Teachers have so much on their plate. When you ask them to step out of their comfort zone and personalize learning, some throw their hands up and shake their heads. The idea of personalizing learning means something different to different people. Some teachers only heard that they have to change and felt they were being attacked for the way they taught. Others were confused about the terms. Yet, teaching practice is changing because the world is changing. Preparing children for their future means building competencies and skills along with academics. It also means empowering students to take more responsibility for their learning. This is why I created the Teaching and Learning Approaches chart.
The last PDI v3 chart was created over five years ago in 2013. That chart has helped educators understand the differences between the terms. Kathleen McClaskey and I worked with schools around the US for over 5 years using that chart in our work and our books. I am proud of all the work that Kathleen and I did during that time. We decided last year to close our company, Personalize Learning, LLC and go in our own directions to do what we do best.
Over several years, I was being contacted by schools and teachers from around the world with questions about the Personalization vs. Differentiation vs. Individualization (PDI) v3 chart. Here are just a few of the questions educators were confused about:
- Why is Personalization in the first column?
- Why didn’t we include the whole class?
- Is it wrong to differentiate or individualize instruction?
- From outside the US, I was asked: “what is the Carnegie unit?”
- Why did we put teacher and learner at the top of the columns?
- How can learners be responsible for teaching and learning?
- What does an assessment OF, FOR, and AS learning mean?
- How can I move to Personalization when my students are not ready?
- How can I help my students develop agency when the system doesn’t allow it?
I then invited educators to provide me feedback so I could help guide the new direction: the Teaching and Learning Approaches chart. What everyone agreed on was that a teacher may address some of the criteria under the different columns and from all of these approaches in a day and maybe even in one lesson. In the work with teachers implementing one lesson or project, teachers may…
- introduce a topic to the whole class.
- provide resources and support for different groups.
- work one-on-one with individual learners.
- encourage learners to have voice and choice.
Personal or personalized learning is when learners drive the learning with support from the teacher. You can use the term “Personal Learning” instead of “Personalization” if you are confused around the latter term. The confusion brought up questions about who owns and drives the learning or if the learning is being done to the learner. Some organizations feel more comfortable using the term “personalization.” All of this is up to you and how you want to adopt any of these approaches in your teaching practice.
I didn’t want to argue over semantics so what I tried to make clear in this chart is how much value a teacher is in all of the approaches and that it is all about the “person” who is learning. That can be the teacher who is also learning about changing their teaching practice. Moving to learner agency takes time for students and teachers. Students may not be ready to let go. Many have learned how to do school and may resist change. Teachers may not have the support, resources, or time to jump in and change how they teach right away. It was clear to me from the feedback how important and more effective scaffolding the skills was for teachers to gently nudge and empower students to take more ownership of their learning. When teachers and learners build positive relationships first and a culture where everyone’s voice is valued, they will know when to change and try new ideas. This chart is meant as a guide and to calm the fears about changing what they know and do around teaching and learning that I heard from teachers.
You are able to download this chart from Slideshare. Please let me know what you think of this chart and how you might use it. You can either email me at barbara.bray@gmail.com, use the contact me on this site, leave a comment below, or share on social media.
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Kevin McLaughlin currently works as a Senior Lecturer in Primary Education at Bishop Grosseteste University Lincoln. Before that, he taught in Primary Schools for twenty years and also worked as a Deputy Headteacher in England and Spain. Kevin is also a 
I’m really fortunate to have known Dave for many years through social media and was able to have a face-to-face interview for his podcast at Educon 2017 in Philadelphia. I always make sure to attend any of his presentations when I can and am so honored that Dave shared his journey with me. I even got another selfie with Dave at SXSWEDU in Austin, TX. Below are several excerpts and resources Dave mentioned in the podcast:
David Truss calls himself a husband, a parent, an educator, a student, a thinker, a dreamer, and an agent of change. 
When I graduated in 2010 from the University of SiouxFalls (USF), I went into teaching right away. I taught 4th grade at a low socio-economic school teaching at an elementary school in Sioux Falls, Lowell Elementary at that time was the Science, Math, and Technology school. It was a lot of fun and a great year. Prior to teaching, I was a travel softball coach for several years. Then, after a year of teaching, I got a unique opportunity to be the head coach at USF to help transition them from the NAIA ranks to the Division 2 NCAA ranks. My passion was with coaching and teaching. I was not married at the time and couldn’t pass this up. I was the head coach for two years and transitioned them to Division 2 with pieces in place to be successful to hand it over to the next coach.
We identified the best practices that are already in our classrooms and then put them in a personalized learning environment. 
Travis Lape is the Harrisburg School District’s Innovative Programs Director. He earned his B.A. Elementary Education and Master in Leadership at the University of Sioux Falls where his research focused on personalized learning models for Elementary and Middle Schools. In 2016, Travis was the recipient of the TIE 
The Development of Ownership by Barbara Bray (2018) is a derivative adapted from the original continuum and content by Bray and Kathleen McClaskey (2015) with graphics by Sylvia Duckworth. The content is licensed under a 
In the Understanding phase, students share how they learn best with the teacher. Being able to write how they learn and include their interests, talents, and aspirations gives students a voice in what and how they learn. These conversations with the teacher help start the shift of the responsibility for learning from the teacher to the student. In this phase, students also consult with the teacher to determine what resources, tools, and learning strategies can support what they need to meet learning goals and tasks. Students share evidence of what they are learning as they learn with the teacher and their peers. In this phase, the teacher with the students will choose the most appropriate resources to use and the evidence of learning to share and post on the walls.
In the Investment phase, students start developing the skills they need to work independently and collaborate with others. They see the value of goal setting with guidance from the teacher to determine the next action steps they will need to progress in their learning. They are now more invested in the process of learning. They know how to identify and choose the best evidence of their learning that demonstrates what they understand and learned. Walking into a room where students are invested in their learning looks different. This is the phase that validates them as learners. They are focused on completing tasks, reflecting on what they understand, and talking about their learning. They enjoy sharing the evidence they collected or created that demonstrates what they learned.
In the Autonomy phase, students as learners have acquired the skills and now have the self-confidence to work independently and collaboratively with others. By using innovative and creative strategies, learners extend their goals to now pursue their interests and passions to discover their purpose for learning. They are determined to self-monitor their progress as they meet their goals. Learners identify something they are interested in and completely involve themselves in the process. Autonomy means they are learning because they are motivated to learn. When you talk to learners in this phase, you can hear the excitement in their voices. Learners want to share what they are doing throughout the process and look forward to showcasing and exhibiting the process and products to peers, family, and possibly a global audience. When learners have autonomy, they own and drive their learning. Autonomy means that learners have agency.
Ross Cooper is the co-author of Hacking Project Based Learning and currently is the Elementary Principal of T. Baldwin Demarest Elementary School in the Old Tappan School District in New Jersey. Previously he was the Supervisor of Instructional Practice K-12 in the Salisbury Township School District in Allentown, PA. Before that he was an elementary assistant principal for a year, and before that a fourth grade teacher in the East Penn School District for six years. 
As a Director of Teaching and Learning for KnowledgeWorks, Abbie Forbus works with learning communities across the country to coach them in redesigning learning structures toward personalized learning. Prior to joining KnowledgeWorks, Forbus spent 15 years working with learners in Lindsay Unified School District, a competency-based learning community in rural Lindsay, CA. She served as a K-2 learning facilitator, high school counselor, and Dean of Culture.