Personalized Learning with iPads

Personalized learning is a teaching method in which technology, activities, and assessments are tailored to meet the students’ individual needs and preferences. There are four key components of personalized learning: autonomy, competence, relatedness, and relevance. It is crucial that the learning environment is student-centered and their needs come first and foremost. When students can take charge and have a say in their learning, they become excited and proactive in the classroom! This can be easily integrated into the curriculum by taking a couple of simple steps. Teachers must be sure to focus on the students and their learning – not the tools being used or the grades. Also, it is beneficial to foster a growth mindset when using this type of instruction. This type of curriculum and learning environment has shown to produce powerful learners that are able to think critically and reflect on their learning. Also, the students get to know themselves better. They begin to realize their strengths and weaknesses, interests, and learning styles that are best suited for them. In this type of environment, students become partners with the educators and work together to come up with a curriculum that will ensure meaningful learning. As an educator, the key to success with personalized learning is getting to genuinely know the students! When we understand our students – their wants, needs, preferences, and learning styles – we can adjust our instruction to better suit them. As a result, they are interested in learning and grasp concepts in ways that may not have been able to do in the past!