Personalized Learning

Personalized Learning is also known as “applied learning”. It is instruction that provides ways to meet each student’s individual needs. This allows small group independent work for the students. It also refers to differentiation in realizing that all students have a different ability level. All students also come from different backgrounds. Therefore when considering personalized learning, all assignments need to accommodate all students. To keep the differentiated students on task, teachers should provide engaging activities. This might make the students think that they are just having fun when really they are learning at the same time. Also, if the teacher does not provide engaging activities students might fall behind because they might not want to complete the work. Including the students’ interests in assignments, read-alouds, activities, tests, etc. is important. This will catch the students’ attention and more than likely keep them engaged. Students would also rather do an activity/game relating to the topic than read out of a textbook. Students may feel a sense of power when they get to choose what they want to learn. Implementing technology in the classroom or “centers” would also help keep students engaged because it requires them to stay on task and stay busy. Personalized learning would help me in my future classroom by providing ways for all students to learn. I have learned that personalized learning works better when students are engaged. This causes me to look at personalized learning differently. Now, I try to look for engaging activities that will accommodate each and every student so that students can stay on task. Personalized learning would benefit the teacher by providing ways to look at students’ individual needs. Knowing background knowledge and how a child learns will help with planning engaging activities for personalized learning. Knowing students will also help with building relationships.