Lifeworthy Learning

The important skills and attributes learned at school are those that will be used throughout a lifetime.

• Applies to the demands of the future.
• Creates real world, cross-disciplinary learning experiences.
• Views the concept of “school” as beyond walls and schedules.
• Puts our Learner Goals at the center of our teaching.
• Calculates risks and accommodates for uncertainty.

Most books about the future - and numerous studies and meetings by thought leaders such as the World Economic Forum, OECD, UNESCO and others - have highlighted a very different set of necessary skills than those encompassed by traditional schools. The skills that are needed in the 21st Century include such things as creativity, flexibility, collaboration, presentation, self-direction, social responsibility, critical thinking, and problem solving. Employers are telling us that they want mentally healthy workers who can innovate, collaborate and communicate, but many students today are still being told to sit down, face front, be quiet and be stressed.  That wasn’t working yesterday, and it definitely won’t work for tomorrow.  In addition, the antiquated notion that there is one specific body of knowledge in the ocean of the knowable is no longer tenable, as young people today are not training for one definable career.  More than ever, they need to have a yearning for learning and an ability to seek out necessary knowledge and skills.  For a more detailed analysis of the opportunity and challenge of today’s educational landscape, read Dr. Blurton’s blog, Against the Tide.