Competency Education and Personalized Learning
This short video produced by KnowledgeWorks provides an introduction to the concepts and need for competency-based learning. The video discusses students’ learning differences and shows the potentially negative impact of the traditional system in which students can advance from grade to grade without mastering all the foundational skills they will need for the next grade… Read More ›
How Lobsters are Keeping Students in School
This article explores the move to a personalized learning program in one small rural community in Maine. Deer Isle-Stonington High School was struggling with one of the highest dropout rates in the state, losing many students early to the lobster fishing industry that is the life-blood of the town. A school improvement plan, begun in… Read More ›
Civic Engagement in the Digital Age
This video introduces Educating for Democracy in the Digital Age, a partnership between Civic Engagement Research Group, the National Writing Project, and Oakland Unified School District, to bring more civic engagement opportunities to all youth in Oakland, California. The project supports teachers as well as educating the community about the importance of civic engagement. Through… Read More ›
High Schools Create Career Connections
This article explores a modern approach to career and technical education. Using school examples from all over the country, the author introduces a broad array of career programs in a number of industries from film to medicine. In all of the examples, education and industry leaders have worked together to identify the skills needed for… Read More ›
Personalized Learning: How Kids are Getting into College by Mastering Their Skills
In this article, Brian Stack, a Principal from New Hampshire, explores parents’ fears that because colleges do not understand competency education, attendance at a high school implementing this student-centered approach could harm their child’s admissions chances. First, this principal provides a simple overview of competency education for families. Next, he describes competency education efforts at… Read More ›
Most Likely To Succeed Videos and Prompts
The film Most Likely To Succeed (MLTS) has been used by many communities as a catalyst for discussion about the future of education in their community. After receiving ideas and feedback from viewers, the developers have used clips from the film to create a series of prompts to help school communities delve further into the… Read More ›
Putting Students at the Center: Research Shows Student-Centered Approaches Result in Achievement and Engagement
This article, written by President and CEO of the Nellie Mae Education Foundation (NMEF), Nicholas C. Donohue, discusses the positive impact of student-centered learning practices on the achievement gap. He reviews several studies of school programs that show students in learner-centered classrooms outperform their peers in more traditional school settings; with the highest gains occurring… Read More ›
Blended Learning Magnifies a Teacher’s Power
In this article, Cindy Elsberry, the former superintendent of Horry County Schools in South Carolina, a high-poverty district which won national acclaim for its digital transformation, discusses the importance of blended learning. First, she outlines the six main types of blended learning models used to combine online learning with direct instruction to create a personalized… Read More ›
Pocket Connector: How Texting Helps One High School Teacher Break Barriers and Forge New Bonds with Families
This article describes a unique way one teacher is connecting with parents. ELL teacher, Jessica Lander, uses the free texting app, Remind, which allows her to send text messages to parents in 84 languages and for them to respond to her. This technology has allowed her to reach families with whom she could not communicate given… Read More ›
Maine Voices: Casco Bay High Shines as Joyful Example of Learning’s Expedition
In this post, Derek Pierce, Principal of Casco Bay High School in Portland, Maine writes about his school’s student-centered program and the state’s transition to a proficiency-based model for all schools. Casco Bay High School embraces a competency-based learning environment focused on interdisciplinary group projects. This model school continues to achieve a high retention and… Read More ›
Student-Centered Learning Can Modernize Schools
In this commentary, Nellie Mae Education Foundation (NMEF) President and CEO, Nicholas Donohue, begins by stating that our education system is not broken, but outdated. He notes the system in fact does just what it was designed to do 100 years ago, cull out the best students and leave the rest to work in factories… Read More ›
Can Students Click Their Way to a Better World?
In this article, Chris Berdik, science journalist and author, explores why technology could be the key to better civics education for young people today. He argues the national trend of low levels of civics proficiency is the result of an outdated approach to teaching civics. Instead, teachers should use technology to engage students. The article… Read More ›