Bloom’s Digital Taxonomy (BDT) Part II with a bit of a bird walk . . .

Continuing on my quest for answers about the pedagogical principles associated with Web 2.0, I want to first consider the idea of collaboration. Collaboration is included in BDT as a separate element see below or click on this link for the full PDF: http://www.scribd.com/doc/13442504/Blooms-Digital-Taxonomy-v30

Notice collaboration is NOT an integral part of the process; it is NOT necessary for learning to take place. Now, take a step back and think . . . why then is any of this important? Is not Web 2.0 all about collaboration? If it is not part of learning, why is it here? The answer is simple -- 21^st Century Skills.

Let's take a short bird walk into twenty-first century. The Partnership for 21^st Century skills or P21, has developed a framework of essential skills our students need to be productive citizens in the future. You can probably guess where this is going… Under the Learning and Innovation skills is … TA DA Communication and Collaboration. Effective communication occurs when both the sender and the receiver of the information both understand what is being communicated.

MindTools.com states that a recent survey of large companies by the Katz business School in Pittsburgh PA, communication skills were cited as the single most important skill when selecting managers. Not enough evidence for you? Lets look at Digital-Age Literacy. The Metiri Group, defines the proficiencies students will need to have mastered, and again effective Communication and Collaboration are in the forefront. Digital-Age Literacy includes:

• basic literacy
• scientific literacy
• economic literacy
• technological literacy
• visual literacy
• information literacy
• multicultural literacy
• global awareness.

Julie Lindsay, Head of Information and E Learning at Qatar Academy, Doha, State of Qatar and co-founder of the Flat Classroom project states, "Literacy in the 21st century is all about participation: the ability to critically consume and create knowledge for the betterment of ourselves, our families and our communities." Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) are the technologies that used to transmit, store, create and edit the information.