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Thank You for 20 "Mo" Years.

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After 20 years of teaching at Brookfield Central, I am saying goodbye. Although I spent the majority of that time in the physics classroom alongside my learners. That changed for my last 18 weeks. I ended up in a place similar to where I started, teaching chemistry and biology. So, rather than dealing with juniors and seniors at the end of their high school careers, I was in classrooms with freshmen and sophomores still trying to find their place. At the same time, I was learning and teaching a set curriculum I hadn't taught in over a decade. So, we were learning. But, of course, I already knew the content.  The point of this post is to take a step back, reflect, and share the gratitude from the last students I had in my 20 years at Brookfield Central High School, as expressed through the cards and notes they made for me on my last day with them.  I don't take many "yay me" moments. But after 20 years, I'll soak this one in.
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Personalized Learning is Visible Learning

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During a discussion on Personalizing Learning lead by Dr. James Rickabaugh, he recommended Visible Learning by John Hattie as good source for the research that went into some of the practice behind the personal learning framework.  I was able to read Visible Learning for Teachers by John Hattie over the weekend and was able to see how the data backed up many of the practices behind the personalized learning framework.  At the heart of it all though is that students take control of their own learning to greater degree.

I attempt to summarize my learning, I created the diagram below.  I want to use it as a guide for design and implementation of learning in my classroom.  I made it in a couple of hours so this is really just a first draft.  Any feedback would be appreciated!






Here's a more dynamic view of the Google Drawing:




What sticks out to me is that the student is identifying gaps, planning how to close those gaps, and monitoring progress towards meeting that goal.

The teacher is communicating outcomes and providing a variety of strategies to students to meet those outcomes.  Also, providing quality and relevant feedback about progress.  Also, the teacher uses assessment not to simply judge student progress, but to adapt the instruction.

As I move through the summer and redesign and improve my course design, I will be using this template to help guide my efforts.

But the data in John Hattie's book tells the story. Looking at the elements that have high effect are central to the personalized learning model.






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