That Little Detail: More on the C21 Fund Bill

The real kicker in the C21 Fund Bill:

(C) achieves broad support for a statewide 21st Century Skills initiative from among the State's education leaders (including classroom practitioners), business leaders, and civic leaders; and

(D) is approved as a 21st Century Partner State by the nonprofit, nonpartisan Partnership for 21st Century Skills.

So, almost immediately folks started asking the obvious question: What's the Partnership for 21st Century Skills?

And the answer:

[We] serve as a catalyst to position 21st century skills at the center of US K-12 education by building collaborative partnerships among education, business, community and government leaders.

And the founders?

Founding Organizations:

* AOL Time Warner Foundation
* Apple Computer, Inc.
* Cable in the Classroom
* Cisco Systems, Inc.
* Dell Computer Corporation
* Microsoft Corporation
* National Education Association
* SAP

Now, as readers of this blog know, I have no problem teaching 21st century skills. In fact, I've argued in strong support of it. You could consider me AN ADVOCATE OF 21ST CENTURY SKILLS. But to give the right to judge the quality of a given State's 21st century skills plan to a team made up of members of the corporations who exist to sell the very goods that P21 promotes is insane.

It's like asking the textbook industry to tell us what textbooks we are going to use.

Just a few hours ago, I received an email from Adobe (who now has a rep on the P21 Board).

Engage students in learning while teaching 21st century skills

The economic downturn not only has hit school budgets hard, but it’s also placed great importance on students learning advanced technology skills for an increasingly competitive job market. Schools must engage students in learning, inspire their innovation, and empower them to communicate solutions to others.

Recognizing these challenges, Adobe provides products, resources, and training for teaching 21st century skills and integrating technology across the curriculum.

Looks like they recognize a good thing when they smell it. Here's a link to the whole pitch.