What’s New in Competency Education

There seems to be more reports, articles and advancements in competency education than ever before.  Periodically we’ll put it all together for you in a blog to make it easier for you to just stop by to do a quick catch up.

• Lindsay Unified School District has released a video Transforming Education about their personalized, performance-based system.  I really appreciated the extended cut. (FYI next opportunity to visit LUSD is October 3rd).
• Marzano Research Laboratory is releasing a book on High Reliability Schools. Competency education is the fifth and highest level. It’s on my summer reading list.
• Education Achievement Authority’s Burns Middle School is highlighted in Ed Surge Low-Performing Detroit Middle School Eliminates Grade Levels, Goes Blended. In partnership with Matchbook Learning, EAA implemented a blended, competency-based model. The article points out that Buzz allows “unstructured blended learning” in which students and teachers can make choices that make the most sense to them. It also explains how the concept of self-paced isn’t quite accurate: Though work is self-paced, Ms. Parker also reports that students work together to get each other farther. “Kids want to be higher. They band together to work harder,” she says. Finally, you can hear a new language emerging — leveling up.
• You can get up to speed on how to think about technology in Roadmap for Competency-based Systems: Leveraging Next Generation Technologies developed by Council of Chief State School Officers and 2 Revolutions.
• The Digital Promise League of Innovative Schools is starting to look at competency education. See their report. The League is made up of districts that have made substantial progress in implementing blended learning. They  are now becoming interested in taking the next step to competency education.  As they move forward we’ll learn a lot more about how to best implement blended learning in competency education and where there might be misalignment.
• The Carnegie Foundation for Advancement of Teaching has updated their 50 state scan of course credit policies.
• Nellie Mae Education Foundation created a video What is Competency Education?

And in higher education:

• College and universities are finding that their information systems aren’t cutting it for competency education either. (See Julia Freeland’s Technology Tools Lag Competency-based Aspirations). In Competency-Based Education Programs versus Traditional Data Management the authors point out that Competency-based education programs challenge traditional data management approaches across the academic institution because they defy conventional notions of time in relation to fixed-length terms, synchronous delivery, and student-faculty interactions.