School, university, society… all of them are subject to the multiple changes our globalized world is experiencing. In today’s society, learning goes beyond attending school and taking notes in classes; it’s about cooperative and personalized learning where learners play an important and much more active role than usual. What happens when we apply this way of acquiring knowledge in the classroom?
Personalized Education
When we talk about personalized learning, there are no learning goals for all students; instead, the learning objectives and methods and the pace are adapted to the individual. Group and personal motivation are fundamental, so children should be encouraged, as needed, and made to understand the importance of cooperation among group members. Students acquire content not only through the delivery of work material but also learn along the way, with personal responsibility and self-management.
This objective is achieved at various levels. Students are free to choose the topics they want to learn or repeat from a wide range of digital formats: they can get an overview of the topic in summaries, watch short films, instructional videos, etc. In this sense, students work connected in a network to check their performance based on various analyses and statistics. Different types of tasks that go beyond the book, Wikipedia, and summaries can be presented as a didactic game (both individual and collective to promote cooperation) on a specific topic, thus promoting student motivation.
Teachers must develop skills to fulfill the role of “coaches, learning companions” and, in this way, integrate with blended learning based on the web and in the classroom; all of this requires the support and collaboration of schools and parents of the students. Training programs in educational coaching contribute to new generations being better prepared and with more resources adapted to their needs.
For the educational approach of personalized learning, therefore, arises:
– Respectful treatment of freedom with responsibility and commitment of individuals.
– The promotion of the ability to communicate and interact.
– The need for personal and comprehensive training with the aim of creating responsible personalities and promoting social interaction.
It is an education based on competencies rather than on fulfilling an academic curriculum, which means that the individuality and personality of the students will be the axis of the educational work, emphasizing the principles of individualization, heterogeneity, diversity and sustainability, and the tension between individualism and social cooperation.
Characteristics of Personalized Learning
Personalized learning fundamentally depends on the individual and their personal needs. It must be important to the student; oriented to their own interests and by their own initiative. The speed at which this occurs depends mainly on the learner who, in the long run, becomes their own coach and others give them what he/she needs.
This, however, should not be confused with indifference or laissez-faire. Skill, knowledge, and specific technical content are, therefore, a right and a necessity, so they will be continuously reviewed with the learner as the main responsible party and teachers as facilitators and/or companions. To correctly carry out this process, educators need to train with programs such as the Master in Educational Coaching, which allows you to obtain the necessary knowledge for the development of an educational project and know how to carry it out.
This personalized learning can be successful; however, a series of factors must be met: it must be open, inclusive, and generalizable; otherwise, it is almost impossible.
The achievement of each student’s objectives must be reviewed periodically, either in the form of tests, evidence of learning, or simply through dialogue with the student. Of course, it must be complemented with the standard curriculum evaluation structure.
However, personalized learning is a more active, conscious way of learning that promotes student autonomy and self-motivation. In this sense, personalized learning is no longer a utopia; it is a reality and a necessity.