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Teaching specific strategies improves collaboration skills in elementary students.
Critical thinking, oral and written communication, collaboration, and innovation are skills that are becoming increasingly important for college graduates to possess as they begin their job search post-graduation. It is my belief that these skills should be presented to students in earlier grades to better prepare them for the demands that lie ahead for them in later years. In order to do so, we need to make a shift in how we teach our students in order to meet the new challenges of education in the 21st century.
Critical thinking, oral and written communication, collaboration, and innovation are skills that are becoming increasingly important for college graduates to possess as they begin their job search post-graduation. It is my belief that these skills should be presented to students in earlier grades to better prepare them for the demands that lie ahead for them in later years. In order to do so, we need to make a shift in how we teach our students in order to meet the new challenges of education in the 21st century.
As an educator, my goal is to create a learning environment that supports students with Common Core, recognizes individual creativity, and creates room for inquiry and discovery. In short, a classroom that transforms eduction from the traditional model to one that supports 21st century readiness. Some schools have embraced this type of transformative learning and are using more engaging models such as Project-Based Learning (PBL). PBL challenges students to work collaboratively to solve a real-world problem. The work is student-driven and, because of the level of applied skills involved, such as collaboration, critical thinking, and real-world strategic planning, PBL helps students gain important 21st century learning skills. The approach seems to be growing and establishing a presence in our schools.
As I began to use PBL with my 3rd grade class, I quickly realized that, in order for students to be successful with this type of learning model, they needed to have a foundation of collaboration skills that would support this type of work. I set out to find a way to scaffold and model these collaboration skills for my students. This website serves as a source of information for those looking to improve student collaboration skills, as well of those seeking general resources on PBL.
As I began to use PBL with my 3rd grade class, I quickly realized that, in order for students to be successful with this type of learning model, they needed to have a foundation of collaboration skills that would support this type of work. I set out to find a way to scaffold and model these collaboration skills for my students. This website serves as a source of information for those looking to improve student collaboration skills, as well of those seeking general resources on PBL.