Slightly off-topic in the sense that this is not specifically about Nazareth, but I came across an op-ed piece in Information Week (November 12, 2007 - sorry couldn't find the article online) regarding an article (that I also couldn't find) discussing tech savvy kids and IT careers.
The readers of the publication, mostly IT folks, scoffed at the notion kids are tech savvy and instead noted they are mostly into tricks and new gadgets.
The editorial consensus was that job skills for IT, as well as journalism and most other professions, are mostly learned by way of on the the job experience.
And further, what is critical is one's ability to learn and adapt, because the 'thing' be it basic, cobol, c++, pearl, or java, could be gone and replaced by the time a student reaches the workplace.
To learn and adapt as well as to apply learning from one area to another are critical skills and to me some of the most critical skills one can possess. Communication and interpersonal skills would round out my list of must-haves.
The article prompted me to consider how these are being applied in k-12 education.
For years we have heard our Board and Administration emphasize technology. Yet, and mind my children are elementary aged, I've mostly seen the paper handout converted to the computer screen. I've also seen student web page design. The NASD has made considerable leaps of late with email notification, the phone alert system, and parent portal (though this is still being implemented), but these advances have been standard for years in business.
The under-pinnings related to technology, design and logic, sequence and normalization, planning and strategy, I'm not so sure about. Interpersonal relations is in my opinion on the parents and communications are a mix of the two. Certain skills should be taught/corrected like proper language and grammar (such as text language in business email) as well as, for lack of a better description how tone can impact your message.
Many may cringe at having to read Shakespeare, but I vividly recall Mr. Newman reading certain passages in different ways to point out how the same written words can be interpreted in different ways. If people read their own writing in this way I'm sure many misunderstandings would be prevented.
To that end, I'd ask - what learning do you most think students need to have upon graduation given our reliance on technology to be successful in their professional life? And specifically for those with children in HS or older, how well have they been delivered?
2 comments:
Ross, I know this is not the place to post this request, but could you start a topic regarding elementary students providing holiday gifts to teachers in NASD. When did the practice of students (moreover parents) buying teachers gifts for Christmas begin? I am told that these are not merely $2 trinkets but can approach $100 in cost. How is it ethical for teachers to take gifts from students?
Ross,
I think you are right on the mark.
They teach our kids how to use things like MS office, and maybe even a little programing.
You gave a great example of Parent Portal. Most kids know how to use it, but has a teacher ever taken that as an example and work with the kids to really understand what all the moving parts are behind it and what different technologies are used in it? I think not.
For any kid that is looking at a career in technology, knowing the correct syntax of coding is just not enough. They need to know the logic of the design and how to best make something work.
What they need to be teaching is the critical thinking skills that are needed to conceptualize, design and then build something.
Another item you noted was the ability to write a professional letter. Kids today are great at typing text messaging shorthand, but I seriously doubt that few, if any, have the skills to write a letter, or worse, their own resume.
We can have all the cool technology in the world, but if these kids don’t really understand it, they are going to have a hard time once they hit the real world.
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