To understand the importance of using different activities it is important to familiarize yourself with the UDL principles. The below graph describes how UDL supports different regions of the brain and aims to engage all diverse learners. UDL supports personalized learning. Hanover Research journal claims that, “student achievement is likely to increase when students are able to learn at their own pace with a variety of teaching styles and formats available to them. Personalizing students’ education enables them to access a unique learning experience based upon their individual needs, rather than receiving instruction through a standard, paced curriculum.” With easier access to technology the likelihood of achieving personalized learning has become a realistic expectation. There is no end to the list of how we can achieve personalized learning in a traditional, blended, or online classroom. These tools can help engage learners and provide alternate means of showing understanding. This is especially helpful for students who need visual or audio support (Perez, 2018). Students can express their creativity using movie makers and concept maps such as: Popplet Book Creator Google Keep Imovie Story Puppets The key factor in personalized learning is that not everyone may benefit from the same tool. Understanding your students and their needs will help make UDL and personalized learning more effective. We are aware of the various learning styles whether you look at Myers-Briggs, Howard Gardner, or another theory. These learning styles all suggest that we all learn and process information differently depending on the output (The Peak Performance Center). Personalized learning can help engage all types of learners. A few great resources I found or have used include: Storyboards or creative writing Art projects Math practice using Reflex Explain Everything Class Dojo Seesaw The takeaway from this week is that we can and should be giving our students more personalized learning opportunities through the engagement, representation, and action/expression phases of learning. We may succumb to the idea that we do not have enough time, but with all the resources on the web available to teachers, this task doesn't seem as daunting. Through professional development and awareness of the digital age, any single teacher can implement different modes of teaching and learning at any age. Works Cited: Hanover Research. 2012. Best Practices in Personalized Learning Environments (Grades 4 – 9). Retrieved from https://www.hanoverresearch.com/media/Best-Practices-in-Personalized-Learning-Environments.pdf Lynch, M. 2017. TOP 9 must have personalized learning apps, tools, and resources. The Tech Edvocate. Retrieved from http://www.thetechedvocate.org/top-9-must-personalized-learning-apps-tools-resources/ Perez, L. 2018. 30+ tools for diverse learners. ISTE. Retrieved from https://www.iste.org/explore/articleDetail?articleid=434&category=Toolbox&article=30%2b+tools+for+diverse+learners Universal Design for Learning Guidelines. 2017. National Center on Universal Design for Learning. Retrieved from http://www.udlcenter.org/aboutudl/udlguidelines_theorypractice
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