Challenging Times Demand Innovative Solutions
We are certainly living in times that are challenging, particularly for teaching and learning. As a result, the time that teachers have to impact their students has narrowed due to time and access constraints. At the same time, we are being asked to prepare our students not only in the academic content but in the life skills that they will need to be successful in learning and in life.
New Dimensions in Teaching and Learning
To educate a “whole child for a whole world”, the Center for Curriculum Redesign has defined the necessary four dimensions of a modern education as Knowledge, Skills, Character, and Meta-Learning as depicted in this graphic. Through extensive research, we have developed a series of professional learning courses based on these 4 dimensions of teaching.
In our view, a 4D teacher is one who can seamlessly incorporate social-emotional learning and “21st-century skills” through their academic content teaching. We have worked with expert teachers – teachers currently in classrooms, who have been recognized through National Board Certification, State and National Teacher of the Year awards, Presidential Awards in Math and Sciences, and more – to develop courses that combine these skills and teach us how to educate students in SEL and Metacognitive skills through academic content instead of in isolation.
Students must have an interdisciplinary basis of knowledge that is relevant practically, cognitively and emotionally. They must have a deep set of skills, to apply and utilize what they know. They must have a strong character, ready to build successful relationships with a rich understanding of how to participate in a globalized world. Finally, they must learn how to learn, how to reflect and adapt, in a quickly changing world.
