Is professional development that supports 21st century skills any different from good professional development?
While it is true that all aspects of good professional development apply to programs that develop 21st century teaching, there are two new factors to consider. First, teachers today need to be prepared to teach students a wider array of skills and concepts. Young people now need to graduate from high school and college with a lot more expertise — they all need exposure to critical thinking, problem solving, and life and career skills. Teachers must also emphasize new areas, such as innovation and creativity skills and information, media and technology skills. Secondly, technology is more important than ever to assist in this endeavor. Not only will teachers need to help students learn technology-related concepts, lessons will sometimes require computers and web connectivity. To learn more, please visit the professional development section of the Route 21 website.
