14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft has made available resources designed to streamline the measuring of teaching practices for schools and other organizations in order to help quantify quality and the level of innovation of the education system.
By offering the Partners in Learning School Research free tool, the Redmond company makes a step forward with efforts to get teachers to educate students in accordance with 21st century skills.
While announcing the new tool, the software giant also published the preliminary findings of the Innovative Teaching and Learning (ITL) Research which took place across schools in Finland, Indonesia, Russia and Senegal.
The research produced a troubling conclusion following the pilot year, students rarely learn the 21st century skills which will be crucial to them both in work and life through school.
Part of the problem is the fact that 21st century skills are not yet defined in educational policies and systems in most countries, and teachers have yet to learn how to teach and assess these skills to their students.
“Education policy-makers and school leaders have long voiced a commitment to transforming education so that students get the skills they need,” revealed Anthony Salcito, vice president of worldwide education at Microsoft.
“The problem is that the policy is not being put into reality on the ground. Most educators don’t know how to implement these ideas with their students.”
Salcito underlines that while an increasing focus on bringing technology into the classroom might seem like the solution, it’s in fact only a piece of the puzzle that will ultimately lead to students developing 21st century skills.
Technology must be complemented by innovative teaching practices, he stressed, noting that the Innovative Teaching and Learning (ITL) Research has been expanded to a total of eight countries, with the addition of Australia, England, Mexico and the United States.
According to the Redmond company, simply participating in the research will help educate teachers on what 21st century skills are and how they can benefit students.
With Partners in Learning School Research, schools can effectively conduct their own research while applying the same ITL Research principles used by the software giant.
“When schools and educational systems begin to clearly define, measure and recognize innovative teaching practices, educators see an alignment between the rhetoric of change and the reality of teaching and learning,” added Dr. Maria Langworthy, director, ITL Research.
“But most educators are still constrained to teaching traditional required curriculums and content, so it’s hard for them to focus on 21st century skills and change their teaching practices.”