Technology has the power to unleash individual student potential. It has the power to allow what is almost impossible in a traditional classroom; students learning at a pace suitable for each individual instead of the pace of the non-existent “average” student.  Read more in this article, "Self-paced Blended Learning Highlights 'Average Student' Myth".

The key to making personalized learning work for the greatest number of student is adaptive digital environments and experiences.  Funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Next Generation Learning Challenge (NGLC) grantees provide examples of schools that are creating the path forward with technology-powered and engaging student-centered models. The most compelling reason to shift to online and blended learning is the potential to keep students at the center of the learning experience. NGLC lays out the following design principles of personalized learning related to instruction:

In this white paper, read about how one school saw every student move up an entire proficiency level with no student was left behind with the implementation of a personalized learning.

Learning Outside the Lines strives to provide real-world examples of school districts that are thinking outside of the box for strategies and tools that will make every student successful regardless of the challenges that must be faced. Many of the schools and district administrators  profiled believe that a personalized learning experience is needed, which demands a more thoughtful approach to the education experience. Read more about the 10 elements of a personalized, blended learning experience for students:

Will Richardson, veteran educator and author, spoke at  recent gathering at Educon conference.  "We need to begin to think about schools in a fundamentally different way.  In his vision of this third narrative, reformers would focus on creating an education system that supports inquiry-based, student-centered learning, where students are encouraged to find entry points into the mandated curriculum in ways that are meaningful to them.  Technology is an integral part of Richardson's vision because it allows students to create and demonstrate their knowledge.  That piece of it really allows kid to create things and connect with other people, arguably more important than much of the traditional curriculum that schools are built around."  What Would Be a Radically Different Vision of School?