Strengthening Future Workforce Skill Levels

The Problem

Even in today’s tough economy, American businesses are experiencing a shortage of employees with skills needed to compete in a global marketplace – in large part because those skills are not being developed in our high school students.

Skills Necessary for Success

To be equipped with the knowledge and abilities businesses now require, students must:

•  Master Core Academic Content

Students must be able to demonstrate a baseline understanding of core content knowledge and apply facts, processes and theories to real-world situations.

•  Think Critically and Solve Complex Problems

 Students must be able to apply tools and techniques learned from core subjects to formulate and solve problems, using them to evaluate, integrate and critically analyze multiple sources of information. Students must be able to learn to reason and construct justifiable arguments creatively, encompassing non-linear thinking and persistence.

• Work Collaboratively

Students should demonstrate the ability to cooperate together to identify and create solutions to social, vocational and personal challenges. This includes the ability to identify common goals; to organize resources necessary for meeting group goals; and to learn to communicate and incorporate multiple points of view to better achieve goals.

• Communicate Effectively

Students must be able to organize their thoughts and findings in clear, meaningful and useful ways and express themselves in both written and oral forms. They must be able to listen well and present others’ concepts, as well as their own.

•  Learn How to Learn

Students must be aware of their strengths and weaknesses and be able to monitor and direct their own learning. They should understand and be prepared to meet changing expectations in a variety of academic, professional and social environments.