e-Learning Ecologies MOOC’s Updates
Personalized Learning
Balancing the requirements of the core curriculum with the freedom of differentiated learning is a challenge. Therefore, it's something to take place as a continuous process. The starting point, as I see, seems to be on our understanding that students are not homogeneous; thus, the institutionalized sameness has to be questioned. In other words, since every person is unique, why not start by providing our classes with various kinds of tasks which can go along with the profile of different students? This way, even though we are not doing as e-learning environments can do, in which each one works on what calls their attention the most, we are designing classes with the learners and their differences in mind. For me this is what could be considered personalized learning. What I would add here is that finding ways to connect with students' identities, thus working on personalized learning, does not necessarily mean acting upon their lifeworlds only. From my point of view, our educational challenge connects to taking students' lifeworlds into account, but giving them a chance to expand on it, to go beyond their current understanding and knowledge. Therefore, they would be producing their own textbooks, instead of consuming pre-conceived ones, as traditionally seen, especially in EFL teaching. It is about developing a sense of informed voice, through the articulation of different identities. In this sense, as an e-learning environment, Coursera and Scholar are good examples of personalized learning, since we have the chance to choose what interests us the most and read about and work on it, avoiding spending time on things we do not care about. This way, we are all doing different things despite being in the same course and having the same assignment. In other words, the paths we follow, even though guided, are different and entirely our responsibility.
I agree Astrid. I think getting polarised between the two extremes is dangerous. There is certainly need to teach basic functional literacy skills and then there is need to teach 21st Century skills. Essentially the pathways must allow for continued exploration and function therefore like mentorship, where the apprentice masters the basics before creating his/her own work.
In differentiation lifeworlds should certainly be taken into context but also basic cognitive/functional literacy starting levels irrespective of the students grade is important. Technology can be hugely beneficial in determining starting levels and then also being used as the content delivery mechanism, targeted at the student level, while the teacher acts as coach/guide/mentor for exploring further.
Yes to all above, but ... Isn't it true in every community and society that a certain amount of basic skills and knowledge has to be taught in order for the individuals to then decide what they like the most and be able to explore their likes?
So, be all about the individual won't work right away. does that mean, we have to offer similar starts to all and each and after - say - 4 years of basic teaching, give them free range ... or perhaps just teach reading and writing as well as basic math skills and let the first ones go free after a shorter period ...
Just wondering - what do you think?