1.

Describe the Partnership for 21st Century Skills and their role in K12 education
o The Partnership for 21st Century Skills (P21) was founded in 2002 as a coalition bringing
together the business community, education leaders, and policymakers to position 21st
century readiness at the center of US K-12 education and to kick-start a national
conversation on the importance of 21st century skills for all students.
o P21 Members play an active and crucial role in guiding policy and activities on 21st
century readiness for every student. Every member reinforces the mission of P21 and
our ability to enact change on the local, federal, and state level to shift the conversation
for kids and ensure theyre ready to lead and take on the challenges of the 21st century.
The Partnership for 21st Century Skills has emerged as the leading advocacy
organization focused on infusing 21st century skills into education. The organization
brings together the business community, education leaders, and policymakers to
define a powerful vision for 21st century education to ensure every childs success
as citizens and workers in the 21st century. The Partnership encourages schools,
districts and states to advocate for the infusion of 21st century skills into education
and provides tools and resources to help facilitate and drive change.
2. List and describe the critical skills identified by the Partnership for 21 stCentury Skills
o P21 has identified and brought to the forefront a comprehensive set of skills that, along
with content mastery, are what all sectors can agree are essential for success. The P21
Framework for 21st Century Learning took several years to develop, and it has been
enhanced by resources such as the 21st Century Skills Maps that have been developed
in collaboration with hundreds of educators who have shown how to integrate 21st
Century Skills within their disciplines such as English, mathematics, science, geography,
social studies, world languages and the arts. P21 has achieved success demonstrated
by our growing list of leadership states and expanded membership. Additionally, the
Framework for 21st Century Learning has widely become the recognized model for
infusing 21st century skills into the curriculum. There are hundreds of educational
agencies and organizations who have adopted the P21 Framework, either formally or
informally, to guide their learning communities and are embedding 21st century skills in
curriculum and professional development.
The elements described in this section as 21st century student outcomes are the skills,
knowledge and expertise students should master to succeed in work and life in the 21st century.
1. Core Subjects (the 3 Rs) and 21st Century Themes
The 3Rs include: English, reading or language arts; mathematics; science; foreign
languages; civics; government; economics; arts; history; and geography. The 3Rs
serve as an umbrella for other subjects and core content.
21st century interdisciplinary themes into core subjects:
Global awareness
o Using 21st century skills to understand and address global issues
o Learning from and working collaboratively with individuals representing
diverse cultures, religions and lifestyles in a spirit of mutual respect and
open dialogue in personal, work and community contexts
o Understanding other nations and cultures, including the use of nonEnglish languages
Financial, economic, business and entrepreneurial literacy
o Knowing how to make appropriate personal economic choices
o Understanding the role of the economy in society
o Using entrepreneurial skills to enhance workplace productivity and career
options
Civic literacy

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Participating effectively in civic life through knowing how to stay informed

and understanding governmental processes
Exercising the rights and obligations of citizenship at local, state, national
and global levels
Understanding the local and global implications of civic decisions

Health literacy
o Participating effectively in civic life through knowing how to stay informed
and understanding governmental processes
o Exercising the rights and obligations of citizenship at local, state, national
and global levels
o Understanding the local and global implications of civic decisions
Environmental literacy
o Participating effectively in civic life through knowing how to stay informed
and understanding governmental processes
o Exercising the rights and obligations of citizenship at local, state, national
and global levels
o Understanding the local and global implications of civic decisions

Learning and Innovation Skills

The 4Cs include: critical thinking and problem solving; communication, collaboration; and
creativity and innovation. The 4Cs are a shorthand for all the skills needed for success in
college, career, and life.
Creativity and Innovation
o Think Creatively
Use a wide range of idea creation techniques (such as brainstorming)
Create new and worthwhile ideas (both incremental and radical concepts)
Elaborate, refine, analyze and evaluate their own ideas in order to improve
and maximize creative efforts
o Work Creatively with Others
Develop, implement and communicate new ideas to others effectively
Be open and responsive to new and diverse perspectives; incorporate group
input and feedback into the work
Demonstrate originality and inventiveness in work and understand the real
world limits to adopting new ideas
View failure as an opportunity to learn; understand that creativity and
innovation is a long-term, cyclical process of small successes and frequent
mistakes
o Implement Innovations
Act on creative ideas to make a tangible and useful contribution to the field in
which the innovation will occur
Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
o Reason Effectively
Use various types of reasoning (inductive, deductive, etc.) as appropriate to
the situation
o Use Systems Thinking
Analyze how parts of a whole interact with each other to produce overall
outcomes in complex systems
o Make Judgments and Decisions

