This week’s “Daily Journal” guest columnist is Terry Stoops, Director of Education Studies for the John Locke Foundation.
RALEIGH — The recent hubbub about proposed changes to North Carolina’s social studies curriculum demands that citizens take a closer look at the forces behind the “21st century skills” movement and our state’s involvement in it.
To catch you up to speed, late last year the Department of Public Instruction released draft social studies standards that would have relegated the first 250 years of American history to elementary and middle-school grades. In addition, the state planned to devote most of the eighth-, ninth-, and 11th-grade social studies curriculum to contemporary history and current events.
After the proposal received national media attention, both liberals and conservatives panned the draft standards. DPI officials continued to defend their proposal. They argued that the public outcry was just a big misunderstanding blown out of proportion by the radical Right. However, they recently hinted that significant structural changes are in the works. We will not know what these changes look like until they release the next draft in April.
According to their 2008 Framework for Change publication, DPI is conducting an overhaul of North Carolina’s curriculum based largely on the work of the Partnership for 21st Century Skills. The Framework highlights their use of a key Partnership publication, Milestones for Improving Learning and Education. North Carolina’s proposed social studies curriculum appeared to be aligned with the principles outlined in Milestones. For example, the eight-page guide says that the ideal 21st century curriculum “always includes content in a contemporary context” and content that includes “global awareness, civic and business literacy.”
So, what is the Partnership for 21st Century Skills? In 2002, the U.S. Department of Education and eight organizations and businesses established the Partnership, which describes itself as “the leading advocacy organization focused on infusing 21st century skills into education.” According to the Partnership’s IRS Form 990, the group received over $1.5 million from eight anonymous donors in 2006.
The e-Luminate Group (formerly Infotech Strategies) is the consulting and marketing firm that administers the Partnership for 21st Century Skills. The Partnership itself is an alliance of organizations, companies, and the National Education Association. Founding members included Apple, Cable in the Classroom, Cisco Systems, Dell, Microsoft, NEA, SAP, and Time Warner. Over the last few years, a number of new members signed on, including Lenovo, Oracle, and testing company ETS. In total, the Partnership assembled 39 Strategic Council members, largely from the private sector. In addition, 14 states, including North Carolina, have joined.
The Partnership for 21st Century Skills officially arrived in North Carolina in 2005. Former Gov. Mike Easley worked with the organization to create the Center for 21st Century Skills. John Wilson, a North Carolina native and executive director of the NEA, noted that North Carolina was the first state to adopt the Partnership’s 21st century education framework. Soon after Easley’s announcement, DPI and the State Board of Education made 21st century skills their primary focus.
In addition to statewide implementation, Congress also appears to be ready to jump on the 21st century bandwagon. Last year, Sens. Jay Rockefeller, D -W.Va., Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, John Kerry, D-Mass., Arlen Specter, D-Pa., and Al Franken, D-Minn., sponsored The 21st Century Skills Incentive Fund (S.1029), a $100 million grant program for states that show a commitment to 21st century learning. Members of the House and Senate have introduced similar bills. No members of the North Carolina delegation have signed on.
If you find that the concept of 21st century skills does not make sense, the Partnership provides a rather amusing definition. According to the Milestones publication, 21st century skills are the “full integration of core subjects with learning skills, learning tools and 21st century content as taught in 21st century contexts.” I am glad that we cleared that up. Now the state can move forward with the business of making enormous changes to our public schools.