What+can+we+do?

In our current education society, we must not believe what was done in the past currently benefits all students. We must eradicate those ideas that once made sense to us by putting our students, 21st century learners, first. The assignments students complete in and outside of the classroom greatly influence their academic performance. Engagement does not stop inside of the classroom, it must go beyond the walls into a student's environment where homework is completed. It is essential for teachers to create assignments that compliment teaching and learning in the twenty-first century. This idea plays a vital role in creating a positive and engaging learning environment. All students across the achievement and socioeconomic spectrum are crying out to be motivated, supported, and engaged. Students live in their own digital space outside of the classroom which must parallel the level of technology in their academics. A connection between the way students live and the way they learn is critical.

= = = = Teachers always wonder about the answer to the rhetorical question, "Why won't they just do their homework?" So this continues to be one of the biggest issues students and parents have with teachers. From the amount tied to the time it takes to complete to its frequency, most homework has been titled boring and a waste of time ("busy work"). Year after year, there are students that will not complete their homework for various reasons that will but shouldn't in the least amaze some educators. Homework policies all over the country, within states and even the same schools, are so diverse. One thing will remain constant is its necessity. How can we as educators begin to solve the problem? First, we are obligated to answer the big rhetorical question and stop making excuses. Secondly, realize that we can easily keep the content but we need to change the resources that are allowed. Lastly, continue to provide engaging assignments throughout the year inside and outside of the classroom by collaborating with teachers across the globe. Through resources such as the updated Horizon Reports, the International Society for Technology in Education and The Partnership for 21st Century Skills, we are enabled to bring to life what our district and schools' technology plans promise. Some schools have years and years to go until they are equipped with 21st century classrooms, but we can start with using what students already know and have. We can take it a step at a time but if we don't step quickly and make an effort to catch up, we will continue to be left behind.

//Today’s students “do not just think about different things, they actually think differently” (Prensky 2001, 42).// //And, as Reigeluth (1999) argues, “when a human-activity system (or societal system) changes in significant// //ways, its subsystems must change in equally significant ways” (16). Education theory must change to// //accommodate new developments in the way students learn and access information//



**//“Great teachers have high expectations for their students, but higher expectations for themselves.”//** **//– Todd Whitaker//**
Faculty Meeting Presentation