Effectively analyze and evaluate evidence, arguments, claims and beliefs

Analyze and evaluate major alternative points of view

Synthesize and make connections between information and arguments
Interpret information and draw conclusions based on the best analysis
Reflect critically on learning experiences and processes
o Solve Problems
Solve different kinds of non-familiar problems in both conventional and
innovative ways
Identify and ask significant questions that clarify various points of view and
lead to better solutions
Communication and Collaboration
o Communicate Clearly
Articulate thoughts and ideas effectively using oral, written and nonverbal
communication skills in a variety of forms and contexts
Listen effectively to decipher meaning, including knowledge, values, attitudes
and intentions
Use communication for a range of purposes (e.g. to inform, instruct, motivate
and persuade)
Utilize multiple media and technologies, and know how to judge their
effectiveness a priori as well as assess their impact
Communicate effectively in diverse environments (including multi-lingual)
o Collaborate with Others
Demonstrate ability to work effectively and respectfully with diverse teams
Exercise flexibility and willingness to be helpful in making necessary
compromises to accomplish a common goal
Assume shared responsibility for collaborative work, and value the individual
contributions made by each team member

Information, Media and Technology Skills

Information Literacy
o Access and Evaluate Information
Access information efficiently (time) and effectively (sources)
Evaluate information critically and competently
o Use and Manage Information
Use information accurately and creatively for the issue or problem at hand
Manage the flow of information from a wide variety of sources
Apply a fundamental understanding of the ethical/legal issues surrounding
the access and use of information
Media Literacy
o Analyze Media
Understand both how and why media messages are constructed, and for
what purposes
Examine how individuals interpret messages differently, how values and
points of view are included or excluded, and how media can influence beliefs
and behaviors
Apply a fundamental understanding of the ethical/legal issues surrounding
the access and use of media
o Create Media Products

Understand and utilize the most appropriate media creation tools,

characteristics and conventions
Understand and effectively utilize the most appropriate expressions and
interpretations in diverse, multi-cultural environments

ICT Literacy
o Apply Technology Effectively
Use technology as a tool to research, organize, evaluate and communicate
information
Use digital technologies (computers, PDAs, media players, GPS, etc.),
communication/networking tools and social networks appropriately to access,
manage, integrate, evaluate and create information to successfully function in
a knowledge economy
Apply a fundamental understanding of the ethical/legal issues surrounding
the access and use of information technologies

Life and Career Skills Todays life and work environments require far more than thinking skills and
content knowledge. The ability to navigate the complex life and work environments in the globally
competitive information age requires students to pay rigorous attention to developing adequate life
and career skills.
o FLEXIBILITY AND ADAPTABILITY

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Adapt to Change
Adapt to varied roles, jobs responsibilities, schedules and context
Work effectively in a climate of ambiguity and changing priorities
Be Flexible
Incorporate feedback effectively
Deal positively with praise, setbacks and criticism
Understand, negotiate and balance diverse views and beliefs to reach workable
solutions, particularly in multi-cultural environments
INITIATIVE AND SELF-DIRECTION
Manage Goals and Time
Set goals with tangible and intangible success criteria
Balance tactical (short-term) and strategic (long-term) goals
Utilize time and manage workload efficiently
Work Independently
Monitor, define, prioritize and complete tasks without direct oversight
Be Self-directed Learners
Go beyond basic mastery of skills and/or curriculum to explore and expand ones
own learning and opportunities to gain expertise
Demonstrate initiative to advance skill levels towards a professional level
Demonstrate commitment to learning as a lifelong process
Reflect critically on past experiences in order to inform future progress
SOCIAL AND CROSS-CULTURAL SKILLS
Interact Effectively with Others
Know when it is appropriate to listen and when to speak
Conduct themselves in a respectable, professional manner
Work Effectively in Diverse Teams
Respect cultural differences and work effectively with people from a range of
social and cultural backgrounds

Respond open-mindedly to different ideas and values

Leverage social and cultural differences to create new ideas and increase both
innovation and quality of work
PRODUCTIVITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY

Manage Projects
Set and meet goals, even in the face of obstacles and competing pressure
Prioritize, plan and manage work to achieve the intended result
Produce Results
Demonstrate additional attributes associated with producing high quality products
including the abilities to:

- Work positively and

ethically
- Manage time and projects effectively
- Multi-task
- Participate actively, as well as be reliable and punctual
- Present oneself professionally and with proper etiquette
- Collaborate and cooperate effectively with teams
- Respect and appreciate team diversity
- Be accountable for results
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LEADERSHIP AND RESPONSIBILITY

