CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
Introduction
The goal of any educator is to meet students where they are and help them grow academically. Since students do not all learn in the same manner, differentiated instruction is needed to meet the diverse needs of students today. One way to differentiate instruction is through personal learning environments (PLEs). PLEs are platforms that help learners manage and take control of their learning; they are a combination of tools, communities, and services that help learners direct their own learning and reach educational goals. PLEs help students develop autonomy and it prepares them for lifelong learning. Implementing PLEs in a public school could help to close gaps between low performing students
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PLEs employ different tools that help manage learning. For example, portfolios or e-portfolios allows learners to house completed work and share that work with teachers as needed. Collaboration tools allow learners to connect with one another on social networking sites in order to work together to complete projects and other assignments. Managing and planning tools allow learners to create to-do lists set goals. Journals, such as blogs, help learners record and reflect on their work. Last, a content repository affords students the opportunity to keep videos, websites, and/or shared files. These different tools are not independent of each other; they may be intertwined and interchangeable. Learners use PLEs that are most beneficial to them and at times that are most conducive for their schedule. In order for PLEs to be effective, educators must help learners develop the skills to be an autonomous learner.
• “Learning management systems traditionally provide structures to guide online learners to achieve their learning goals” (Tu, Sujo-Montes, Yen, Chan, & Blocher, 2012, p. 13). Technologies, such as Web 2.0, allow learners to create, share, and organize PLEs in open network environments. In addition, this platform allows students to collaborate and engage in social networking. According to Tu et al., educators integrate Web 2.0 technologies to support online learning management system (LMS)
In educational and school settings the curriculum is constantly changing, as well as the different styles of teaching pedagogies that educators use on a daily basis to match the types of learning of each child within their classroom. Educators strive to bring out the best within their pupils and through using personalised learning this can be done efficiently supplying the child with the correct type
This section of the encyclopedia talks about what students and teachers can contribute to online learning environment. It talks about who the average online learner is and the online relationship between the student and the teacher, and the student and their peers. Above all the author stresses that thinking differently is important to make online education work.
My organization uses an LMS to help teachers and students in the teaching and learning process. Teachers have the possibility not only to create lesson plans and quizzes but also to communicate with each other and with students and parents. Also, it can create a networking connection. “The functionality available in today’s learning management systems can help teachers create lessons and resources that engage their students, and deliver personalized learning” (Kilfoyle, 2015).
Most individuals are finding the online world flexible and convenient, and accurately matching their objectives and busy kind of lives. Online learning capabilities have proliferated and have ensured vital knowledge and skills for the learners. Students can easily locate various learning programs online, and these are always accessible and convenient for any interested party in the online fraternity. However, there are few challenges that are associated with the online world, but the educators have provided succinct methods that can be used by learners to develop knowledge and skills that are associated with the learning platform.
The E-Learning Team is tasked to pick the right technology to meet the high demand of training. They will choose the applications to build the E-Learning courses, a robust LMS to house them and track down training completion, and utilize the Web 2.0
ELL students usually arrive to class with a variety of academic abilities. Teachers can use technology to personalize learning by developing individualized learning plans and resources that addresses and meets the needs of students with varying academic skills. Some of the benefits of using technology in the classroom is scaffolding lessons, which allows the advanced student to progress at his own pace while offering support to the beginning
The online educational environment is increasingly being used by students and should be designed based on the needs of online learners. According to Felder (1996),”learning styles are characteristic strengths and preferences in the way [learners] take in and process information.” We are the next generation of student online learners so we should put everything we learn online into our daily agendas in everyday life.
Personal learning plans (abbreviated as PLPs) are established by students usually in partnership with their teachers, counselors, advisors, and parents as a way to support them achieve short- and long-term learning goals, most commonly at the middle school and high school levels. Personal learning plans are centered on the belief that students will be more inspired to learn, will achieve more in school, and will feel a stronger sense of ownership over their education if they decide what they want to learn, how they are going to learn it, and why they need to learn it to achieve their personal, educational, career, and life goals. The general goal of a personal learning plan is to bring greater consistency, emphasis, and purpose or determination
One of today’s curriculum and instructional trends is geared toward personalized learning. This trend is called many different things: “individualized education plans”, “out-comes based learning” and “learning analytics” to name a few. Whatever term one uses, this educational trend has a profound impact on learners, teachers, curriculum and spiritual growth.
With all of the new technology and services being implemented, it may seem that they will be replacing the traditional methods of education. However, this is not the case, both Hallett and Ringenberg agree that a combination of traditional methods and the new ones, are necessary to create an optimal learning environment.“The terminology is blended learning”, says Ringenberg, “what we’re trying to teach teachers to do, is to incorporate different ways of improving the learning process using LMS, so it's not simply to replace pen and paper, but to be able to do more with technology than we could do
The debate of personalized learning has risen up in school districts all across the United States. Hearing about the personalization of learning, which is a structured curriculum solely based on the students needs. Teachers soon turn into tutors, helping each individual student with their own struggles and questions. Since each student has their own schedule, classrooms aren’t conducted in the same manner - students are glued to their own computers in the classroom. This means no projects, no field trips and no learning methods to grasp the students attention and get them on bored with learning. With that said, not one learning method is guaranteed to suit all students. Supposedly, personalized
Computer based learning, as it stands, has plenty of disadvantages, but many in business and educational arenas remain optimistic about its future. There are two indisputable truths about computer-based learning, or e-learning. First, it will revolutionize education and second, such a future is just around the block. Educational experts agree that most types of study are not yet effective when delivered purely online, mainly because of bandwidth limitations, expensive set-up costs, continued resistance to the medium and a shortage of quality course content.
It is unclear if students actually need all the functions and features available in today’s LMS. What are the functions and features that matter the most, and that are used most commonly by the students? (Meyer, 2012) One of the changes that would enhance the student experience would be for students to have the capability to upload videos or on the discussion board if students are on simultaneously, they should gave the capability to go live and interact with each other. This would definitely stimulate their learning and be engaging. In addition, students would not feel so isolated when working.
Learning is more than just receiving information. Traditionally learning was to be in campus, where students would interact with one a another, there were no other ways for learners to get educated beside going to the classroom and listening to the instructor. Nowadays the Internet has brought different ways for people to receive information, such as getting education and degrees online. A few years ago online education was never thinkable, and yet it has become to reality and it is widely expanding with popularity. Online education is a type of educational instruction that delivers learning to individuals to their own homes, and it is getting very popular among nontraditional student and others. Individuals prefer online education
With the realization that not every child is the same, or learns the same as another, teachers need to take the steps necessary to ensure that their students are all getting educational opportunities that work the best for them. The idea of personalized learning has been around for quite some time, yet not all teachers seem to have the same understanding of what it is and how it works. The article “What is ‘Personalized Learning’? Educators Seek Clarity”, mentions three important aspects of the problem; an outline of the general solution, emphasizes “essential elements”, and brings the problem into the hands of students. Teachers need to have a basic understanding on how to personalize their students learning because every child learns differently from the next.