Let’s get connected through personalized learning.

Key Takeaway: The reflections from students, teachers, and parents in this study show how the personalized learning experience not only produced expert learners but connected members of the learning community, which proved to be a meaningful and valuable experience to all involved. —Nika Espinosa

Summary: Suzanne Porath (Department of Curriculum and Instruction at Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS) and Dana Hagerman (College of Education and Professional Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, Whitewater, WI) ask the question:

“In what ways, if any, can a personalized, learner-centered environment, as implemented at Rolling Hills Middle School, develop the principles of connected learning?”

According to Porath and Hagerman,

“Connected learning is a form of personalized learning that can renew classrooms and schools to not only focus on the needs and interests of the learner but can support learners in making connections with their experiences, peers and teachers, content standards, multiple disciplines, and the community.”

In their study, 55 8th grade students were provided with two, 2-hour classes. The first of two classes was a STEM class with a combination of science, mathematics, engineering, and technology, and the second class was a humanities class incorporating social studies and literacies. The students spent the remainder of the day taking their specialist classes.

Feedback from students, parents, and teachers was analyzed by organizing comments into categories. In the first cycle of data analysis, a few categories emerged as most prevalent: family/community, peers, standards/learning, projects, student interests, and connections.

Key takeaways are focused on the principles and design of connected learning that relate to Wolfe and Poon’s Personalized Learning:1

Interest-powered: One of the early findings during the study was that a lot of students found it challenging to find their own interests. As a result, developing learner profiles to allow the students to reflect was something the teachers felt was necessary to implement the year after.
Peer-supported: Students and parents both highlighted the impact of the intentional development of a peer-supported learning community. One student reflected on the shift from working with just their friends at the beginning of the year to working with other students in the classroom. They realized that everyone works differently and found peers they worked well with.
Academically-oriented: Academic standards and aligned learning objectives were transparent to the students, and the students had a voice in determining when and how they were going to meet them. One student described the process as “learning how to take standards and take things that people want us to meet and create a unique project that will meet those.” By having teachers take on a facilitating role, students were able to design lessons that showcased their skills.
Production-centered: Student interest, choice, and peer support were integral to the projects throughout the year. There was a shift towards the end of the year from teacher-guided products to products that were less restricting, as students gained experiences in their personalized journeys
Shared purpose: Teachers and students both recognized that standards needed to be achieved and that there was a shared purpose of learning. Learning experiences moved from teacher-developed to student-created. A culture was created where student opinion was factored into the development of creating these environments.
Openly networked: Porath and Hagerman quotes Ito et al., “Learners flourish and realize their potential when they can connect their interests and social engagement to academic studies, civic engagement, and career opportunity.”2 Combining different subjects, such as science and math and humanities and language arts, provides the students with opportunities to make connections in their learning.

Article Summarized:

Porath, S., & Hagerman, D. (2021). Becoming connected learners through personalized learning. Middle School Journal, 52(2), 26-37.

Summary By: Nika Espinosa – Nika believes that personalized learning is at the heart of special education and strives to collaborate with educators in providing a holistic, personalized approach to supporting all learners through the MARIO Framework.

_{Additional References:}

_{Wolfe, R. E., & Poon, J. D. (2015). Educator Competencies for Personalized, Learner-Centered Teaching. Jobs For the Future.}
_{Ito, M., Gutiérrez, K., Livingstone, S., Penuel, B., Rhodes, J., Salen, K., … & Watkins, S. C. (2013). Connected learning: An agenda for research and design. Digital Media and Learning Research Hub.}

Article Abstract

This individual differences study examined the separability of three often postulated executive functions-mental set shifting (“Shifting”), information updating and monitoring (“Updating”), and inhibition of prepotent responses (“Inhibition”)-and their roles in complex “frontal lobe” or “executive” tasks. One hundred thirty-seven college students performed a set of relatively simple experimental tasks that are considered to predominantly tap each target executive function, as well as a set of frequently used executive tasks: the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST), Tower of Hanoi (TOH), random number generation (RNG), operation span, and dual tasking. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated that the three target executive functions are moderately correlated with one another, but are clearly separable. Moreover, structural equation modeling suggested that the three functions contribute differentially to performance on complex executive tasks. Specifically, WCST performance was related most strongly to Shifting, TOH to Inhibition, RNG to Inhibition and Updating, and operation span to Updating. Dual task performance was not related to any of the three target functions. These results suggest that it is important to recognize both the unity and diversity of executive functions and that latent variable analysis is a useful approach to studying the organization and roles of executive functions.

MARIO Connections

This study enriched our understanding of executive functions and how they interact or operate independently depending upon the task a student engages in. This increased awareness is present in both the design of our course elementary EF skills module and throughout the MARIO Framework when self-directed learning is referenced.

Article Abstract

Zimmerman outlines his personal connections to his work and motivations for engaging in this type of research, stating, “My career path to understanding the source and nature of human learning started with an interest in social processes, especially cognitive modeling, and has led to the exploration of self-regulatory processes. My investigation of these processes has prompted the development of several social cognitive models: a triadic model that synthesized covert, behavioral, and environmental sources of personal feedback, a multilevel model of training that begins with observational learning and proceeds sequentially to self-regulation, and a cyclical phase model that depicts the interaction of metacognitive and motivational processes during efforts to learn.” In this article, empirical support for each of these models is discussed, including its implications for formal and informal forms of instruction. This self-regulation research has revealed that students who set superior goals proactively, monitor their learning intentionally, use strategies effectively, and respond to personal feedback adaptively not only attain mastery more quickly, but also are more motivated to sustain their efforts to learn. Recommendations for future research are made.

MARIO Connections

Zimmerman’s work is key to MARIO’s vision of self-directed learning and the process through which metacognition and metacomprehension develop. Throughout the entire Framework, one can find echoes of Zimmerman’s discussion of the development of self-regulation.