School of the Future: Questions

Jonathon Martin gives 8 guided questions for conversations about becoming a school of the future. these questions come from "A Guide to Becoming a School of the Future" for more detailed reading. They list skills of the 21st century learner to be:

• Critical Thinking and Problem-solving

• Collaboration Across Networks and Leading By Influence

• Agility and Adaptability

• Initiative and Entrepreneurship

• Effective Oral andWritten Communication

• Accessing and Analyzing Information

• Curiosity and Imagination

The questions are so huge that I can only compare them to the big thinking Kim Cofino does at Yokohama International School in Japan. These are definitely worth wrestling with as we continue our journey towards 21st century schools, renewal and engagement.

I have listed some of the questions below. We should all try them out on our staffs and our boards!

• How has the world changed and what are the implications for education?
• How are students today the same as their predecessors and how are they different? How do we respond to the differences
• How must 21st century instruction change and how can we accomplish it?
• What assessment techniques are needed for 21st century learning?
• What are the characteristics of a 21st century teacher? What forms of PD are called for?
• Does 21st century learning demand a renewed attention to inquiry, relevance, and/or project/problem based learning?