Academic, life skills needed.

Byline: Michael F. Fitzpatrick 

COLUMN: AS I SEE IT

The political debate about the teaching of 21st-century skills in our schools finds those who seek to move from theoretical academic concepts into concrete workplace/life skills pitted against others who argue that so-called 21st-century skills are immeasurable and would result in lower standards.

Why must we give up one thing to secure or protect the other? The argument should not be controlled by those who focus on teaching either academic concepts or life skills. It is possible, and in fact vital to the success of education reform efforts, to effectively blend the two.

Today, all schools are faced with a growing awareness that success in the 21st century requires more than just core academic knowledge. As global innovations transform the way people live and work, it is increasingly apparent that future success will depend upon an ability to adapt to change and to constantly learn and relearn.

Students need to acquire a variety of social, technical and communication skills, including critical thinking, problem-solving, and financial, economic and business literacy. Many aspects of these specific skills are already embedded in the state's academic curriculum frameworks, but they need further emphasis. Teachers and school administrators must now therefore work together to develop new approaches which protect MCAS and other assessment-driven growth, while diversifying instruction to promote workplace/life talents.

To effectively blend 21st-century skill development into the school curriculum, school systems will need to make it a priority and promote shared leadership expectations. Teachers must be given targeted professional development opportunities which will encourage them to move outside of their individual and collective comfort zones and modify instructional methodology.

At the same time, the administrators who supervise them must embrace the challenge and themselves receive the necessary professional development resources to hone evaluation and observation skills which foster improved integrated instruction.

While it may be difficult to measure the attainment of real-life skills, that should not become an excuse to not even try to teach them. Recognizing the relevance of this new educational direction to our ability to remain competitive, we must seize every opportunity to purposefully integrate career and college readiness skills into each school's curriculum.

The commonwealth's constantly improving MCAS scores prove that a rigorous system of standards and accountability can indeed improve student achievement. We simply cannot rely on academic proficiency alone to ensure that our students will remain competitive in a constantly evolving global economy.

The 21st-century marketplace offers tremendous opportunity for those equipped with finely tuned interpersonal and communication skills, an understanding of cultural differences, and high levels of creativity and innovation. Educators must accept responsibility for preparing students for success in this environment. To do so, they must teach students not only what they need to know, but how to become lifelong learners who think and problem-solve beyond the specific task at hand.

Michael F. Fitzpatrick is superintendent-director of the Blackstone Valley Vocational Regional School District.

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CUTLINE: Michael F. Fitzpatrick