When I think of the term, "College and Career Readiness", I immediately associate it with the standards that secondary schools assign their teachers in order to make their students both aware and prepared for University-level education and the competitive nature of the job-market.
But what I really think of when I hear, "College and Career Ready", I feel that the intentions of the term are largely overestimated and stigmatized through the standards that teachers actually wish to achieve. I believe that CCR simply implies that teachers dutifully perform their jobs in accordance with state standards so that the students come out of the secondary education environment with a concrete understanding and knowledge of the core subjects being: reading, writing, mathematics, and critical and creative thinking skills. That said, I believe it is a necessity that CCR comes in the form of goals set forth by administrators insuring their students proper preparedness for post-secondary education.
It is essential, I feel, that student's graduate from high school with the proper skills and experience in reading and writing skills in order to succeed in the college and job world. As a future educator, I will adhere to those standards and create a classroom environment for my students that will most benefit their futures. In that, I believe new and improved goals must be made each year, in accordance with CCR. These goals should be assessed by the students overall level of comprehension, regurgitation and analysis of any given written work or assigned material. When it comes to my own classroom, I will expect my students to be propelled into discussion through my mediation. Allowing them to create their own ideas, I feel, enhances their ability to create and form hypothesis, which will in turn, enhance their comprehension and creative thinking skills.
I think the last bit you say about your students discussing with you as a mediator, allowing them to create their own ideas is really interesting, especially in light of what we have been discussing with the transcripts. I agree that it is important to allow students to think creatively and formulate their own ideas. However, as you said, it is our job as teachers to mediate the discussion and ideas in order to guide our students to college and career readiness.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that the goals for CCR need to be updated every year. I feel like we figure out a system that works and then never really look back on it. The goals NEED to be tailored for what the real world will look like when the students graduate.
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