Access release of P21's MILE Guide on AASL's virtual conference site

Contact: Melissa Jacobsen


AASL Communications Specialist


(312) 280-4381


mjacobsen@ala.org

NEWS


For Immediate Release


November 17, 2009

CHICAGO – On Friday afternoon at the American Association of School Librarians' (AASL) 14th National Conference & Exhibition, the Partnership for 21st Century Skills (P21) released their Milestones for Improving Learning and Education (MILE) Guide. A Webcast of the release is available on AASL's virtual conference site, b there – Your Virtual Track Pass at
www.learningtimes.net/aasl for public viewing.




In addition to viewing the Webcast, visitors will be able to scroll through slides from the presentation and listen to a robust question-and-answer session.




Those in attendance were the first educators to see the revised and updated MILE Guide. The release featured a panel of leaders in education, including June Atkinson, superintendent of public instruction, North Carolina; John Wilson, executive director, National Education Association; Dave Schroeter, vice-president, K-12 division, Gale, Cengage Learning; Bill Harrison, chair, North Carolina State Board of Education; and Valerie Greenhill, vice-president, Partnership for 21st Century Skills.




Harrison told attendees, "This is an exciting time to be in public education. We need to change the way we do some things, and we finally have a tool that will truly help us make it happen. It will help us understand what 21st century learning is."




First released five years ago, this updated MILE Guide is expected to be even more valuable than the original, as it is based on five years of experience with the P21 framework and watching districts and schools implement 21st century skills.




The MILE Guide helps districts and schools determine where they are on the spectrum of ensuring students have the knowledge and skills required for success in today’s world. It includes a Self-Assessment tool that provides three benchmarks (early stage, transitional stage and 21st century) for how far along schools and districts are in terms of student knowledge and skills; education support systems; leading and teaching; policy-making; partnering; and continuous improvement/strategic planning. The Guide can be downloaded at
http://www.21stcenturyskills.org/mileguide.




The Partnership for 21st Century Skills,
www.21stcenturyskills.org, is the leading advocacy organization focused on infusing 21st century skills into education. The organization brings together the business community, education leaders and policy-makers to define a powerful vision for 21st century education to ensure every child’s success as citizens and workers in the 21st century. The Partnership encourages schools, districts and states to advocate for the infusion of 21st century skills into education and provides tools and resources to help facilitate and drive change. AASL is a member of P21.