Inevitable: Mass Customized Learning in the Age of Empowerment

Chapter 6 give detailed advice as to how to construct a vision of what Mass Customized Learning will look like in your school. Your final vision should incorporate the concepts mentioned on previous pages of this summary.

Chapter 7 describes how a mythical student plans for her coming year. She works with a learning coach who she has had for the last two years. She also involves her parents. She starts with a look at learner outcomes she has completed. An electronic portfolio documents her learning performance. Learning outcomes that can be achieved online will be and she spends about 50% of her time using online resources, which she can access 24/7/365. This frees up teachers for small group and individual work. Some labs are done online while others are hands on. When she finds common interests and/or abilities with others she will work with a group online or in person. All of this means she will likely be ahead of where she would have been under the old program. (Dr. Doug: This will result in existing gaps increasing. If you want to close gaps you have to slow down the fast learners.)

1) Grade levels 2) Students assigned to classrooms 3) Class periods/bell schedules 4) Courses and curriculum 5) Textbooks 6) Paper and pencil 7) ABC grading system 8) Report cards 9) Learning happens in school 10) Nine-month school year. See pages 136-140 for what these structures do, what they stop us from doing, how technology can help, and who is doing it now.

The superintendent has to start the ball rolling. If departments operate like silos, they need to start operating like a networked team. The leadership team must work to build a common vision among all constituents. Prior to any rollout, a number of things need to be in place. They include: a system-wide strategic design, a curriculum that focuses on learner outcomes rather than content, descriptions of what is best learned online, interactive seminars that bring students together, student-designed projects for individuals or groups, a scheduling system for individual learners, and an accountability system. (Dr. Doug: I think elements of MCI could be piloted with a select group of high school senior volunteers. It could then be expanded to all seniors and lower grades.)

Without proper leadership, the vision of this book cannot be accomplished. Leaders need to: 1) Create a compelling organizational purpose and reason to change 2) Describe a concrete picture of the change so everyone will know how it will effect them. 3) Involve everyone in the change process and create a commitment to the change. 4) Develop and empower everyone so as to create the capacity to change. 5) Provide support for the change. In short, the bold changes described here can only be accomplished by leaders with passion, optimism, and courage. Education is the most difficult industry to change so be ready for resistance and setbacks.

If the vision of Mass Customized Learning can be realized, everybody wins. Students get what they need as individuals, deal more with real world situations, and no longer need fear failure. Teachers can spend more time dealing with individuals and small groups, and should see fewer discipline problems. Leaders will get to transform the system rather than managing an obsolete system. The profession will get a boost in the eyes of the community. The economy should profit from better prepared workers and these students should be able to make a more meaningful impact on society. Educators not only have a professional responsibility to move in these directions but may believe they also have a moral responsibility.
A quote from Henry Ford says it all. “If I’d asked my customers what they wanted, they would have said a faster horse.