Plan for Implementing Personalized Learning

Competency-Based Learning

By: Katie Mooney

Your Classroom: I currently teach 6th grade Language Arts at Trickum Middle School in Gwinnett County, Georgia. I teach four
separate Language Arts classes throughout the day for my pod of students. My pod of students contain 114 students of which are 26%
black, 24% white, 25% Hispanic, 22% Asian, and 3% mixed race. I teach a wide range of students in the general education population.
I teach all level one and two English Language Learners. I have 14 level one English speakers in my classes. I have 3 students with an
IEP and 7 students on a 504 plan.

My school has a 1:1 device ratio. This means that each student is provided with a chromebook to use for school purposes. Each
student is required to have a school device that they keep in their possession and cannot use their own personal devices. This privilege
within our school allows for easier access to online resources that promote a personalized learning experience for each individual
student. The learning management system used in our county is Desire to Learn, eClass. Each teacher is required to have an eClass
page, one stop shop for students to find all the resources available to them. My class has a digital HMH learning textbook, rich with
reading and grammar resources that can be assigned to the class as a whole or individual students. This resource is excellent because
resources are broken down by standard. We also use iReady, an online resource that provides an adaptive diagnostic at the beginning
of the year, and then tailors lessons for each individual student based on how they scored on the diagnostic test. We also use USA Test
prep for enrichment and remediation. This tool is great because it allows teachers to assign individual practice based on the standard
that needs to be reviewed. The teacher can assign individual practice to individual students, allowing for a personalized learning
experience. I also have the freedom to use any other online tools I find that benefit students in my classroom.
What is CBL?

CBL stands for competency based learning. CBL is a complete shift from traditional educational practice as we know it. Traditional
education provides for grade point averages, and often parents and teachers do not know what students still need to work on based on
their grade. If a student has an 80 in their English Language Arts class, the student cannot look at that score and know what specific
standards they have mastered and which ones they are still developing. “The need to deeply understand student learning is particularly
important in a competency-based system, both in terms of knowing what it means to achieve mastery and ensuring that each student is
engaged in daily instructional activity that will best move him or her to deeper conceptual learning and application of knowledge”
(Cohen, 2015). According to “What is Competency Based Education,” by Levine and Patrick, Competency based learning focuses on
mastery rather than seat time and focuses on the students' individual learning needs. Current traditional education is time focused.
Teachers are pressed for time and must move on regardless of individual student mastery. This leaves many students falling further
and further behind as they progress to the next grade level. This is not the case with CBL. “Competency based approaches are
designed to promote equity by preventing students from falling behind or staying behind” (Jobs for the future, 2014). Because CBL
focuses on mastery rather than time, students at different ages may find themselves in the same learning environment. Equity and
student mastery are the goal over time. Expectations in CBL are more explicit and transparent, allowing for students and their parents
to know exactly what standards they are working on and what they still need to master (Levine and Patrick, 2019). This is done by
focusing on learning targets rather than grades. In order to work effectively, “this requires learning targets to be clearly established,
student assessment to measure what each student has actually learned, and student records to indicate what each student has learned,
rather than comparing students to other students” (Reigeluth, C. M., & Karnopp, J, 2020).

CBL Strategies

Component Your Strategy Strength & Weakness

Multimodal Visual/Auditory: Anchor Charts, graphics, mind Strengths:

