Reflective Friends: A Measure of 21st Century Instruction

About the Program

Category: Personnel Management, Employment and Training (Best in Category)

Year: 2012

As technology changes our world every day, students across the nation are constantly having to adapt to new information and new forms of education. Henrico County Schools are on a journey to create 21st century learning environments to ensure that their students have the skills needed to succeed in an ever-changing world. The Reflective Friends process is designed to provide participating schools with objective data on their efforts to build 21st century learning environments. Through a series of systematic classroom observations and interviews with teachers and students, a profile of trends in classroom instruction (content, pedagogy, and technology) will emerge. These data will become good information to be used for professional development and the future development of the school program. Through this program, the county has provided a structure for holding schools, leaders and teachers accountable for delivering high quality 21st century instruction. As a result of this program, there has been a greater emphasis on the development of 21st century literacies in students and the instructional practices that support it.