Guide and Lead Others
Use interpersonal and problem-solving skills to influence and guide others toward
a goal
Leverage strengths of others to accomplish a common goal
Inspire others to reach their very best via example and selflessness
Demonstrate integrity and ethical behavior in using influence and power
Be Responsible to Others
Act responsibly with the interests of the larger community in mind

3. Discuss the Are they really ready to work report and interpret the key findings
What skills are necessary for success in the workplace of the 21st century? And do new
entrants to the workforce, graduates of high school, two-year and four-year colleges
have those skills? These and other questions were posed in a survey of human
resource professionals mounted in the spring of 2006 by The Conference Board, Corporate
Voices for Working Families, the Partnership for 21st Century Skills and the Society for Human

Resource Management. It is our hope that through our combined resources, reputations, and
strong member bases that the business community, educators, policy makers, students and
their families will listen to what employers collectively think of the new workforce in America.
The results indicate that the U.S. is not doing enough, fast enough, to prepare for a vibrant
economic future for our children and our nation.
Young people need a range of skills, both basic academic skills as well as the ability to apply
these skills and knowledge in the workplace. The survey results indicate that far too many
young people are inadequately prepared to be successful in the workplace. At the high school
level, well over one-half of new entrants are deficiently prepared in the most important skills
Oral and Written Communications, Professionalism/Work Ethic, and Critical Thinking/
Problem Solving. College graduates are better prepared, with lower levels of deficiency on
the most important skills, but too few are excelling. Only about one-quarter of four-year
college graduates are perceived to be excellent in many of the most important skills, and
more than one-quarter of four-year college graduates are perceived to be deficiently prepared
in Written Communications.
The future U.S. workforce is hereand it is woefully ill-prepared for the demands of todays
(and tomorrows) workplace. So say employers in a unique study by The Conference Board,
Corporate Voices for Working Families, Partnership for 21st Century Skills, and the Society
for Human Resource Management, which looks at the readiness of new entrants to the
workforce.
Knowing how employers view these new entrants is an important first step in enabling both these
new entrants and U.S. business to succeed on the global economic playing field.
The four participating organizations jointly surveyed over 400 employers across the United
States. These employers articulate the skill sets that new entrantsrecently hired graduates
from high school, two-year colleges or technical schools, and four-year collegesneed to
succeed in the workplace.
Among the most important skills cited by employers:
Professionalism/Work Ethic
Oral and Written Communications
Teamwork/Collaboration and
Critical Thinking/Problem Solving.
In fact, the findings indicate that applied skills1 on all educational levels trump basic knowledge
and skills, such as Reading Comprehension and Mathematics. In other words, while the three
Rs are still fundamental to any new workforce entrants ability to do the job, employers
emphasize that applied skills like Teamwork/Collaboration and Critical Thinking are very
important to success at work.
A combination of basic knowledge and applied skills are perceived to be critical for new entrants
success in the 21st century U.S. workforce, but when basic knowledge and applied skills
rankings are combined for each educational level, the top five most important are almost
always applied skills.
Professionalism/Work Ethic, Teamwork/Collaboration and Oral Communications are rated as
the three most important applied skills needed by entrants into todays workforce.
Knowledge of Foreign Languages will increase in importance in the next five years, more than
any other basic skill, according to over 60 percent (63.3 percent) of the employer respondents.
Making Appropriate Choices Concerning Health and Wellness is the No. 1 emerging content
area for future graduates entering the U.S. workforce as reported by three-quarters of the
employer respondents (76.1 percent).3
Creativity/Innovation is projected to increase in importance for future workforce entrants,
according to more than 70 percent (73.6 percent) of employer respondents. Currently, however,
more than half of employer respondents (54.2 percent) report new workforce entrants with
a high school diploma to be deficient in this skill set, and relatively few consider two-year and

four-year college-educated entrants to be excellent (4.1 percent and 21.5 percent,

respectively).
High School Graduates are:
Deficient in the basic knowledge and skills of Writing in English, Mathematics,
and Reading Comprehension,
Deficient in Written Communications and Critical Thinking/Problem Solving,
both of which may be dependent on basic knowledge and skills,
Deficient in Professionalism/Work Ethic, and
Adequate in three very important applied skills: Information Technology Application,
Diversity, and Teamwork/Collaboration.
Two-Year and Four-College Graduates are:
Better prepared than high school graduates for the entry-level jobs they fill,
Deficient in Writing in English and Written Communications, and
Deficient in Leadership.

4. Propose a list of teaching implications based upon the findings from the investigation of P21 and
the Are they really ready to work report
5. Create and publish a Glogster that illustrates key findings
http://www.p21.org/about-us/our-history