Comments on "Advance Personalized Learning"

There is a potential to create a mix of both self-driven learning and guided learning by creating and using virtual software of which can feed the data to students, and in a school setting can therefore still leave a guide to help the less capable among the students. If this software had a quiz at the end of every section/sub-section then under-achieving self-driven students can be flagged up by the software meaning it is less likely that students will fall through "the net" as it were. I believe that through a mixture of virtual learning where the information is easily accessible, there is chance to not only increase the capabilities of the self-driven students who have their heels clipped by the barely capable at the other end of the scale.
Through sections and sub-sections throughout each subject students and teachers can identify where work is needed and re-study the course material. With the addition of game software to reinforce student knowledge, it is probable that the students will retain the knowledge.

There is a serious experiment ongoing right now in this area, driven by Khan Academy, funded by the Gates Foundation, Google, etc.

Check out: http://www.khanacademy.org/ and a recent article summarizing the experience (high level) at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/shantanu-sinha/khan-academy_b_1918342.html

why do we need to understand enigneering?

I think the reason there are so many different education models is because there are so many different people. Unfortunately It takes quite a bit of energy and resources to reach an individual. Therefore we try to generalize as much as we can. As a result, we aim for a middle ground and if we hit, great. If we don't, oh well. Like others have said, There are a great number of challenges we face today. Many were caused because we did not see the consequences of an action when we took it. If we gave future generations the freedom to take in and process information the way that is most natural to them, instead of dictating what, how, when, where, and why they do it, we would most likely create the free thinkers capable of solving them without creating negative side effects. As a result of this, their descendants could move forward technologically and socially. Would this usher in human Utopia, maybe not, but it might be a good start. Having said all that: my idea for using technology to help individualize learning in the public school is simple. Teachers could publish their years lesson plans (things that have to be ready before the school year start anyway,) in pdf form to the parents so that parents can follow along with the individual teacher's classroom instruction (not just a grade level expectation). Text book publishers could make digital copies of the teacher's manual available for parents to download so that parents could see what the teacher sees and understand the assignments their students are bringing home. This will help the parents help their children with the home work. I have noticed that many teacher's manuals are loaded with great hands on learning activities that just don't fit into the 20 or 30 minute class session, or into school's and teacher's already tight budgets. Parents having access to this information would offer a much needed parent/ child/classroom bonding as the parent helps the child cement the learning in practical ways. This also frees up the teacher to spend more time and energy with the children who may not have parental support at home. This is accomplished by the parent informing the teacher that they will participate in this way.

Individualized instruction has been a motto for homeschoolers all around the world, since it was advocated by the wise King Solomon in Proverbs -"Train your child according to his way and even when he is old, he will not depart from it". Homeschoolers use technology outside the box in ways that optimize their learning. As homeschoolers, we have used technology to enhance our learning. We recommend applications such as the Qedoc Learning System that contains learning modules that cover a variety of topics from religious to secular studies. It keeps track of student progress and incorporates Flash and other media. We have also used simulated Math and Science activities via Gizmos, a favorite among homeschoolers and schools alike. With Moodle, we are able to run our own homeschool online. We have also used online web conferencing software to interface with other homeschoolers in a cooperative style learning. Technology has been great, and as homeschoolers we believe we are the forefront in using technology in learning. MorahMoriah.com

Seeding the youth (k-12) with a notion that it IS the engineers and scientists that design the world around us may be the most crucial prospect for solving the demanding problems of the future. Making exiting, creative, demanding, and empowering projects that are demanding and striving for engineering excellence is crucial. Then making sure projects are illustrated to youth in a manner that starts their compassion to be the developer, the inverter, and/or designer of the future SHOULD BE A RESPONSIBILITY of all who seek to solve the grand challenges of the future. I had an unique opportunity to discuss the problems associated to the loss of interest in science in engineering with the Ambassador for China here in the US. He noted that without solving the challenge associated to exemplifying the interest in solving these Global Challenges. THERE IS AN OBLIGATION TO DRIVE THIS INTEREST SO THAT OUR GRANDCHILDREN MAY HAVE A STABLE, UNIVERSAL, and SAFE FUTURE. James Tomich SDSMT james.tomich@mines.sdsmt.edu

IDL Systems, a spin out from MIT, already provides a sytem of personalized learning that make use of learning styles., automatically creating personalized modules on the fly fpr each student Register for a demo though www.idlsystems.com

The success of the education system around the world is critical to us all and I commend the Academy for its insight to recognise the need to create solutions to deliver advanced personalised learning. In the UK we have researched, developed and delivered a knowledge network (Taecanet) that enables a small group of teachers to "harvest" relevant internet based resources, link them to learning objectives and assessment and then deliver them to a much wider teacher / student population to support personalised learning at home and/or at school. Tracking & reporting of students progress means that both students and teachers get immediate feedback. The students can work at their own pace and are rewarded through the process of learning with access to short periods of online games. The teachers get detailed feedback / reports which can help them with decisions on intervention at both individual and class levels. Students find this approach to personalised learning fun. Teachers find it easy to build into the teaching practice. Having delivered over 2 million learning journeys to students from the UK and around the world we now have a growing body of evidence that this approach increases attainment. Being web based it ensures the widest access and the cost of delivery can be less than $2 per student per year. And yet there is still much to do in terms of increasing the impact of assessment to drive even deeper decisions on the personal learning pathways that the individual students take. We believe working together with other educationalists, learning technologists, engineers & others we can start to make a difference.

I spent 12 years in the tech industry, now I'm a teacher, and working on my Master's in Teaching. Individualized, adaptive, multi-media instruction is the ultimate in personal learning. To provide exactly what every individual needs to learn, in formats that are tailored specifically to them, is an educational "holy grail". Technology provides an incredibly effective and efficient means to deliver academic curricula to students. It is tragically underused and often abscent in today's "modern" classrooms. That said, until there is a major advancement and utilization of Virtual Reality, that delivery needs be in a classroom-like setting wherein the teacher acts as a guide, motivator, and catalyst for critical thinking and analysis of the vast amounts of information being obtained. The classrrom also provides situational support for implementation and practice through real-life means. Knowledge without meaning (or context) is pointless. And what about the curriculum? Who decides what it is that students will and should learn? What is developmentally appropriate? Currently in the U.S. each state and district decides these things. What about in a global educational system? With the development of open courseware, the information is available for delivery. But alas, it's mostly for adults. Are we ever going to move out of the 18oo's with elementary grades education?

The idea of personalized learning seems like it is a good idea and could be very beneficial, but I feel like a lot of the learning we encounter is through the personal experiences of others that cannot be expressed through an online program. The best way to learn something is to engage in conversation and interact with other people that are knowledgable on that subject, not just through a modified program.