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The Changing Role Of The Teacher In Personalized Learning Environments
contributed by Amy Moynihan, Ph.D. Candidate at The University of Virginia via Hanover Research

Today's students are studying and learning differently - a change confirmed by the widespread adoption of digital studying. Our recent study found that 81% of college students use mobile devices (such as smartphones and tablets) to study, the second most popular device category behind laptops and up 40 percent in usage since 2013.

Further, research validates the use of mobile technology in education. In fact, our same study found that 77% of college students feel the use of adaptive technology helped them improve their grades. As education technology proliferates, research supports the notion that overall student achievement will improve as students gain the ability to learn at their own pace with a variety of teaching styles and formats available to them.

Our research on college students presents many technology implications for districts as they prepare students to succeed in their collegiate careers - where technology is confirmed to play an integral role. As the growth of mobile technology in studying is anticipated to continue, schools, districts, and institutions need to strategize how to adapt their infrastructure, while teachers will want to consider ways to incorporate mobile learning into their curriculum.

Technologically-based tools provide opportunities for students to learn both in and out of the classroom. The use of technological innovations such as cloud computing, mobile learning, bring‐your‐own‐device (BYOD) policies, learning analytics, open content, and remote or virtual laboratories provide flexibility in the personalization of learning, while also expanding learning capabilities beyond the classroom walls.
Teaching our Next Generation of Learners: Innovations and Strategies
Several representative examples of these innovations are highlighted below.

Learning anywhere: Transforming the action of learning into a 24/7 activity through the widespread adoption of education resources available via smartphones, tablets, adaptive learning tools, virtual reality platforms, and video games.

ePortfolios: Creating an electronic continuum of work that captures student performance on traditional types of assessments, as well as evidence of project-based learning, and the development of 21st-century skills.

Gaming to learn: Integrating play-based learning concepts to benefit cognitive development, increase students' attention spans, and improve overall student engagement.

Research-based technology investments: Prioritizing data-driven evaluations of past and future technology investments by

Developing front- and back-end data capture mechanisms to gather information regarding the impact of technologies on teacher effectiveness and student achievement;

Using data to rigorously evaluate technology investments; and

Holding vendors accountable for the teaching and learning outcomes they promote.

Through the ability to mimic and improve upon in-person classroom instruction, adaptive learning platforms provide individualized instruction and assessment to each student - a feat that would be extremely difficult for teachers to accomplish in a class of 20 or more learners. Adaptive learning platforms provide instruction that is specific to individual students' needs in a cost-effective manner.

The personalized learning loop to which adaptive platforms adhere uses student data to adjust content to individuals' specific needs, assess students to ascertain learning growth and then use this feedback to further inform instruction. Research shows this allows classroom teachers to devote their time to subjects and students in need of additional attention. Other benefits include the frequent provision of formative evaluation, effective feedback, concept mapping, and mastery-based learning.

The changing uses of technology require that teachers adapt their methods of instruction as a result of student-directed learning. In response, teachers must shift from being holders and distributors of knowledge to becoming instructional facilitators who encourage students to direct their own learning.
Components of Teachers' Shifting Roles
Of comparable importance, though, are the benefits that the implementation of new technologies can have on teachers themselves. Several tools are explicitly designed to support teachers. Social learning networks, e‐portfolios, and cloud computing platforms allow teachers to virtually collaborate to discuss best practices among teachers. For example, learning analytics might help teachers assess students' instructional needs; teachers may gather instructional content from open content sources; and personal learning networks may help teachers combine and exchange instructional strategies. While the recent changes to the K-12 education landscape are primarily technological in nature, the successful implementation of these tools is dependent upon teachers.

Hanover Research's 2014 trends in K-12 education reiterate this emerging focus not just on educational technology, but also on the need to provide support systems to help teachers adopt and implement technology within the classroom. This trends analysis illuminates the rising focus on selecting and evaluating learning assessment tools to confirm their impact on student achievement. It also indicates the increasing need for benchmarking strategies to provide teachers with appropriate carve-outs for collaboration time and professional development.
Learn more about new developments in the Next Generation Learning movement and trends in EdTech by viewing Hanover's Amy Moynihan, a Content Manager at Hanover Research, is currently a Ph.D. candidate in Higher Education at The University of Virginia, Curry School of Education. She also holds a M.Ed. in Social Foundations from The University of Virginia, Curry School of Education and a B.A. from Columbia University, majoring in American History. Amy's work experience includes serving as a Graduate Research Fellow at The Federal Executive Institute (FEI), the leading leadership development center in the federal government and Fight Crime: Invest in Kids, a national bi-partisan nonprofit organization focused on improving the lives of children. Connect with Amy via email at [email protected] ; The Changing Role Of The Teacher In Personalized Learning Environments; image attribution pixabay 2014 K-12 Education Market Leadership Report, or let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
As the Next Generation Movement continues, teachers will continue to play a critical role in the implementation and success of new and emerging technologies. The effective application of adaptive technology hinges on the ability of teachers to adapt to and thrive in these changing times.

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The Changing Role Of The Teacher In Personalized Learning Environments

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The Changing Role Of The Teacher In Personalized Learning Environments contributed by Amy Moynihan , Ph.D. Candidate at The University of Virginia via Hanover Research Today's students are studying and learning differently - a change confirmed by the widespread adoption of digital studying.

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TeacherMade = the Digital (R)Evolution of the Paper Classroom. Use TeacherMade to turn all your favorite classroom materials, such as worksheets, into interactive, online, and digital activities for your students.

