Personalized learning

Personalized learning, individualized instruction, personal learning environment and direct instruction all refer to efforts to tailor education to meet the different needs of students.

History

The use of the term "personalized learning" dates back to at least the early 1960s, but there is no widespread agreement on the definition and components of a personal learning environment. Even enthusiasts for the concept admit that personal learning is an evolving term and doesn't have any widely accepted definition.

In 2005, Dan Buckley defined two ends of the personalized learning spectrum: "personalization for the learner," in which the teacher tailors the learning, and "personalization by the learner," in which the learner develops skills to tailor his own learning. This spectrum was adopted by the (2006) Microsoft’s Practical Guide to Envisioning and Transforming Education.

Definitions

According to the National Educational Technology Plan developed by the US Department of Education, personalized learning means adjusting the pace (individualization), adjusting the approach (differentiation), and connecting to the learner's interests and experiences. Personalization, in theory, is broader than mere individualization or differentiation in that it affords the learner a degree of choice about learning. Individualization refers to the strategies aiming to guarantee all students' mastery of the same learning objectives by adjusting the pace to the progression of the learner. The teacher (or computer) manages the best solution based on learner performance. Personalization, however, is also about using a student's individual abilities, sensibilities, and competencies (including emotional ones)—to develop his aptitudes, capabilities and talents.

Individualized instruction relies upon carefully prepared instructional materials and lesson plans. Individualized instruction is recommended only for students of at least junior high school age, and presumes that they the self-discipline to be able to study independently. Proponents of individualized instruction do, however, presume that most students of secondary school age still lack the basic knowledge and skills to direct most of their own curriculum.

In a traditional classroom setting, time (in the form of classes, quarters, semesters, school years, etc.) is a constant, and achievement (in the form of grades and student comprehension) is a variable. In an individualized setting, where students study and progress more independently, achievement becomes more uniform and time to achieve that level of achievement is variable.

Personalized learning doesn't indicate unlimited choice; learners still have to meet education targets. However, the strategy could, in theory, provide learners the opportunity to learn in ways that suit their individual learning styles and multiple intelligences.

Typically technology is used to try to facilitate personalized learning environments.

According to researcher Eduard Pogorskiy:

ICT and communications technology can be a powerful tool for personalized learning as it allows learners access to research and information, and provides a mechanism for communication, debate, and recording learning achievements. However, personalized learning is not exclusive to digital technologies or environments. In the rhetoric around 21st Century Skills, personalized learning is often equated with 'customization' (as found in the business world), with digital personalization used to the frame the learning experience as highly efficient. Problematic in this is the discounting of the highly relational and socially constructed space well defined in the research on learning. Narrowing personalized learning to its digital form also raises the concern of the echo chamber effect emerging in (hyper)personalized online experiences.

Advocates often discuss personalized learning in the context of schools but education can happen anywhere, for example in the home or in the community. Personalized learning can happen in partnership with other learners, for example learners working together in a group to study a particular topic. Enthusiasts sometimes discuss the topic by referring to 'anywhere, anytime, anyplace' learning.

Instructional design

Proponents of personalized learning say that many elements of curriculum, assessment and instructional design must be present in classrooms for students to succeed and often use software systems to manage and facilitate student-led instruction. Proponents argue that classroom learning activities must build upon students' prior knowledge and teachers need to allocate time for practice. Advocates argue that teachers must continuously assess student learning against clearly defined standards and goals and student input into the assessment process is integral.

Debate

Andy Hargreaves and Dennis Shirley write that while there are advantages in students being able to access information instantly on-line, one should not mistake such processes for "something deeper, more challenging, and more connected to compelling issues in their world and their lives."

Alfie Kohn wrote that while personalized learning may sound like a useful strategy for education, in practice it's mostly just about selling technology products. Personalized learning promises a strategy to specifically adjust education to the unique needs and skills of individual children, he argued, but really it means merely "adjusting the difficulty level of prefabricated skills-based exercises based on students' test scores... [and] requires the purchase of software from one of those companies that can afford full-page ads in Education Week." While "certain forms of technology can be used to support progressive education," Kohn wrote, "...meaningful (and truly personal) learning never requires technology. Therefore, if an idea like personalization is presented from the start as entailing software or a screen, we ought to be extremely skeptical about who really benefits."

See also

• Adaptive learning
• Blended learning
• Flip teaching
• Instructional design
• Learning relationship management
• Learning environment
• Mastery learning
• School of one
• School organizational models

External links

• Home page for School of One, a personalized learning pilot in New York City public schools
• European Union – The Life Long Programme
• European Union - Grundtvig Project LeadLab