MAKING PERSONALIZED LEARNING REAL

If April is the cruelest month as the poets say, I nominate September as the most hopeful.

With September comes the official beginning of school: open doors, fresh supplies, new ideas. Hope is deeply intertwined with education. Goals anchor learning, providing direction for teachers and students. Inspiring teachers lay out the pathways or routes that can enable students to achieve those goals. We aim to create environments that fuel agency—both for students and teachers. And the most thoughtful educators show students how to use the barriers they encounter to redirect their work—not simply give up.

These days, many educators are fueling their hope with visions of personalizing learning—of finding ways to help students articulate their goals, find pathways, take action and keep at it, no matter the obstacles.