Junior Alvarado was worried when he began his first year at a public high school in Washington, DC. He often struggled in his math classes and earned poor grades in middle school. But the teachers at the Washington Leadership Academy used computer programs to identify the areas he was weak in and design a learning plan just for him.
As Alvarado started geometry in his second year of high school last week, he said he felt much better about his math skills. "For me, personalized learning is having classes set at your level," the 15-year-old said. "They explain the problem step by step. It wouldn't be as fast. It will be at your speed."
Many schools in the United States struggle to raise the high school graduation rate. They also have difficulty helping many minority and low-income students perform at the same level as others. So many educators see digital technology as a way of solving these problems.
The use of technology in schools is part of a larger idea of personalized learning. This idea has been gaining popularity in recent years. The Education Department put $500 million into personalized learning programs in 68 school districts. These programs served almost 500,000 students in 13 states and Washington, D.C.
Supporters say traditional methods do not match the modern world, but personalized learning helps teachers follow their students' progress and make changes to lessons that meet students' individual needs and students, in this way, are able to master subjects at their own speed.
Still, many researchers say it is too early to tell if personalized learning works better than traditional teaching. The Rand Corporation recently did a study of personalized learning and found that it only led to small improvements. It found only a 3-percentile improvement in math and even smaller improvements in reading compared to schools with traditional teaching methods. Some teachers have their doubts as well. They admit that technology can be helpful in many ways, but they argue that no computer program should ever replace the personal touch, support and inspiration that teachers give their students.
【小题1】What or who did Alvarado give his thanks to for his better performance in math skills?| A．His new math teacher. | B．Personalized learning. |
| C．The Education Department. | D．The traditional teaching. |
| A．Doubtful. | B．Favorable. |
| C．Reserved. | D．Disapproving. |
| A．It has benefited students all over the USA. |
| B．It can help improve students’ scores greatly. |
| C．It can be helpful for students’ individual learning. |
| D．It will take the place of traditional teaching in no time. |
