The promise and perils of personalized learning : keeping students at the center of the ed tech revolution

As access to education technology - high-speed Internet connectivity, lower-cost computers, and online learning programs - has increased over the past five years in K-12 schools in the United States, the debate over technology's place in the classroom, specifically its ability to usher in a new era of education personalized to meet the needs of every individual student, has raged on. Much of the narrative perpetuated by technology companies around educational reform has centered on an idea that outside, tech-driven "disruption" is needed in order for real transformation. However, many school districts have found more success moving towards personalized learning when the disruption is homegrown, scaled carefully, involves all community stakeholders, and is driven by pedagogy, not technology. This thesis examines in depth one school district, Kettle Moraine School District in Wisconsin, and their success in creating personalized learning experiences for their students, as a case study for how other districts might approach homegrown disruptions of their own.

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Graduate Program in Science Writing

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2018

Author dc:creator

• Schembri, Francesca M

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Thomas Levenson.

• Comparative Media Studies.
• Graduate Program in Science Writing.

Statement dc:rights

• MIT theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed, downloaded, or printed from this source but further reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission.

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/119967

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/119967