Meet 3 educators whose work embodies the 3 compasses!

Get ready to be inspired!  Meet three new members of the 21st Century Schools group on LinkedIn.  These 3 educators are excellent examples of what 21st century education looks and sounds like!  Collectively, the members of this group represent a veritable gold mine of sheer talent, knowledge, passion for education and expertise in a variety of fields.  Join us!  Note - This group is not designed to be a bulletin board, or a disconnected "bunch o'posts".  Our goal is to support meaningful dialogue, a sharing of ideas and knowledge, and a place where members may develop long-term professional relationships.

Here is an excellent activity for a professional development discussion with your faculty or colleagues.   Using our 3 Compasses to 21st Century Education,  analyze these exemplars.  Watch the relevant video, and visit the web sites and blogs of these three educators.  What evidence do you see of the points on each compass?  Discuss each example in relation to the compasses.  Also, if you do not see a particular element, discuss how this piece is probably there.  For example, maybe you do not see specific references to incorporating multimedia, but discuss the possibilities for where and how it is probably present in this project or at this school.  

I will get you started by reflecting upon one or two of the points from the compasses  . . .

Bob Herring is the Principal of the Nativity School, located in Pleasant Ridge, Minnesota.  

Watch his TEDx Talk in Cincinnati as he explains their program for Creating Citizen Diplomats - not in high school, but K-8!

How does the Nativity School embody the 3 compasses?

This program epitomizes the global classroom and globalization, hence, the development of global competencies and multicultural literacy - a "must have" for 21st century citizens.

Sarah Powley, Instructional Coach, Secondary Schools, Tippecanoe School Corporation.  Sarah's blog, In an American Classroom, is a perfect example of the 21st century schools paradigm.  If you need inspiration or curriculum ideas, her blog is the place to go!

I loved the first post I saw, Biomedical Innovations: Redesigning the ED, is a must read!  How does Sarah's work embody the 3 compasses?

This project is completely Relevant, Rigorous and Real World!  Students actually utilized all the 7 Survival Skills of the 21st Century as they investigated the situation at the hospital and then created and presented a plan to improve operations in the Emergency Department.  In my opinion, almost every point on all 3 compasses was addressed - integrated seamlessly!  How could this project have expanded to be a global project?

Barry Dequanne, is the Head of School at the American School of Brisilia.  

Barry has one of the most incredible blogs I've ever seen.   Insightful, informative and inspiring, Barry's blog is organized into 5 themes - Academics, Activities, Arts, Leadership and Service.   Be sure to visit, follow him on Twitter and share this great blog with your friends and colleagues.  How do Barry and his school align to the 3 compasses?

Obviously, the school is an American school in Brazil;  the faculty and students represent 44 countries, so we definitely have global classrooms and globalization.  Even if your school does not have a culturally diverse population you can provide experiences for your students to develop their global competencies and multicultural literacy.  The best way to do this is through global, collaborative classroom projects in which your students actually collaborate and work with students in a  classroom in a country other than their own. Tools such as Skype and Google Hangouts make it easy and free!

Another option is a program involving actual travel to other countries.  There are public and private schools in the United States that have these programs, even at the elementary level, such as the Nativity School cited above.    Cost?  It is not just those with wealthy parents.  They find ways to make it happen.  That's another post.

Let's look at Barry's post entitled Relationships and Learning from May 16 of this year.  He describes how the students were engaged in collaborative projects which involved experiential, hands on learning.  One of the things the students learning through their project was the critical importance of relationships,  

Here you have the following points on the compasses:  Project-based learning,  Real world and relevant, Rigorous, Emotional/Social literacies, Influence Across Networks and Leading by influence, Critical Thinking and Problem Solving . . . Now, discuss in your faculty where you see more of the 3 compasses for education in the 21st century.  

Finally, what are some things you can do at your school to make this type of experience possible for your students?