Athens Middle School is among twenty Alabama schools chosen to participate in the 21^st Century Initiative, a statewide program that will raise awareness about the critical need to accelerate the adoption of 21^st Century teaching and learning strategies in our public schools.

            The Initiative is a project of the Alabama Best Practices Center and is supported by a grant from Microsoft Corporation Partners in Learning program.  The schools, selected through a competitive process, are geographically and demographically diverse.  They include six high schools, four middle schools, and seven elementary or primary schools.

            Teams from the 20 schools will participate in a series of online professional development sessions between January and May 2006.  Teachers and principals will explore some of the best thinking and research about 21^st Century Skills and gain practical knowledge about ways to introduce cutting-edge technologies and teaching strategies into their classrooms to increase student engagement and achievement.