Dive Brief:
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The McComb School District in McComb, MS, is using technology to create individualized “learning labs” within grade-level organizational frameworks so students can work at various subject learning levels rather than arbitrary grade-level designations.
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Scaled scores on tests given to students translate into learning levels that allow students to move ahead in areas in which they excel, and the model provides personalized remediation for areas in which they fall behind.
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Though the learning model does seem to motivate students by giving them ownership over their education, administrators note that it creates a steep learning curve for teachers and causes some confusion for parents and other stakeholders who relate to more traditional models of determining academic achievement.
Dive Insight:
All educators know that children learn at different rates in different subject areas. The challenge for teachers and administrators is implementing this knowledge in a classroom setting where a single teacher is required to manage the educational growth of multiple students. The increase in educational technology is allowing self-paced mastery learning to occur in a more manageable fashion.
Self-paced mastery-based learning programs can encourage students to pursue education on their own terms, if they have the right encouragement and support. The model also allows for greater personalization of material in alignment with life goals and helps prevent early educational gaps in knowledge that can cause issues with instruction down the line. Some private Montessori schools have learned the value in this model, though similar results may be harder to replicate in larger student body settings.
The primary obstacle to the use of mastery-based learning seems to be the misunderstandings and myths caused by the move to something new. These efforts may have greater success in situations, such as those employed by IXL, where students, parents and teachers have user-friendly ways of tracking student progress and measuring success.