With the refresh of the ISTE Standards for Students completed and ready for unveiling Monday at ISTE 2016, the attention now turns to revamping the ISTE Standards for Teachers. That overhaul was launched during an interactive forum Sunday in Denver.

The session allowed participants to share their perspectives on what should be included in the 2017 teacher standards and discuss how the updated teacher standards can effectively interact with the 2016 student standards.

Attendees heard from ISTE staff about the goals of the refresh and worked in small groups to brainstorm how the current teacher standards should be changed to reflect the current and future state of education.

"We have a new set of student standards that are aspirational and focus on the changes in learning environments and access to various ways of learning," said Carolyn Sykora, senior director of ISTE Standards. "The new teacher standards will help educators deliver on the promise of the student standards and assist teachers in building their skills to leverage technology for learning and teaching."

For example, keeping on top of science research will fall on all educators in the future, she added. That makes the challenge of refreshing ISTE’s teacher standards more than merely revamping the language to fit a modern audience.

Richard Culatta, former director of the Office of Education Technology at the Department of Education, advised participants to think about what their dream classroom would look like five years from now and offer competencies that teachers would need to make that happen. The key is to be specific — skip the fuzzy, highfaluting statements that sound good until you try to explain them — without being prescriptive, as in “all teachers must” statements.

Providing input on the teacher standards refresh is not limited to those at ISTE 2016. Educators worldwide are urged to participate in the process as it unfolds over the next year.

Here's how you can get involved:

Use the toolkit. Lead teacher standards refresh forums with your colleagues in meetings, at conferences or in virtual events using the toolkit ISTE will release in August. Stay tuned to ISTE social media for information on accessing the toolkit.   

Attend local refresh events. ISTE will host teacher standards refresh events at education conferences and affiliate events throughout the year. Plan to attend these forums when they're happening in your backyard.

Take the survey. Tell us what you think the new teacher standards should include via our online survey, also coming in August. There survey will ask questions, such as:

• What is the teacher’s role in supporting and encouraging system-readiness?
• The 2016 ISTE Standards for Students support learning based in current learning sciences research. How should the 2017 ISTE Standards for Teachers reflect and expand in this vital component of learning?
• The 2016 ISTE Standards for Students envision a fundamental shift in the approach to learning and teaching. What is the role of the teacher in this new learning environment and how can the ISTE Standards for Teachers facilitate their growth?

Lend your voice to the refresh of the ISTE Standards for Teachers. Opportunities to participate start in August. Follow @ISTEConnects for details.