Student-Centered Learning: Functional Requirements for Integrated - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Student-Centered Learning: Functional Requirements for Integrated Systems to Optimize Learning Liz Glowa and Jim Goodell

Webinar Agenda Overview and Objectives Introductions Why Student-centered Learning? What is “student-centered learning? What are the Implications? Designing for Student-Centered Learning Standards and Interoperability Questions and Discussion

Session Focus During this session we will be focus on the following questions: What is “student-centered learning?” • What are the implications for how technology can support student- • centered learning? What might a student-centered learning integrated information system • “look like”? What are some of the education data and interoperability standards • that should be considered? Link to the paper: Student-Centered Learning: Functional Requirements for Integrated Systems to Optimize Learning

Webinar Agenda Overview and Objectives Introductions Why Student-centered Learning? What is “student-centered learning? What are the Implications? Designing for Student-Centered Learning Standards and Interoperability Questions and Discussion

Why Student-Centered Learning? A plethora of data show that poor student outcomes continue to plague our nation's schools and that current efforts to make improvements are not having the depth of impact needed for today’s and tomorrow’s world. We’ll examine four areas of data that support the need for transforming our schools to focusing on every student in their instructional and support approaches using student-centered learning.

Student Engagement 19% of students fail to graduate from high school in four § years Students who have dropped out of school have indicated § 5 major factors related to their dropping out. They are: 1) A lack of connection to the school environment 2) The perception that school is boring 3) Feeling unmotivated 4) Academic challenges 5) The weight of real world events Over two-thirds of students in grades 6-8 (67%) wish that § their classes were more interesting and 50% say they are frequently bored in school. Fall 2014 Speak Up data Across the nation, 5 to 7.5 million students are § chronically absent .

Achievement Gaps 86.6 percent of white students, 75.2 percent of Hispanic • students and 70.7 percent of African American students graduated on time. (2013 DOE data) Achievement Student Gaps Engagement In 2014, the gap narrowed between racial groups. But • fewer than half of the states saw gaps shrink between low-income children and their more affluent peers; between English language learners and native English Characteristic Workforce speakers; and between children with disabilities and all of Today’s Preparedness students. Learners (Washington Post, High School Graduation Rates are on the Rise in Most States, 10/19/2015) Despite improvements in overall student achievement § and engagement, gaps between groups persist, with gaps being more significant and increasing at the high school level. 28% - 40% of those high school graduates who enter two- • and four-year institutions must take remediation courses. (Hanover Research, 201; http://www.ncsl.org/research/education/improving-college-completion- reforming-remedial.aspx2)

Workforce Preparedness 65% of jobs will require some level of postsecondary § education by 2020. (Georgetown University Public Policy Institute Center on Education and the Workforce, 2013) Student 60% of employers say it is difficult to find qualified Achievement § Engagement Gaps employees, especially those with “soft skills” such as work ethic, accountability, and self-motivation. (US DoE, 2013 ) Employers are challenged in finding employees who are Characteristic § Workforce of Today’s Preparedness able to demonstrate the capacity to perform non-routine Learners skills (such as abstract reasoning and collaboration) and adapt and contribute as the demands of their jobs fluctuate. 59% of adults aged 18 to 35 said they developed most of § the skills they use in their current job outside of school. (Gallup, 2013)

Characteristics of Today’s Learners Today’s learners are: § o Independent thinkers o Multi-taskers o Collaborative learners Student Achievement Engagement Gaps o Digital learners o Tech users (cell phones, tablets, laptops, computers, and gaming consoles) Characteristic Workforce Furthermore, today’s learners have: § of Today’s Preparedness Learners o Near instantaneous access to the world o Access to multiple and diverse perspectives o High expectations for speediness / immediate access to information o College- and career-ready graduation expectations o Different learning paces and aptitudes o Different experiences and background knowledge than their peers o Learning experiences both in and outside of school (Palfrey, J. & Gasser, 2008; Aspen Institute, 2014; Perry, Stallworth & Fink, 2013; Lemley, Schumacher & Versey, 2014; Roadmap21.org, 2015)

What is Student-Centered Learning? Student-centered learning (SCL) is a force of innovation that requires fundamental change to the traditional teaching and learning construct.

Student-Centered Learning The Nellie Mae Foundation has developed four tenets based on the mind/brain sciences, learning theory, and research on youth development. • Learning is Personalized • Learning is Competency- based • Learning Happens Anytime, Anywhere • Students Take Ownership Over Their Learning These four tenets are essential to students’ full engagement in achieving deeper learning outcomes and enabling all students to master what they need to know and be able to do to succeed in college, careers, and civic life. http://www.nmefoundation.org/our-vision.

Learning is Personalized Students engage in learning in different ways • and in different places. Students benefit from individually-paced, • targeted learning tasks that start from where the student is, – formatively assess existing skills and – knowledge, provide ample, frequent, and actionable – feedback from multiple sources, and address the student’s needs and interests. – Learning is deepened and reinforced through • participation in collaborative group work, – focused on engaging and increasingly complex and authentic problems and projects, and through relationships and community – structures in the larger learning environment beyond the classroom itself (e.g., advisory groups, mentoring, internships, community support partnerships).

Learning is Competency-Based • Students move ahead when they have demonstrated mastery of competencies, not when they’ve reached a certain birthday or meet the required hours in a classroom. competency • Competencies are defined by explicit learning pathways objectives that empower students. links to activities, resources, • Students have multiple means and opportunities to assessment, etc. demonstrate mastery with meaningful assessments such as performance-based and other assessments. • Each student is assured of the scaffolding and differentiated support needed to keep progressing at a pace appropriate to reaching college and career and civic outcomes, even when unequal resources are required to achieve a more equitable result. http://www.inacol.org/our-work/

Competency Education: A Working Definition 1. Students advance upon mastery. 2. Competencies include explicit, measurable, transferable learning objectives that empower students. 3. Assessment is meaningful and a positive learning experience for students. 4. Students receive timely, differentiated support based on their individual learning needs. 5. Learning outcomes emphasize competencies that include application and creation of knowledge, along with the development of important skills and dispositions. -Patrick & Sturgis

Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium’s Proficiency-Based Learning Task Force Definition Students advance upon demonstration of mastery of content, 21st century skills, • and dispositions that prepare them for college and careers. Learning standards are explicit, understood by students, and measurable. • Assessments – formative, interim, and summative – measure and promote learning. • Demonstration of learning uses a variety of assessment methods including in-depth • performance assessments that expect application of learning. Instruction is personalized, flexible, and adaptable to student needs – both initially • and as required by student learning. Students both direct and lead their learning even as they learn from and with • others – both within and outside of school. Grading is used as a form of communication for students, parents, and teachers – • not control or punishment. KnowledgeWorks, Competency Education Series: Policy Brief One, April 2013

Learning Happens Anytime, Anywhere Learning takes place during and beyond the • traditional school day, and even the school year. The school’s walls are permeable--learning • is not restricted to the classroom. Time and place are used flexibly, in ways • that optimize and extend student learning and that allow for educators to engage in reflection and planning. Students have equitable opportunities to • take advantage of digital technologies that can enhance learning. Students can receive credit for the learning • they do outside of school, based on their demonstration of skills and knowledge.