IN Bethel Park Fall 2017 | Page 45

Education • Youth Development Activities – Students are given the opportunity to engage in hobbies outside of the classroom for the chance to find out what makes them excited to learn. TEACHING THE FUTURE Teachers are tasked every day with correcting spelling tests, entering grades, writing lesson plans, and now with integrating technology along the way. They would be doing their students a disservice if they choose to ignore the fact that technology has become woven into our daily lives, but they are taking cautious steps to ensure that they are using and teaching technology in a beneficial way. Doing so provides students with a fundamental approach to utilizing technology to increase productivity, access resources and to lay the groundwork for use in their future careers. Teachers continue to learn and grow through continuing education courses that allow them to integrate new methods for incorporating technology in the classroom to ultimately guide our students to a successful future. Providing students with access to technology in a structured setting provides them with the freedom to individually learn and discover solutions to real-world problems and prepare them for the future. Students have a paved path to achieve success with the help of cooperative, communal workspaces, online portals that encourage cross-collaboration, and support from their teachers, peers and parents. PERSONALIZED LEARNING FOR HIGH SCHOOL Personalized learning adapts a structured educational environment into a malleable approach to learning and teaching. Each learning style is different, and there is not one approach to teaching that fits them all. Personalized learning provides students with attainable success in the classroom by allowing teachers to understand the strengths and weaknesses of each individual student and adapt lesson plans to allow students to work at their own pace. Building Student Profiles: Personalized learning pulls from the strengths and weaknesses of individual students and tailors lessons to improve learning outcomes. Teachers are able to utilize these pathways to learning to guide their students to success. Digital Approach to Personalized Learning: Utilizing data from digital coursework provides an even stronger approach to personalized learning through analytics. These analytics monitor a student’s performance and can predict future patterns for learning, giving teachers the tools necessary to prepare an appropriate curriculum for their students. Teacher Adaptation: Teachers develop a new approach to instructing their students when adopting personalized learning. In a typical classroom, there are students who are ahead of the curve and students behind the curve, with very few considered to be on the curve. A teacher typically aims to teach on the curve, with students on either end falling short of their learning capabilities. Personalized learning gives faculty the ability to spend more time tailoring their approach on an individual level. Use Case: A high school in San Diego is currently implementing the personalized learning approach in classrooms after receiving a $10 million grant aimed at making high schools more personal. The effort launched two years ago with a small group of students. After seeing firsthand the academic success of these students, the school decided to take the approach school-wide by introducing one grade level every year, starting with the freshmen of 2017. 5 ONLINE EDUCATION TRENDS FOR COLLEGE Online education allows non-traditional students the opportunity to earn a degree without leaving the comfort of their own home. This educational approach has opened doors for individuals with circumstances prohibiting them from participating in on-campus education. Whether they are working full time, raising families, or they live in a different state, online education provides the opportunity to earn a degree remotely. According to U.S. News and World Report, the number of online students is continuing to grow and experts are predicting a number of trends within the next year for online learning. 1. Adoption of “Microcredentials” – As non-traditional students are on the rise, universities are developing multiple program levels since not everyone is looking to complete a four-year degree. Microcredentials offer certificate programs, digital “badges” of completion, and other types of credentials to prove successful completion of continued education coursework. 2. Tailored Curriculums from Data Insights – Since students complete all of their work online, universities are receiving data that is not typically available in a traditional classroom setting. Analytics teams are using this data to predict student success, and in turn, teachers are enhancing their curriculum to meet the needs of their students. 3. Artificial Intelligence – Universities are investing in artificial intelligence, such as virtual assistants, to provide an additional layer of support on top of that which students receive from their professors. 4. Nonprofit Programs – Experts are continuing to see a drop in for-profit programs as more nonprofits are ramping up their online education offerings. Nonprofit institutions are working to keep up with the demand for more online programs. 5. Ranging Disciplines – As online programs continue to grow, they are offering an increasing number of focus areas that may not have been thought of until recent years. Some students who already have degrees are looking for specialized programs to learn new technology in their field and to increase their knowledge and credibility. Continued on page 45 > Bethel Park | Fall 2017 | icmags.com 43