In the 1990′s, in response to a changing global economy, Japanese education authorities realized they needed to make major changes to their education system. One of these was to change the curriculum to include an emphasis on interdisciplinary learning, critical thinking, problem solving, and international relations. With a very prescribed curriculum, the trick was to […]
Don’t be surprised if you hear shouts of “GOOOOOOOOAL” ringing out as you walk by the Henry Street School for International Studies after 3:30pm on a school day. Coaches Rodriguez and Colmenares are helping their students investigate the world through one of the most popular sports on earth, soccer—or, to the rest of the world, […]
On Wednesday, we reported on apps that can be used to teach for global competence in Art, Science, Math, and ELA. Here we continue our list for Languages, History, Social Studies, and Service Learning. Languages Being Global: This multimedia story and activity app is based on the award-winning children’s book What Does It Mean To […]
An “app” is short for software application. For example, Angry Birds and Facebook are popular apps on mobile devices. More than 30 million apps are downloaded to mobile devices every day. There are apps to help manage time, convert measurements, lead a healthier lifestyle, and for fun. A good percentage of apps are by nature […]
Twitter has become a vibrant venue where educators around the world connect and share ideas—in 140 or fewer characters at a time. A primary way educators find one another on the massive social networking site is through the use of hashtags. A hashtag is a #word or #severalwords prefixed by a # symbol. In this […]
Digital Learning Day was an inspiration. It has, for one, inspired me to write about three things I wish to see happen. The organizers Alliance for Excellent Education defined digital learning as “any instructional practice using technology to strengthen student learning.” Educators and policymakers throughout the United States watched and chatted online as experts share […]
The adoption of new and rigorous college- and career-ready standards creates an historic opportunity for schools, districts, and states across the nation to rethink the curriculum. As the introduction to the English language arts Standards notes, “by emphasizing required achievements, the Standards leave room for teachers, curriculum developers, and states to determine how those goals […]
The adoption of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for English language arts and mathematics in 45 states and the District of Columbia offers educators an unprecedented opportunity to marry the skill development and acquisition of core content needed to develop globally competent citizens with the rigorous skills and core content needed to prepare all […]
Where better to learn about the world than out in the world? We’ve been hearing a lot about “expanded learning time” lately. Education policymakers and district and school leaders are considering how best to increase learning time for all students. The rationale often cited is the need to help American students become more competitive against […]
On Monday, I wrote about how the global knowledge economy demands a new set of skills. How does a school system meet these new demands? One place to look is the top-performing nations according to the The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). PISA measures student critical thinking skills and has demonstrated a direct correlation […]
