For Students, a 21st Century World Means 21st Century Questions
By, Andrea Brands, Director of Consumer Safety and Education, AT&T
As the new school year begins across the country, it’s hard not to reminisce about the questions I always had in the back of my mind at the beginning of a new school year. They ranged from the immediate and critical: Will I fall from these platform shoes? What wasSaturday Night Fever really trying to tell me? To the really-important-but-abstract: How do I study for the SAT? What is the college application process like? Am I prepared to compete academically with the other students? And every year, it seemed like questions became more abundant and sophisticated as they grew in number and importance. While some of the answers still require introspection, many of the answers are straightforward; you just need to know where to look. Now, thanks the internet, many of those answers are just a click away.
There are countless tools online that help young students expand their knowledge outside the classroom and find answers to their hardest college and career questions. As many of us know, the card catalogue and microfiche of my day weren’t exactly liberating or efficient. On the flip side, with the wealth of information online figuring out where to search for what the student in your life needs can quickly become overwhelming. That’s why we’ve built an educational resource library on AT&T’s Digital You website to provide some truly innovative resources for your family. Here are a few highlights:
- Curriki: The Curriki library hosts thousands of educator-vetted, openly licensed, online educational materials that teachers, educators, or other professionals have created and have made freely available to others for use, reuse, adaptation, and sharing.
- Code.org: Explore fun interactive tutorials to start coding. It’s for all ages!
- Khan Academy SAT Prep: Download a real, full-length SAT practice test, work through real SAT problems, and get even more practice using our interactive questions.
- Udacity: To prepare more people with the skills needed for high-demand tech jobs requiring technological expertise, AT&T has teamed up with education technology leader Udacity to launch Nanodegrees programs — new educational online pathways to industry-relevant skills.
- Common Sense Media’s Best Apps: Recommendations for Families: Looking for educational, age-appropriate apps? Check out Common Sense Media best apps for families?
These tools are just the tip of the iceberg, so check out our website for more. They can help any student, no matter the age, begin to find answers about the next steps in life.
As students from California to Illinois to New York begin this new school year, I hope they raise their hands, ponder the hard questions and take advantage of the resources they have, both on and offline, to find the answers they’re looking for. As for me, I’m dusting off those platforms for my dance with destiny.
