FSW Dean Co-Authors National Research Paper
Apr 21, 2016
APRIL 21, 2016 – FORT MYERS, FLA. – Florida SouthWestern State College (FSW) School of Education Dean Dr. Lawrence Miller, along with researchers at The Center on Reinventing Public Education at the University of Washington Bothell, recently co-authored the research paper “Financing Personalized Learning: What Can We Learn From First-Generation Adopters?”
The paper offers the first systematic look at costs associated with implementing personalized learning schools, how leaders of these schools choose to allocate funds, and what it might take to support personalized learning on public funds alone.
“Student-centered, personalized learning meets students where they are and lets them accelerate at their own pace,” said Dr. Miller. “It also provides more ways for students to demonstrate their subject-related competency rather than with just tests.”
Dr. Miller and the researchers at CRPE, in partnership with Afton Partners, studied 16 charter schools representing a wide range of personalized learning models from across the country over a three year period. The research team collected original financial data from the schools, conducted site visits and two rounds of interviews with school leaders. All of these schools received significant funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s Next Generation Learning Challenges.
With education leaders, policymakers, and philanthropists increasingly interested in personalized learning as a way to dramatically boost student learning outcomes, significant time and dollars are being invested in these schools and such resources are projected to increase considerably. Findings from this study should reassure those worried that teachers will be replaced by technology under personalized learning models. However, schools in this study treated technology investments like a “luxury good” rather than as a complementary tool to traditional methods of instruction. This view could be cause for concern if spending decisions weren’t driven by what is best for students and the most productive use of resources.
“Technology has become an essential instructional tool,” Dr. Miller said. “However, the technology budget is cut first when school budgets get tight. This finding suggests that new funding policies and strategies could help leaders allocate resources in ways that would better support personalized learning, allowing for more opportunities for students to succeed.”
This report was funded by a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. It can be viewed at http://www.crpe.org/publications/financing-personalized-learning-what-can-we-learn-first-generation-adopters.
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Florida SouthWestern State College is Southwest Florida’s largest and one of the most affordable institutions of higher education. Annually serving nearly 22,000 students globally, FSW offers a variety of nationally-ranked, career-focused academic programs with two- and four-year degrees, and professional certifications. Students are also active in clubs and programs catered to their interests. FSW debuted its intercollegiate athletics program in January 2016. Visit www.FSW.edu for more information.
Last Updated: April 21, 2016
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