The New Jersey Department of Education has a pilot program around personalized student learning plans that uses the following definition:

“A formalized plan and process that involves students setting learning goals based on personal, academic and career interests, beginning in the middle school grades and continuing throughout high school with the close support of adult mentors that include teachers, counselors and parents.”

I had the opportunity this week to spend a half day with building administrators from a NJ School District examining a continued expansion of personalized learning.

One of the resources provided for the meeting was Making Learning Personal: Educational Practices That Work by John Clarke and Edorah Fraizer. You will find the entire chapter here . I believe it is worth a read.

It includes field notes from one of the author’s observations after following a high school student through an entire day of school. He concluded that ”Bart had not had a meaningful interaction with an adult all day, or with any students, from what I had seen.”

The authors also share school practices to meet students’ personal needs by creating relationships that promote:
Recognition
Acceptance
Trust
Respect
Purpose
Confirmation

I was interested in the authors’ comparison of the terms personalization and individualization.

“Personalized learning requires the active direction of the student; individualized learning lets the school tailor the curriculum to the scaled assessments of interest and abilities. “How much does the student direct the process of his own learning?” The answer to that question plays out in student commitment.”

Next week I will be meeting with the school board in this district examining personalized learning. Then teachers and administrators will be asked to create objectives for the following school year to increase personalization.

I suggested they consider improvements and changes in practice.

Improvement– How could we do this in a better way to increase personalization? Maybe add more student choices?

Change– What might we do outside the current structures of school (outside the box)….a real experiment? Maybe providing students with a period of time for free exploration? Students creating their own course of study?

How are you seeing teachers and systems increase personalization?

Are you exploring increased personalization for teachers?