Harvard professor Roland Barth has observed that in the 1950’s when young people left high school they typically knew about 75% of what they would need to know to be successful in life. Today, he predicts that young people know about 2% of what they will need to know. (Barth, R.S. (1997, March 5). The leader as learner. Education Week, 16(23). 56.) … 

The force behind this change is the rapid and ever-increasing pace of change, the complexity of the world in which we live and the unpredictability of what people will need to know in the coming decades – the future for which we are preparing today’s learners.

Learner Agency: The Missing Link

In 2008, Colorado passed legislation (Senate Bill 212, also known as CAP4K) that requires the State Board of Education to adopt content standards that prepare students for the 21st century workforce and for active citizenship upon receiving a high school diploma. In addition to the requirement that students meet those content standards, students must also (to the extent practicable) develop and demonstrate skills (Fig. 1) essential for success in professional life.


Essentially, learning content is no longer sufficient to ensure success beyond high school.  Instead, students must demonstrate the ability to do something with that knowledge.  Having students engage in tasks that demand greater levels of cognitive rigor provides the opportunity to simultaneously master content as well as develop overarching essential skills.