Partnership for 21st Century Skills

My first reaction to the site was a positive reaction to the mission of the partnership, its goals, and the graphic they use to represent their outcomes and support systems.  After reading on in the FAQs, I became wary of the long list of commercial entities that are involved in this partnership.  I reacted more strongly to this long list, which surprised me.  I am always questioning the use of technology for its own sake and it dawned on me how powerful a group such as this partnership could be in pushing their own agenda in emphasizing the use of technology in developing 21st century skills.  

There wasn't much information on the site that surprised me.  Looking at the states that have been featured in the state initiatives section, it was surprising to see only 11 states on the list.  

The only section of the website that I did not agree with was a part of their mission statement describing the following skill set:

"Financial, economic and business literacy, and developing entrepreneurial skills to enhance workplace productivity and career options"  -Mission of Partnership for 21st Century Skills

I'm not in agreement that students should become literate in business and entrepreneurial skills in schools.  Especially not with the goal of enhancing workplace productivity.  I don't believe that students need to be trained in business thought and workplace productivity.  There are many sets of skills that need to be taught to allow students a wide diversity of career options.

Implications include professional development opportunities for myself, a new direction in creating curriculum designed around the mission articulated by the partnership, and a focus on developing critical information literacy skills.  For my students, it represents a change in focus for their high school careers.  They need to be using technology to access, interpret, evaluate, create, and participate in the learning community created by the new paradigm of information availability.