Guide to the Competency-based Learning Survey for Students
This guide includes the ‘Competency-based Learning Survey for Students’ and additional instructions to support its implementation. The survey was designed to help schools and districts collect data directly from high school students. It looks at students’ beliefs about, exposure to, and understanding of key elements of competency-based learning. This survey was designed by the Regional Education… Read More ›
Can Administrators Lead Innovation Without Blended Learning Experience?
This podcast, part of the Edsurge on Air series, is an interview with Stepan Mekhitarian, the Blended Learning Coordinator for the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD). Mekhitarian has been a math teacher and administrator and researched effective blended learning as part of a doctoral study. He is currently collaborating with administrators, schools, and teachers to expand efforts for… Read More ›
Bronx Arena High School Multimedia Monograph
This multimedia monograph features Bronx Arena High School, an innovative, competency-based school serving historically marginalized youth in New York City. The school’s mission is to empower over-age under-credited students to graduate ready for college or a career. The multimedia monograph is an interactive case study that features video interviews with students and staff. It brings… Read More ›
See How States Plan to Approach Equity
This article summarizes recommendations from the report “Leading For Equity: Opportunities for State Education Chiefs”, released by The Council of Chief State School Officers and the Aspen Institute Education and Society Program. The recommendations were created by state chiefs, district leaders, civil rights advocates, and other stakeholders. The article outlines 10 areas state leaders can focus on to… Read More ›
Research Collaborative Seminar: Encouraging and Sustaining Competency-Based Learning Environments
The January installment of the Research Collaborative Seminar series features Paul Leather, former New Hampshire Deputy Commissioner of Education, Research Collaborative advisor, and nationally renowned leader in student-centered reforms. His presentation, “Encouraging and Sustaining Competency-Based Learning Environments: Lessons from New Hampshire,” focuses on what works, and, just as importantly, what doesn’t work when implementing competency-based… Read More ›
What is Unique About the Researcher’s Role in Measuring Blended Learning Success
In this blog post, Saro Mohammed challenges researchers to go beyond simply gathering evidence. She argues that education researchers, especially those researching personalization and blended learning, are in a unique position to help scale up implementation of evidence-based practices. Because the rapid progress of instructional innovation often outpaces traditional research and dissemination methods, she offers… Read More ›
Education Reimagined Website
Education Reimagined is an initiative of The Convergence Center for Policy Resolution, a nonprofit focused on solving social challenges through collaboration. Education Reimagined works to accelerate the growth and impact of the Learner-Centered Education Movement in the United States by finding and encouraging innovators, bringing stakeholders together, and educating the broader community. Educators and community… Read More ›
What’s the Deal with Proficiency Based Learning?
This whiteboard presentation gives an excellent overview of proficiency-based learning for students, narrated by students. It outlines key reasons students should be excited about proficiency-based learning. The student narrators describe the benefits of a more accurate assessment system which recognizes failure as a step in the learning process, a personalized approach, and the ability to… Read More ›
Flexible Pathways to Graduation: Six Vermont High School Students
This video, created by UP for Learning as part of their Communicating School Redesign efforts (partnering with Ned), features six Vermont high school students describing how they have used multiple pathways to personalize and direct their own learning. The students in the video are using a combination of community/work-based learning, virtual and blended learning, dual enrollment, early… Read More ›
CTE in High School: Does It Improve Student Outcomes?
In this article, researchers Shaun Dougherty and Dara Zeehandelaar describe results from their study showing positive outcomes for students who participated in Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs. They note that CTE programs may increase student engagement by connecting learning at school with real world use. The article outlines some of the failures of older… Read More ›
Students at the Center: Personalized Learning with Habits of Mind
This archived webinar from the Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) discusses the book Students at the Center: Personalized Learning with Habits of Mind, written by Bena Kallick and Allison Zmuda. The authors discuss the four attributes they feel are critical to personalized learning: voice, cocreation, social construction, and self-discovery. They note that a… Read More ›
Case Stories From One Middle School’s Efforts for Partnership
This article is written by Students at the Center Distinguished Fellow Dr. Frank LaBanca, principal of Westside Middle School Academy Magnet, as part of volume 10 of the educational journal LEARNing Landscapes. The article highlights his successes and challenges as principal of a start-up urban magnet middle school committed to a student-centered inquiry-based learning environment that values extended… Read More ›