Imagine you walk into a classroom and the first thing you see is a student in the corner building something out of toothpicks and styrofoam. Is that the Taj Mahal? In another area, a group of kids is acting out a play–you hope that’s fake blood. Near the window, there’s someone reciting something in a language you don’t understand. Mandarin perhaps? All around are students engaged in various, seemingly unrelated activities. Your eyes search for the teacher, sure you’ll find her unconscious and tied to her chair. But instead you see her standing near a group of students who appear to be debating a new school policy. No, you haven’t stepped into some sort of revolutionary chaos. You are witnessing kids who are engaged and excited about learning. You are in a personalized learning classroom. 

What is personalized learning?

Personalized learning is an educational strategy that ditches (at least some of the time) traditional methods such as lectures, a focus on pen-and-paper learning, and whole class studies. Instead, PL favors a way of teaching and learning that centers on the individual goals and interests of each student. Students work with a teacher/mentor to design a course of study that reflects their interests and allows them to work using methods and timelines that best meet their needs. In a PL classroom, each student might be working with different learning objectives, pacing, and even content.

Personalized learning techniques are growing in popularity in classrooms across the country—at every grade level and in both public and private schools. Students working with a personalized learning plan tend to find their lessons engaging and relevant, and studies show that PL is effective.  According to a report by the Rand Corporation, students who received PL instruction for two years surpassed national norms in both reading and math. An analysis of data from multiple PL schools suggests that PL may benefit students of all abilities. It’s no wonder students, teachers, and parents are excited about personalized learning. 

Practical steps to implement personalized learning

Regardless of the perks of personalized learning, some classroom teachers (justifiably) wonder how in the name of Benjamin Bloom they are supposed to add anything else to their already piled high, spilling over, plopping on the linoleum floor plates. Fortunately, PL isn’t an all-or-nothing model. Teachers can implement PL part-time, only in some subjects, and gradually. Here are a few tips for becoming a PL classroom. 

1. Understand the elements of successful personalized learning

To be sure, PL often looks different from modern classroom instruction. You won’t see students sitting in tidy rows, all working quietly on the same assignment.  But PL isn’t a free-for-all. And it’s not students running the show. Every student works with a teacher/mentor to choose a subject that interests them. Next, with their mentor, they create specific learning objectives and design a plan for meeting their goals. They also determine a way to demonstrate their new understanding. The basic process of PL learning isn’t actually that different from current classroom practices. The main difference is instead of the teacher doing all the planning, gathering of materials, and creating evaluations students are doing the heavy lifting in these areas. 

2. Institute a weekly passion project time

Rather than trying to restructure their entire curriculum, some teachers prefer to simply set aside some time each week to allow kids to work on a project or activity that interests them. Some teachers find that a Passion Project Hour (or afternoon) on Fridays is the perfect way to combat the end-of-the-week slump. Others find that kicking off Mondays with independent work time helps set a positive tone for the rest of the week. Either way, a Passion Project Hour will likely be the kids’ favorite way to learn.

3. Call for reinforcements

A common concern that teachers have about PL is that they won’t have time to work with students individually to design learning plans and that they won’t be able to adequately supervise multiple activities. It’s important to note that one of the most powerful things about PL is that students are taking ownership of their own learning. The teacher’s job is to guide, advise, and supervise—not to customize. Still, kids are kids and regardless of how passionate they are about their passion project, chances are they are equally passionate about goofing off, cutting corners, and competitively throwing paper wads into the trash can. Adult supervision is required!

Fortunately, a student’s mentor doesn’t have to be the teacher. Local retirees might welcome the chance to share their experience with kids. For some college students, mentorship might serve as a way to boost their resumes or even meet a graduation requirement. And local civic organizations are often looking for ways to serve their communities and schools.

4. Create collaborative teams

If working with twenty students, each doing a different project, seems daunting, try encouraging kids to work in groups. This will cut the number of PL projects down considerably and give kids the opportunity to learn the perks and pitfalls of working with others. 

5. Require students to work within your state-mandated standards 

No matter how on board one might be with PL, we all know that at the end of the day, we have to follow state standards. Sadly, this can mean the “fun stuff” often gets pushed to the side. But it doesn’t have to be that way. With a little creative thinking on their part, students can usually find a way to apply their passion to the subject at hand. For example, in an 8th-grade American history class, a girl who loves horses could center her studies around the role of horses in building our nation. She might use the skills she is learning in math to calculate feed cost or the necessary dimensions of a stable housing 10 horses. In literacy, she could read horse-themed novels.

Admittedly, it would be more difficult to apply one’s passion for marine life or soccer to American history. In that case, a student would have to dive into the subject at hand to discover a niche aspect of that subject that interests her. Maybe there’s no way to apply soccer to American history. However, a soccer-loving kid might be interested in learning about the games that have marked American culture over the years. Allowing students to center a passion project around a predetermined subject can also help kids discover new passions. 

A look into the future

Imagine you walk into a classroom. In one corner, a student is drawing a to-scale plan for a high-tech horse stable. Are those automatic feeders? Off to the side, you hear a group of kids comparing two sports-themed novels. Wait! The author of Friday Night Lights won a Pulitzer? You walk past a table where someone is building something elaborate out of Legos. Note to self: google Yankee Stadium. Then you reach your desk where an eager student is clutching a notebook—waiting to share her plans and passion with you.

You are in your personalized learning classroom. 

Personalized Learning pin