Massachusetts Personalized Learning Network

In 2016, CCE launched the Massachusetts Personalized Learning Network (MA PLN) to work with district leaders, principals, and teachers to design and implement personalized learning plans that provide learning experiences tailored to students’ individual needs, skills, and interests and that foster engaged and active learners. Grantee Schools from across the state participate in MA PLN, either as planning or implementation schools. Essential Personalized Learning and its Five Principles provide the lens through which we do this important work. Transforming Massachusetts’ schools for the 21st Century. Traditional schools present teaching and learning as part of a fixed system, and expect students to adjust to fit this established system. In personalized learning schools, teaching and learning will be flexible and adaptable, adjusting the system to the individual students and what they need to be successful. Supporting the professional growth of educators. Working with a cohort of engaged educators, MA PLN builds effective leadership – promoting learning and achievement through intense professional development and coaching experiences. Network members explore strategies and best practices for implementing personalized learning in their schools and classrooms, empowering them with the tools needed to transform their practice Developing future graduates who are well prepared for a rapidly changing global society. In the era ESSA, there is a demand for more student-centered instruction and authentic assessments. Our future graduates will be expected to not merely retain facts and formulas, but to think critically, problem-solve collaboratively, and innovate creatively. We need curriculum that is personalized, engaging, and properly prepares for the challenges of today’s world. Building awareness and support of conditions that enable all students to excel. Documenting, analyzing, and sharing data on personalized learning with the field will provide valuable information about the conditions and approaches necessary to move away from the factory schools of the past, and towards a new vision for personalized teaching and learning. Center for Collaborative Education (CCE) is proud to partner with Massachusetts Personalized Learning Edtech Consortium, Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, and Agilix. CCE is a regional partner with Next Generation Learning Challenges (NGLC) as part of a national initiative to scale up personalized learning schools. PLN is supported by EDUCAUSE through the Next Generation Learning Challenges, the Barr Foundation, Nellie Mae Education Foundation, W. Clement & Jessie V. Stone Foundation, and IBM.