Using technology to personalize learning in math
These two articles from the Dallas Morning News explain Reasoning Mind, a program for teaching math that aims to personalize learning while increasing the interest and motivation of students, and changing the role of teacher from presenting information to guiding and tutoring.
The program individualizes pace and uses artificial intelligence to respond to student performance in real time. Problems come with step-by-step tutorials, and interactive exercises. Its founder argues that in one semester the program has shown to elevate the math scores of those in the school’s predominantly Hispanic school with top scores in the city.
The reporter cites Disrupting Class, the book by Clayton Christensen on the coming role of technology in remaking learning (whether we ‘let’ it or not!). This is an example of Christensen’s theory in action. A school is taking up new technologies and applying them in an innovative way to improve learning and the productivity of the teacher.
Reasoning Mind Program Multiplying Successes
Program Adds up to Math Success in Schools
Image: Reasoning Mind
June 28, 2010 - 3:12pm
What a great step forward. The support from prominent people in each area seems critical for implementation of a program that inevitably threatens teachers and traditional classrooms. Although math for 2nd to 6th graders is an excellent start, meaningful personalized instruction in reading and reading comprehension should be next. Must be next.
What company is producing the Reasoning Mind software? Is their adaptive instruction technology an operating system capable of 'adaptation' to other subjects? Does it contain assessment abilities also?
Please email any information you have on this kind of technology. Is anyone aware of other organizations pushing for development and/or implementation of these kinds of adaptive education technologies?
Kent Harris
June 29, 2010 - 9:40pm
Kent,
After seeing your comment last week, I thought of you when I saw the Joanne Jacobs blog about Rocketship Education on June 27. Here's a link:
http://www.joannejacobs.com/2010/06/innovating-with-online-learning/
I'm not sure of the answers to your questions. In fact, I've learned that some of these early models perhaps aren't what we all know 'could be'. But what comes to mind is Ted Kolderie's assertion about the Wright Brothers plane being no where near what we have today. Like you, I look forward to watching these technologies evolve.
June 30, 2010 - 9:38am
Kent,
Reasoning Mind has developed an expert system, which is designed to simulate how an expert teacher might react and adapt to a student's answers when working in a one-on-one setting.
While summative assessments are built into the system at different checkpoints, the program's true strength lies in using real-time data from student inputs as formative assessments that allows the system to constantly refine the student's path of learning, based on what they are struggling with or excelling at.
Because it is online (not software-based), the platform is more easily capable of being adapted to other subjects, but currently its focus is exclusive to mathematics. 2nd-6th grade curricula have currently been developed, and the program is now focused on expanding up to Algebra I.
As for Kim's comment, Reasoning Mind is currently being used in the Rocketship charter network in the Bay Area - an exciting partnership that is harnessing the power of technology to build the learning experience around the needs of each individual student.
If you are interested in learning more about RM, feel free to check out our website at www.reasoningmind.org or email me at jaf@reasoningmind.org
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