. Caldwell

Teachers need at minimum- a computer with updated tools and

software, preferably a laptop for mobility
-an LCD projector with cables sufficient to connect the two
-Interwrite pad or wireless mouse to allow mobility for the teacher
-Connection- Reliable internet connection and file sharing with
computers- preferably wireless; special thanks to Russ and the whole
IT team for getting us up and running so reliably to ensure credibility in
our infrastructure.
-Accessbility- teachers need to be able to download and access
software, sites, and information to use in their classroom

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 Training

July 2008 B. Caldwell

Our teachers need to have training and exposure to the tools and
technology that many of their students already know. Most importantly
they need to know how to take the curriculum and incorporate the 21st
century skills and engagement strategies to reach our struggling
learners and at-risk students. It is not about fancy bells and whistles, it
is about taking good teachers and alleviating the reluctance to use
unfamiliar methods.

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 Interaction

A computer should not be used as a

$1000 pencil or poster board.

Frequent - Authentic - Reciprocal

July 2008 B. Caldwell

If only the teacher uses the technology, you are not winning the battle.
Students need to be able to create, evaluate, and recreate.
If the computer is only used to do the same thing a teacher is already
doing, we have made an expensive mistake.

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 What Can You Do?

Partnership

Support

Foundation

July 2008 B. Caldwell

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 Dynamic
Continuous
Do you remember?
Improvement
Questions:
Brandi.Caldwell@sccboe.org
http://stclaircountyschools.wikispaces.com/

July 2008 B. Caldwell

Do you remember
The last words in our mission:
Dynamic- marked by usually continuous and productive activity or
change
Continuous- uninterrupted sequence
Improvement- to enhance in value or quality : make better
I have been to the mountain- mtn brook that is… but we have some
mountains of our own around here, and I think we can become that
premier school district alluded to in our vision. With your support and
the passion for bringing our students well-prepared into the job market
of the future, I know we we look back on this day and think… Do you
remember when?

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