“Taking Stock of Personalized Learning” is part of a series of special reports by Education Week that identifies high-priority topics in the K-12 world and examines them in significant depth. This report tackles the issue of personalized learning, arguably one of the hottest topics in education this year, and an educational concept that raises all kinds of questions and concerns about how students should learn in the digital age. This report examines attempts to clarify the definition of personalized learning, looks at where this educational movement is heading, and provides evaluations of how personalized learning efforts are currently playing out in schools.
In 2012, the federal Race to the Top district competition awarded 16 school districts, educational cooperatives, and charter school districts with more than $350 million in total grant funding to support efforts to personalize learning and improve student achievement.
In some districts, the uses of adaptive testing extend beyond assessment, as teachers use test results to modify lessons and stage interventions for students of different abilities.
Education technology advocates, philanthropies, and others are trying to create a clearer definition of what qualifies as "personalized learning," one of the most popular terms in education today.
Kayla-Meeks Cook, a 6th grader, gets help from teacher John Williams at Whittemore Park Middle School in Conway, S.C. The students were using their iPads to pick out recipes and calculate ingredients as part of a skills task.
A South Carolina school district hopes to replicate the initial success at a middle school, where test scores, student engagement, and teacher attendance have improved.
The goal is to generate a comprehensive digital portrait of the strengths, weaknesses, and preferences of each student, to provide him or her with customized academic content.
One of the biggest tensions emerging around the growth of personalized learning involves questions about how to use and protect sensitive student information.
Many schools' personalized learning efforts hinge on the use of formative assessment tools, including embedded online curriculum, adaptive-learning platforms, and stand-alone tests.
Coverage of personalized learning and systems leadership in Education Week and its special reports is supported in part by the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation. Education Week retains sole editorial control over the content of this coverage.
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