Evidence of Development of 21st Century Skills

I have always contended that measuring student outcomes should be more about what happens after they graduate. The ability to score on a standardized test tells us very little about how prepared the student is for the real world. I thought that measuring the development of critical life skills would have to wait until after graduation. I was wrong! I received a very pleasant surprise in the mailbox this morning. I opened a letter from FIRST Robotic Challenge Team 900 (@FRC900). It was handwritten and signed by the members of the team, their mentors and coach.           

This is the team that was traveling to a robotics competition in Newport News, VA from the North Carolina School of Science & Math. They graciously offered to join us for the kickoff event in Warren County, NC. They drove way out of their way and enthusiastically shared their experiences and the impact FIRST Robotics programs had on their lives with middle school students in an isolated rural county in North Carolina. The letter speaks volumes about the character building effects of the FIRST programs. They drove way out of their way, unpacked and set up their robot and demonstrated it for the middle school kids and their parents. They stayed afterward answering question until the last middle student left. They packed up and headed to Newport News for the competition the next day…which they won! After all they did, they took the time to write us a thank-you note and send it along with the picture of their team under the St. Louis Arch when they were there last year competing in the FIRST Robotics Challenge World Championship. This is an example of why it is never surprising to hear from our industry partners their willingness to support these programs with time, talent and funding. Industry leaders see the team members developing strong life skills while becoming innovators and problem solvers. Imagine if we had the opportunity for every student in every school in North Carolina to participate on one of these robotics teams from kindergarten through 12^th grade!