Learning* maps, flash cards, teacher model, audio during ● Meets the needs of individual students while
 reading, interactive learning games, interactive
Nearpod lessons. Adaptive games/apps for
differentiation
Kinesthetic: Gallery Walk- partner annotations,
Choice student centers, sentence strips, acting out
scenes, creating illustrations and one-pagers to
represent stories plot.
Social: Choice student centers, targeted small group
instruction, collaborative reading groups, Socratic
seminar, group/small group discussion,
Formative ● Stop n Jot quick checks
Assessment* ● Targeted questioning
● Exit tickets
● Constructed responses
● Self-reflections
● 3-2-1 (3 things I learned, 2 questions they
still have, 1 thing they enjoyed about the
lesson)
● Illustrate it!- draw a picture of specific parts
of the story to show understanding
● One on one teacher/student conference
● Self and peer evaluation.
● Teacher observation during collaborative
practice.
providing multiple modes within one lesson.
● Allows for the gradual release model. Students
will receive some teacher instruction/model
before being released to practice
collaboratively or on their own.
● Offers student choice in how they would like to
practice the material.
● Offers many opportunities for student
collaboration.
Weaknesses:
● Time consuming lesson planning on the part of
the teacher.
● Minimal options to reach the highest level of
Bloom’s taxonomy -create.
Strengths:
● Included seamlessly into instruction to allow
for quick assessments and see where each
student stands on particular standards.
● Differentiated options to assess, allowing
individual students to show their strengths in
the way that best fits them.
● Many options promote collaboration and group
discussion such as peer evaluation, 3-2-1, and
teacher observation during collaborative
practice.
Weaknesses:
● These options are only useful if the teacher is
able to provide individualized feedback. While
the formative assessments themselves are

Alternative ● FlipGrid video/story summary to show
Assessment* student understanding.
● Writing an essay to show mastery of reading
and writing standards.
● Creating a portfolio- novel study to show
mastery of multiple reading standards.
● One on one teacher/student conference to
discuss progress and monitor mastery
through discussion.
● Provide students with a rubric to ensure
students have an outline and understanding
of what they need to do in order to show
mastery of the given standards. Students can
have choice in how they show mastery, as
long as the requirements of the rubric are
fulfilled.
Remedy ● Small group instruction based on results of
Procedures formative assessments to clear
misconceptions.
● One on one student/teacher discussion to
quick snapshots of student understanding,
providing individual feedback for each
formative assessment is time consuming on the
part of the teacher.
Strengths:
● These options offer the student choice in how
they can show their strengths, while assessing
the same standards. This is vital in
personalized learning.
● These assessment options require students to
reach all six levels of Bloom’s taxonomy.
● Students are in control of their own learning
and how they would like to show mastery.
● Multimodal.
● Rubrics provide students with clear
instructions and expectations on how they are
to show mastery of the content. This is
important for competency based learning.
Weaknesses:
● Many students in middle school are
overwhelmed by the choice and freedom.
Providing examples could help alleviate some
of their anxiety.
● While the differentiation of assessment is great
for students, grading assessments will be time
consuming on the part of the teacher.
Strengths:
● Working with students in a small group or one
on one environment allows the teacher to
clearly see where misconceptions are coming
 clear misconceptions.
● Khan academy videos and activities to
address needs of individual students.
● Brainpop videos and activities to address
needs of individual students.
from and target the student’s needs directly.
● Khan academy, Brain Pop videos and activities
as well as other online resources provide extra
support and remediation for students that need
further practice.
● Students can individually work on the specific
standards they are struggling with, providing
personalized learning opportunities to clear
misconceptions.

Weaknesses:
● It can be difficult to meet with all students in a
one-on-one environment to clear
misconceptions. When teachers have over 100
students throughout the day, students can be
overlooked.
● While teachers are busy with conferences,
students have the opportunity to engage in off
task behavior.

