Elliott Seif, the author of this blog, is a member of the ASCD Understanding by Design cadre and a contributor to Educational Leadership. You can find  numerous resources that describe, support, and deepen these educational goals at:  www.era3learning.org)

The beginning of a new school year provides an opportunity for teachers and administrators to think differently about the education we want for today’s schoolchildren. Current educational approaches not only don’t work for many children, but also don’t adequately prepare large numbers of students for their future educational experiences and careers. Unless we make changes to our educational goals and programs, we will continue to shortchange our students.

 The shifting characteristics of today’s world should cause us to reconsider the goals and practices of today’s education. A 21^st century world includes overwhelming amounts of accessible knowledge and information, inexpensive computers, search engines, smartphones, ipads, social networks, and Internet access to virtually every country in the world. Rapid change in today’s job market causes uncertainty about the future. High paying careers require a post high school education and continuous learning of new skills and knowledge.

 We cannot rely on current educational goals, a traditional curriculum and standardized tests to assure that our students are prepared for this new age. A new key goal should be to help students build a foundation of knowledge and skills that support lifelong learning–our children’s success depends on their ability to continue their learning in college, technical schools, or careers that require continual updating of skills and knowledge. A second goal, intelligent citizenship, requires an historical and current perspective on democratic institutions, an understanding of current issues and challenges, and a willingness to actively participate in the political arena. Self-understanding of one’s interests and skills is also a critical goal in order to help students develop and nurture their talents and abilities for the future. And finally, the goal of creating engaging school programs goes a long way towards attracting students to come to and stay in school, and keeping them interested and motivated in learning.

 These four goals – preparing students for lifelong learning, encouraging intelligent citizenship, building self-understanding, and developing engaging, motivating school programs - should form a critical core of a new school agenda. These goals will be enhanced if administrators and teachers together:

 •Create a new educational mission based on these four goals. The mission might be similar to the following:

 In a 21^st century world, schools should provide all students with the critical knowledge, skills, habits of mind, attitudes and behaviors that prepares them for:

• Lifelong Learning
• Intelligent Citizenship
• Self-Development and Understanding

Engaging school programs should motivate students to attend school and keep them interested in school activities.

•Encourage schools to figure out ways to implement these goals. Districts and schools should institute renewal systems that help to redesign curricular programs, schedules, organizational and instructional approaches that help to meet these goals.

 • Redesign measures of student accountability and graduation requirements. Include tasks that assess, among other things, information finding and processing skills, the ability to complete complex research projects, knowledge and analysis of current issues, and self-understanding. High school graduation tasks, projects and portfolios of student work that help to assess whether students have met these goals should become an important requirement for graduation.

 • Develop strong choice-based enrichment and extra-curricular programs at all levels. These activities help to motivate students to come to school and foster the development of student talents, interests, and abilities.

 •Redesign the curriculum so that these outcomes form a major part of the school program. Among other things, the curriculum should include on-going research skill development, foster a deep understanding of democratic institutions, teach current events, require service learning, promote self-reflection and understanding, and incorporate engaging, motivating activities.

 •Encourage teachers to institute classroom projects that develop students’ ability to ask powerful questions, find and process information, think deeply and flexibly, draw conclusions, and communicate results.

 • Regularly bring outside learning into, and take students outside the classroom. Systematically organize a volunteer group of outside workers, citizens, college personnel, and others who would be willing to visit schools on a regular basis and enable students come to their places of work and education to learn what they do.  Design authentic, real life field trip experiences that enhance learning and give students an opportunity to learn more about the outside world. Use computer technology to enhance the learning of these goals and connect students to the outside world.

 • Create a culture in which all administrators and teachers all work together to implement these goals, share ideas, encourage, support and help each other, acknowledge and learn from failure, and celebrate success. 

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These are some of the ways that the districts and schools might begin to meet the demands of a new age. The beginning of the school year is a good time to create a new mission for schools, begin to develop programs based on this new mission, and begin to create new ideas that will help all students prepare for the 21^st century. Only time will tell whether today’s schools will become dynamic entities working to prepare students for today’s and tomorrow’s world.