NC Fosters Info Literacy
State launches first-ever Center for 21st Century Skills
By Kathy Ishizuka -- School Library Journal, 6/1/2005
To provide students with the information skills needed to compete in today's global economy, North Carolina will launch the first-ever Center for 21st Century Skills.
The first state initiative to implement the Partnership for 21st Century Skills' framework for education, the Center will involve educators and business leaders from across the state in revising the public school curriculum, updating teacher-training programs, and enhancing assessment systems, with an initial emphasis on high schools. The center will collaborate with K–12 school districts, community colleges, and teacher-education programs in the state to develop and pilot its initiatives, although no details were available at press time.
The North Carolina Business Committee for Education (NCBCE), a nonprofit consortium of businesses in the state focused on improving public education, will oversee the center, which will be housed in the office of North Carolina Governor Mike Easley.
"We must continue to reform our public school system to meet the growing demands of the global economy," said Easley in an April 21 announcement of the center's launch. "The new Center for 21st Century Skills will ensure that students graduate from our educational institutions with the skills they need to compete and succeed in the workplace."
The Governor's 2005–2007 budget has dedicated $250,000 to NCBCE in 2006 and $500,000 the following year to create the center. The Partnership will work with North Carolina's center to match the state's commitment with private contributions. The first company to participate is computer manufacturer Dell, which has pledged $50,000.
The North Carolina School Library Media Association (NCSLMA), a state affiliate of the American Association of School Librarians (AASL), is set to participate in the center, according to Sandra Andrews, NCSLMA president. Andrews, who says the NCSLMA board will meet to discuss the details of the organization's involvement, calls the center's objectives "a natural fit" for media specialists, as they already play an important role in teaching information skills. AASL President Julie Walker agrees. "A key throughout the Partnership for 21st Century Skills' framework is information literacy, and library media specialists are crucial to helping both students and staff to become information literate," she says. "And the center is a good opportunity for library media specialists to get involved."
AASL became a member of the Partnership for 21st Century Skills in February 2005. Formed in 2002, the partnership is a nationwide advocacy organization dedicated to transforming education in the 21st century. Member organizations include Apple Computer, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Intel, the National Education Association (NEA), and Verizon.
Last year, the partnership issued a policymaker's guide, The Road to 21st Century Learning, a related online tool, and a series of Technology Literacy Maps, which relate to core academic subjects. The maps are now available in the areas of geography, math, English, and science.
Both the guide and the maps are available for download on the partnership Web site, www.21stcenturyskills.org.