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Amplifying Student Voice Through Digital Literacy

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For students to grow into their digital voices, they must understand the value of personal communication and projecting their own work on the global stage.

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Knowing About These can Help you Avoid Them in Your Approach to Integrating Technology in the Classroom

Are you tentative about how to go about integrating technology in your classroom? Are you already doing it, but want to make sure youâ€™re doing the right thing by your students? Teaching with technology can be fun and engaging, but it's easy to make a few errors in your approach that can lead to unfortunate consequences for your students, or discourage them from fully participating.

Here's a set of issues you would do well to avoid when assigning technology based work to your students (note that many of these apply to students of all ages).

1. Using technology that you don't have a basic understanding of: If you are asking students to use a specific application, it is highly advisable that you have basic knowledge of how it works, so you can offer some guidance. Students may struggle excessively and become frustrated, or do things they really shouldnâ€™t do. Learn the basic ins and outs of applications that you plan to use in assignments. (Of course, if you decide with your students to dive into something new together, that's a different story).

2. Using applications that may display inappropriate content: Make sure you think about this, especially if you have younger students. And 'inappropriate' can come in many forms - from major issues like overtly sexual or violent content to lesser but still relevant concerns like advertising. Naturally, the younger the student, the more of a concern this type problem is. Always consider this before you send students to a site.

3. Using technology that isn't supporting the lesson plan: If the tech is there just for tech's sake, and the way it is incorporated in the lesson plan isn't facilitating the lesson's intended learning outcomes, then why are you using it?

4. Not planning for students who have no, or limited, access to the computers, the Internet, etc.: If you require the use of Internet applications for completing assignments, be sure that your students have access. If the work is going to be done in school, where they have access to the tools they need, then there shouldnâ€™t be an issue. If work needs to be completed outside of normal class time, then you need to be sure that if you have students who have limited access to the functionality they need, you plan for ways to help accommodate them (direct them to the schoolâ€™s library, make time in class before school, or whatever makes sense based on the situation).

5. Using a lot of technology tools that require the creation of user accounts: Try and avoid this, as it is a bit of a pain for students to remember lots of different accounts and password. There is also some gray area in terms of teacherâ€™s requiring the creation of personal accounts on social media sites, etc., for their students (especially for younger students). It may be within a studentâ€™s rights to refuse to create an account on an Internet site if it seems to somehow violate their privacy (which can depend on the types of info requested by the site).

6. Using applications that are highly distracting: One of the frequent complaints I hear about using YouTube in the classroom is that the way they display lots of associated content can be quite distracting. The same can go for many social media sites, and for advertising content displayed on sites. If you can embed content from a site into a web page of your design, this can one way to address this. Be sure to consider the 'distraction factor' when selecting tools to use.

7. Using sites that are blocked by your school: This would seem like a no brainer, but with the high availability of independent wireless access, it might not even occur to you that you are using an app or site that is blocked on your schoolâ€™s network. This will just create frustration for students who try to access the tool from the school.

8. Using personal Facebook accounts or using Facebook with < 13 year olds: You really donâ€™t want to have to friend studentâ€™s personal Facebook Accounts, or have them friend your personal account. If you are going to use Facebook as part of an assignment (which is not necessarily a bad idea â€"Â click here to learn more about teachers using Facebook in the classroom), it is strongly advised that the teacher and students have accounts specifically intended for school use, separate from their personal accounts (Facebook frowns on this in their rules, but it is a pretty common practice). Also remember that Facebook asks that no one under 13 use their application (and I fully agree with that recommendation).

9. Be vague or unclear with technology based assignment instructions: Make sure your instructions are clear and precise â€" for example, if you tell students â€œpost ____ on the Internetâ€ but give no guidance as to how or where, you are asking for potential problems and confusion. Similarly, if you say, find ______ on the Internet, students may be exposed to inappropriate content, or simply get distracted (click here to learn about safe search engines for kids). You should always be sure give clear guidance for all assignments.

10. Using proprietary software or applications that require hardware that not everyone has access to: Strive for either device-independent applications or applications that you know everyone can use (because they are going to work on the related assignment while in the computer lab with you, for example). Avoid applications that require specific hardware that not everyone may have (i.e. iPad only, if not everyone has access to an iPad) or that require a certain level of computing power that not everyone may have.

Hopefully these suggestions help you to avoid some potential issues while you leverage the amazing tools and resources available to us on the Web these days. If you are new to teaching with technology tools, these tips will help you get off to a good start! If you already using technology in the classroom and may have done some of the things noted here, no need to fret. At least you know that you will want to avoid doing it again. Of course, few things in life are black and white either, so some of these things can be done without incurring significant challenges â€" consider these suggestions opportunities for improvement in your approach.
Do you have some other suggestions that you think should be included here? Please share them in a comment! Thanks. Related Posts (if the above topic is of interest, you might want to check these out):
20 Warning Signs That you are Falling Behind the Times with Technology as a Teacher
Worried about Students Searching the Web Safely? 8 Safe Search Engines for Kids
8 Exciting Technology-Enhanced Teaching and Learning Approaches That Teachers are Embracing in 2014

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10 Teaching with Technology Mistakes You Want to Avoid Making

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Are you tentative about how to go about integrating technology in your classroom? Are you already doing it, but want to make sure youâ€™re doing the right thing by your students? Teaching with technology can be fun and engaging, but it's easy to make a few errors in your approach that can lead to unfortunate consequences for your students, or discourage them from fully participating.