Fostering a classroom in which you're personalizing learning for each child can seem like a daunting challenge. The truth is it need not be if you start small. There's no sense in diving in headfirst and hoping for the best. After all, you've got a lot of students, learning styles, and interests to cover. And the best thing is there are ways you can begin doing it right away.
You may not be able to do it all in one shot, but you can take the first steps. There are four useful ones to be found in Linda Pruett's article 4 Steps Towards A More Personal Classroom.
Here is a fine definition of personalized learning from the Glossary of Education Reform:
"The term personalized learning ... refers to a diverse variety of educational programs, learning experiences, instructional approaches, and academic support strategies that are intended to address the distinct learning needs, interests, aspirations, or cultural backgrounds of individual students ... Personalized learning may also be called student-centered learning since the general goal is to make individual learning needs the primary consideration in important educational and instructional decisions ..."
In her article, Linda provides a much more personal view of what personalizing learning means for both learner and teacher:
"It is meeting the kids where they are – and then helping them grow in their strengths, and better see themselves. It’s finding out where each student’s interests lie, challenging them to grow in their individual interests, and then celebrating their growth! It is student-centered, student-driven, and student-celebrated."
So there you have it—no matter how you slice it, the learners' individual needs come first in the personal classroom. Now let's take a brief look at Linda's suggested steps toward making it happen.
Learn more about these steps in Linda's full article on TeachThought.
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