Personalized Learning-Edutopia

The last few blogs have been about personalized learning.  Those entries were helping lead us to our February 5th professional learning.  That day has been organized around the personalized learning approach.  Ohio has endorsed the Future Ready framework to support personalized learning.

Here is an article from edutopia.  Edutopia is a great collection of resources.  This article outlines some characteristics of future learning.  Please take a few minutes to read the article.

Questions To Consider:

1.  How do you teach students to manage their own learning?

2.   How do you teach students to learn what you don’t know?

3.  How do you give students an opportunity to contribute purposeful work to others?

Personalized Learning-Problem Based Learning

To continue the discussion on Personalized Learning, we should examine a way to personalize instruction, in some cases.  Problem-based instruction is a great way to personalize and differentiate instruction.  Problem-based instruction is just as it sounds.  Present a problem, give parameters, and let your students solve the problem while they build knowledge through effort (growth mindset tie in...).
Here is some general Information about problem-based learning.  I wouldn't imagine such a teaching technique would be used everyday but it could be used in certain situations that fit the process quite well.

For Example:

Examine and define the problem.

Explore what they already know about underlying issues related to it.

Determine what they need to learn and where they can acquire the information and tools necessary to solve the problem.

Evaluate possible ways to solve the problem.

Solve the problem.

Report on their findings.

Here is a quick few paragraphs from an ASCD publication (site reference below) about the origins of problem-based learning.

Chapter 1. What Is Problem-Based Learning?

To organize education so that natural active tendencies shall be fully enlisted in doing something, while seeing to it that the doing requires observation, the acquisition of information, and the use of a constructive imagination, is what needs to be done to improve social conditions.

. Dewey 1916, 1944, p. 137

All education involves either problem solving or preparation for problem-solving. From mathematical calculations (“What does this equal?”) to literary analysis (“What does this mean?”) to scientific experiments (“Why and how does this happen?”) to historical investigation (“What took place, and why did it occur that way?”), teachers show students how to answer questions and solve problems. When teachers and schools skip the problem-formulating stage—handing facts and procedures to students without giving them a chance to develop their own questions and investigate by themselves—students may memorize material but will not fully understand or be able to use it. Problem-based learning (PBL) provides a structure for discovery that helps students internalize learning and leads to greater comprehension.

Retrieved from:  http://www.ascd.org/publications/books/197166/chapters/What_Is_Problem-Based_Learning%C2%A2.aspx

Questions To Consider:
1.  How do you incorporate problem-based learning into your pedagogy currently?  How is it going?  What would you want to adjust?  Research it, Google it...see what you can find.
2.  The six-step process from the video could be a unit long piece of work.  How could you use that?  What topics would that fit into your curriculum? 
3.  How is problem-based learning different from asking a student to research something and present on it?

Future Ready Schools--Personalized Learning

Our district has committed resources to explore the Future Ready Framework.  Future Ready is a framework for instruction that involves integrating technology and developing strategies for personalized learning that may or may not include technology.

On February 5th, the district is designing a day of professional learning around the concept of personalized learning.  Personalized learning is the key component to the Future Ready Framework.  Personalized learning is not a new concept, but one to be reimagined by educators in our 21st-century learning environment.  Read more about the framework here.

Questions To Consider:

1.  What does personalized learning look like in your classroom?  Do all your students learn the same?
2.  Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook fame) speaks about personalized learning.  Here is a short video clip of him speaking about personalized learning.  "Being able to learn in a way that is the most beneficial to them is important."  How does that look for your room?  What does that mean to you?
3.  Personalized learning and differentiation are similar but have differences.  Mentally note, or create a list, of ways you differentiate in your classroom.  How does that help personalize instruction?

Vertical/Team Meetings-Critical Questions

Later this week you will be meeting again with your vertical/team groups.  Because of that, I thought it would be a good time to get you thinking about some critical questions.  You have met with your group at least one time.  I heard some of those conversations and they sounded to result in some positives.

When you met before, we asked you to examine "The Big Rocks."  In this conversation, I would encourage you to be some critical in your questions.  These conversations can be started with critical questions.  Here is a quick reference guide for critical questions.  This guide will give you an idea of how to phrase critical questions.  Hopefully, this will give you a starting point for some critical questions that are specific to your group. 

Questions To Consider:

1.  What did you discuss last time you were with your vertical/team group?
2.  How can you continue those conversations?  What will you discuss next?
3.  What will be your objectives for your conversation?