Stakeholders throughout the education field are asking how student-centered approaches might address inequities and challenges. Some schools already utilizing a personalized, competency-based approach have found the transition to remote learning less difficult, though the articles below make a case for adopting competency-based approaches during remote learning – and in the future.
Eric Hudson
From the perspective of a school offering passion-based online courses, this article explores the ways in which competency-based learning in an online environment can create a dynamic, meaningful experience for students. Staff from the Global Online Academy share six strategies for planning competency-based online courses that schools could apply to enrich remote learning this year.
Donna M. Neary
A teacher in Kentucky shares her experience piloting a competency-based program with English language learners. She discusses how a mastery-based approach sparked student agency and led to a dynamic, inquiry-based culture. She goes on to share how she has transferred these lessons to her new classroom, advocating for the advantages of a personalized, learner-centered approach to remote learning.
Lindsy Ogawa
This article asks us to take a step back and look at the disruption of “normal” as an opportunity to build a more learner-focused education system. The authors encourage all stakeholders to honor the voices of youth and their families in this conversation. They are pushing the field, encouraging the creation of more open-walled experiences for youth with personalized, competency-based learning paths, and asking tough questions about the new systems, structures and policies that will be needed to support such a vision.
Eliot Levine
Because flex schedules are an important part of putting high-quality competency-based education into practice, this article examines new approaches to scheduling. The piece describes key elements such as varied pacing, targeted supports for all students and performance-based assessments and how they can be implemented more effectively with flexible scheduling.
Lillian Pace
At the Hall-Dale Middle and High School in Hallowell, Maine, school and classroom leaders have implemented seven strategies to help those students farthest behind. Learn from their experiences implementing student-centered and competency-based education with educator collaboration, formative assessments and intervention week.