24/7

Awaking at 3:30 a.m. today, I had a follow-up thought to yesterday's post. It must have been something I was thinking about because I could not get back to sleep and decided to get up and get some work done. As I lay awake at that early hour, I was thinking about how not only has information become readily accessible, it has become readily accessible whenever we want or need it; basically 24/7 availability. Not only is it available, it is updated seemingly continuously.

I recall in my younger days babysitting my younger siblings and staying up late to watch television. Those of us my age or older recall the flag waving on TV and the national anthem playing as the station signed off for the night. Updated information was certainly not available to all at every hour. However, today, one can find not only television shows on throughout the night, but the internet is abuzz and updating constantly. While most of the United States is asleep, people around the world are busy working and adding content to the web.

Twenty-first century skills certainly play a role in helping our students navigate this vast sea of information. One of the key skills in a 21st-century education is information literacy. With this skill, students are able to evaluate and make sense of information they may uncover. With so much content available, it is very important students have this skill in order to make proper decisions and create optimum, quality learning. Thus the need to continue our work to create a 21st-century education for out students.