Next-generation learning models—“technology-enabled” education, if you will—are designed to personalize education in any way necessary to help students at all performance levels meet and exceed goals. As with any innovation introduced into American education, next-generation models have met resistance and in many cases have been either halted altogether or subsumed into the by-the-book system. In their new issue brief, Public Impact’s Shonaka Ellison and Gillian Locke argue that charter schools are the ideal place for next-generation learning models. Charter-school autonomies, inherent in their DNA, provide the best platform for tech-driven innovations like ability grouping, mastery-based promotion, student-paced learning, separation of administrative and instructional duties for teachers, and online learning. The researchers show these practices are carried out in various combinations at a number of charter schools around the country. No mention is made in the brief about solely online schooling, whose model would seem to be synonymous with much of the innovation described here but whose results have too often fallen short of expectations. In fact, having a building in which to attend school seems to be an unstated requirement for creating the type of next-generation models the authors examine. And while Khan Academy and ASSISTments can extend the school day into the home, building a brick box just so students can come inside and use these tools inside seems somehow less than innovative. But the use of technology also requires the hard work of quality implementation. “Positive student results heavily depend on quality implementation,” the authors note. They make some effort to highlight the benefits of new technology-enabled educational models for educators (among them, more direct instructional time, more planning and team-teaching time, and assessments built into the lessons). And they also show how students can benefit from technology implementation done well, such as online work adaptable to student-ability level, schedule flexibility, and instant feedback. Absent from the entirety of the discussion is what parents think about technology-enabled education. Some parents might prefer more “traditional” instruction for their children than others; and so teachers and principals, wanting to use more technology in the classroom, will need to make clear that it isn’t just being used as the latest fad.
SOURCE: Public Impact: Shonaka Ellison and Gillian Locke, Breakthroughs in Time, Talent, and Technology: Next Generation Learning Models in Public Charter Schools, National Alliance for Public Charter Schools (September 2014).
