Personalized learning springs from EF’s use of technology

By CHRISTINE HAINES

chaines@yourmvi.com

It may look like fun and games when students use i- Pads, robots and 3-D printers in the classroom. But to Dr. Todd Keruskin it looks like the education of the future and it involves real, measurable learning.

Keruskin, the Elizabeth Forward School District superintendent, is also the newly elected chair of the National Council on Digital Convergence. He recently gave the opening remarks at the National Conference on Digital Convergence in Phoenix, Ariz., and was recognized at the conference for his leadership in the field.

“Elizabeth Forward is a shining example of systems thinking in action in K-12 public schools,” said Dr. Shawn K. Smith, a best-selling author on the future of education. “Dr. Keruskin has provided the leadership to allow his teachers to be supported in their journey towards adopting modern teaching practices in their classrooms.”

Keruskin said that as more technology is used in the classroom, teachers are called upon to develop their abilities to meet the needs of each student on an individual basis, not unlike the old days of the one-room schoolhouse.

“In the one-room schoolhouse, the teacher had to personalize education for each student, which is what we’re doing with technology,” Keruskin said. “How do we use technology to meet the needs of all of the students? There isn’t a roadmap for that. That’s what the conference was all about. How do our teachers in every single classroom use technology in an effective way to meet the needs of each student in Elizabeth Forward?

“We are using the framework from Modern Teacher, which recognizes seven stages. We are now acknowledged as being at Stage Four.”

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