How do you Choose?

In my previous post, I highlighted three adaptive learning technology platforms. Check out Education Dive for more companies and partnerships that offer adaptive learning!

Technology is advancing so quickly and there are so many platforms and approaches for adaptive learning. So how do you choose one for your classroom, if at all? The simplest way to think about and sort through adaptive learning technologies is to treat it as a tutor. Tutors supplement instruction and coach students one-on-one. Tutors may not know as much as the teachers, but they help students figure out the areas they need help on and address them. Adaptive learning technologies give the opportunity to offer every student in your class a private tutor. This tutor can also give you a daily report of your entire class- providing data for who is doing well, who is struggling on which concepts, and what areas are difficult for the class as a whole. Adopting an adaptive learning technology will change the way you teach, change how you spend your class time, and impact your interaction with students.

Even though this sounds like an educator's dream come true, adaptive learning technologies are not magic. Like any tool, they must be understood and used appropriately. When you hire a tutor, you want to know what the tutor can and cannot do to help your students. Likewise, it is important to understand the ways the software adapts to your students. Here are some questions you should ask and think about when considering an adaptive learning product in your class.

• What are the software's capabilities? What are the limitations?
• Do you trust the software and what it claims it can do?
• Which teaching functions can the software fulfill? Which teaching functions remain with the teacher- that cannot be replicated by a machine?

Adaptive learning technologies have real value but examine each tool by thinking how it could empower you to be a better teacher. Do you think your school would adopt an adaptive learning technology? How could such a capability change the way you teach?

References:

Riddell, R. (2013, October 31). Adaptive learning: The best approaches we've seen so far. Retrieved February 14, 2016, from http://www.educationdive.com/news/adaptive-learning-the-best-approaches-weve-seen-so-far/187875/ 

Feldstein, M. (2013, December 17). What Faculty Should Know About Adaptive Learning. Retrieved February 14, 2016, from http://mfeldstein.com/faculty-know-adaptive-learning/ 

Adaptive Learning Technology Platforms

Check out my infographic that introduces Adaptive Learning Technologies! 

In any given school day, an average teacher makes over a thousand educational decisions- ranging from how to present a new concept to how many points to make an assignment. (The staff at TeachThought does a great job describing and displaying the incredible demands of being a teacher). We are aware that students are unique and learn in different ways, so we make decisions of how to differentiate our lessons and activities to help personalize student learning. However, it's almost impossible for one teacher to tailor a lesson to all 30 students. With the advancements of technology, teachers have a chance at achieving this. In my research of adaptive learning technologies, I have come across three platforms that claim to help personalize learning to individual students.

1. Smart Sparrow - "Teach to the student, not to the class"

2. DreamBox - elementary and middle school math software

3. Knewton - "World's smartest tutor"

I'm overwhelmed with the capabilities of these platforms, but am excited to have resources and opportunities to help make students successful. What do you think? Is this the future of our schools? Will this be the norm for student learning?

Resources:

 TeachThought. (2013). A Teacher Makes 1500 Educational Decisions A Day. Retrieved February 07, 2016, from http://www.teachthought.com/uncategorized/teacher-makes-1500-decisions-a-day/ 

 SMART SPARROW PTY LTD. (2016). Teach to the student, not to the class. Retrieved February 07, 2016, from https://www.smartsparrow.com/

DreamBox Learning. (n.d.). DreamBox Learning. Retrieved February 07, 2016, from http://www.dreambox.com/

Knewton. (n.d.). Unlimited Personalized Lessons from Knewton. Retrieved February 07, 2016, from https://www.knewton.com/ 

Adaptive Learning Technology

Adaptive Learning Technology: Adaptive Learning Technology | Piktochart Infographic Editor