Note: Components with * address certain ISTE standards that are assigned to this course. The candidates need to implement the
components in the upcoming academic year and prepare evidence of implementation for their portfolio > Standard 5.1 to become
ISTE Certified.]
Technology Tools
Functions Name & URL Your Plan
Nearpod: ● Nearpod is great because it is
Nearpod.com interactive and provides the
lesson, including videos,
Khan Academy: flashcards, definitions, and
Khanacademy.org embeds formative assessments
through the lesson to ensure
BrainPop: student understanding. It can be
Brainpop.com a teacher led Nearpod or
student paced to allow students
Vocabulary Pictionary to work at their own pace. The
Multimodal teacher can then go in the
Learning Nearpod and check the
formative assessments to see
which students may need
individualized remediation.
● Khan Academy and Brain Pop
provide video instruction to
help target misconceptions and
allow the student to watch as
many times as necessary. They
provide auditory and visual
instruction together to help
Strength & Weakness
Strengths:
● These options are engaging to
students.
● They allow students to work
individually and at their own
pace, but also allow the option to
work collaboratively for social
learners.
● These options allow for
differentiation and meet the needs
of all modes of learning.
Weaknesses:
● Requires a lot of planning time on
the part of the teacher to have this
many resources available for the
different needs of the students.
● Making Nearpods can be
incredibly time consuming.
 student understanding.
● Vocabulary pictionary is a great
way to engage students and
develop their vocabulary by
allowing them to convey the
meaning of a term through
pictures.
Flip Grid: ● Flipgrid is a great option to
Flipgrid.com allow students to use their
speaking skills to show their
Padlet: understanding. This is
Padlet.com important because speaking
skills are an under practiced
Blooket: standard in ELA.
Blooket.com ● Padlet is a great resource for
digital post it notes to allow for
GimKit quick checks and stop n jots to
Formative
gimkit.com check for student
Assessment
understanding. It is great to use
real post-its and a stop-n-jot
chart in the classroom as well
for the same purpose.
● Blooket and Gimkit are fun and
engaging online games to allow Weaknesses:
students to practice the
standards and formatively
assess what they have learned.
Strengths:
● FlipGrid provides an alternative
to showing student understanding
through constructed responses and
essays. It is great for
differentiation.
● Padlet allows for a quick check
that flows seamlessly with
instruction and does not take
much time or effort to implement.
● Online learning games show
student mastery and are engaging
and exciting for students. They
are having fun while learning the
material.
● Blooket and Gimkit questions are
typically multiple choice and do
not promote higher order
thinking.
 StoryBird: ● Storybird is a great option for
Storybird.com an alternative writing
assessment. It is engaging for
Canva: students and allows them to
Canva.com share their work outside the
school community.
Google slides/Google ● Google Workspace options and
Docs Canva.com are great tools for
Google Workspace creating a portfolio or one page
Alternative project to show mastery of
Assessment reading standards. They allow
students to show their
creativity and promote higher
order thinking by creating
something new.
Khan Academy: ● Each one of these options
Khanacademy.org offers adaptive learning
opportunities specifically for
Amplify: students struggling with
Amplify.com reading. They offer
Remedy
differentiated learning
Procedures
ReadTheory: opportunities based on where
ReadTheory.org the student stands. They are
formed based on the students
Achieve 3000 reading level and specifically
Achieve3000 | what the student struggles with
Strengths:
● These alternative assessment
options allow for student choice
as a way to show mastery of the
content while also creating
something new and showing off
their creative side. There is an
option for artistic students,
writers, and speakers.
● Students are able to take
responsibility for their own
learning.
Weaknesses:
● This much freedom for
assessments can be overwhelming
to some students at this age level.
Allowing an option for students
that need more structure to their
assessments may be necessary.
Strengths:
● Adaptive resources creating
activities and lessons tailored to
the individual needs of the student
specifically meets the needs of a
personalized learning
environment.
● Students are able to specifically
and repetitively work on the
standards they are struggling with
the most.
Differentiated (theme, character development,
Instruction. Accelerated non-fiction, narrative, etc). Weaknesses:
Learning ... ● These adaptive activities can be
less engaging for students due to
the repetitiveness of questions and
standards. If not overused, they
can be a great tool, but sometimes
are met with student burn out.
 References

Achieve – The Role of Learning Progressions in Competency-Based Pathways

Jobs for the Future – Equity in Competency Education: Realizing the Potential, Overcoming the Obstacles

Levine, E. & Patrick, S. (2019). What is competency-based education? An updated definition. Vienna, VA: Aurora Institute

Reigeluth, C. M., & Karnopp, J. (2020). Vision and action: Reinventing schools through personalized competency-based education.
Marzano Resources.