Conceptualizing And Implementing Personalized Learning

Education today is learner-driven, diversified, and differentiated, which addresses the diversified needs of the global world and moves countries and individuals to a path of economic self-sufficiency. But with the way they approach it, almost everything is changing and evolving at a revolutionary speed; education has also evolved from where it was. The millennial buzzword is “personalized” or “customized”. And education is not limited either to traditional definitions of subjects or a standardized, one-size-fits-all approach.

Parents want and expect a high level of customization concerning learning and interactions and want to know/control what is being taught. The education sector is under a microscope. With global access to education, the needs and requirements of the education sector and the individual have changed and become highly customized.

The father of constructivism Jean Piaget (1972, 1974) believed that people are always trying to reach the state of equilibrium, whereby the learner discards his misconceptions, adopts scientific explanations that best fit the situation, and constantly tests the adequacy of his ideas through assimilation and accommodation. Actual learning happens through incorporation, in which scientific knowledge is not transferred from teacher to student. Instead, students implement their conceptual changes enabled by student-centered teachers and act as facilitators of learning, not as authorities who transmit information to students. The teacher needs to examine each student’s cognitions and develop instructional techniques which create a cognitive conflict to be resolved. Indeed, students must actively participate in learning, which significantly depends on the shared experiences of students, peers, and the teacher; hence, cooperative learning is a significant teaching method used in the constructivist classroom.

In my opinion, actual learning happens when education is backed by a scientific approach to classroom instruction and accommodates the diverse learning needs of the students, is student-centered, and teachers are facilitators, not authorities, that transmit information to students.
While the obstacles are significant, they are not intractable. Technology has made it easy to approach education from different perspectives. Technology in the classroom, blended learning, continuous research and research findings have made it possible to make education customized, equitable, and accessible to even the remotest corners of the world. Because of technology, we are well-positioned to adapt, pivot, and partner in innovative ways to drive meaningful change desperately needed. No longer is scaffolding a far-fetched perception. It is a reality of every classroom that believes in personalized learning.

Globalized world and globalized classrooms-

Today, even the classrooms look global. As a diversified group of children fill the classroom, classrooms have become a complex world of their own.
The following needs adjustment-

• Content– teachers will have to come off the textbook and the one-size-fits-all syndrome and vigorously incorporate content that is available online. The media and the methods in the classroom should effectively engage students to explore their interests, develop their skills, and encourage students to become lifelong learners. The content will have to be learner-driven instead of classroom driven. Students have to participate actively in their learning according to their competencies and passion. One size does not fit all these days.
• Product– Teachers need to bolster their pedagogy with technology aids like pictographs, podcasts, AR VR, and digital apps. Searching just middle school Algebra gives out millions of options via website search engines. High-time schools and teachers started including technology to save time, high teacher-student engagement, and address diversified learning needs.
• Processes– At the core of the technology is Data. Technology should make pedagogy data-driven. Modern technology-enabled instruction must be embedded in the data derived from the inclusion of technology. This learning approach will ensure a more transparent approach to personalized learning. The strategies, processes, and goals are set and flexible enough to review and rework according to individual student learning needs. Workstations, simulated offices, workplaces, and learning stations- the innovative transformation of the physical structure of the classrooms will augment and support individualized learning.
• The benefits of including technology- customization, and scaffolding, create the potential to develop new learning environments that help students learn at their own pace and according to their competencies.
• The most important aspect of the process, however, remains student engagement. In a learner-driven environment where students have the freedom to voice their interests and approach to learning. Data should drive the path to education. Whether individual, in groups, or scaffolding, teachers should be able to use technology to drive instruction.

All in all, personalization entails starting the process of learning with the learner, connecting with their interests, passions, and aspirations, selecting appropriate technology and resources to support their learning, building a network of peers, experts, and teachers to guide the learning, and, lastly, implementing summative assessment not only of and for but also as learning. Personalized learning represents a shift away from the model in which students consume information through independent channels such as the library, a textbook, or a learning management system, moving instead to a model where students draw connections from a growing matrix of resources and take up responsibility for their own progress. In addition, PL enables the learner to continue learning after formal courses have ended and made lifelong learning possible.