The Root of Individually Optimized Learning: Assessment Must Also Be Individually Optimized

Last time, I wrote about how the efforts of one grade level
gradually spread.

This time, I will write based on a certain phrase I encountered in my own learning space...

What lay at the root of individually optimized learning

What I remember particularly well is
the time I spoke directly with
Professor Masahiro Nasu at Ogawa Elementary School.

Professor Nasu shared with me
the idea that "the foundation of the philosophy of individually optimized learning is special needs education."

"It's special needs education.
You're a special needs person, right?
You can do it, right?"
he said...

Those words left a deep impression on me.

In special needs education,
even behind behaviors that look the same,
there are different reasons for each child.
Grasping the actual situation and understanding the background
of each individual's difficulties and characteristics is essential.

Therefore, instead of applying the same support uniformly,
we think about the interaction that child needs.

Why has that child stopped working?
Why can't that child go to see their friend's ideas?
Why can't that child write things down even though they understand?
Why can't that child start moving even after listening to the explanation?

We look not just at the behavior, but at the background behind it.

Thinking about it this way, individually optimized learning
is by no means only for special children.

It is learning that begins by seeing all children
as unique individuals.

Children with developmental disabilities,
children with roots in foreign countries,
children who have a strong sense of dislike for learning,
children who want to move ahead quickly,
children who want to proceed while carefully verifying things—
even if children are in the same classroom,
they are not starting their learning from the same place.

Their learning starting points are different.
The support they need is different.
Their pace is different.
The way they understand is different.

That is precisely why individually optimized learning is necessary.
This leads to the inclusion of diversity...

And here, we return again to the question of assessment...

Can we assess children who are not doing the same things in the same way?

As the classes changed, another problem became clear.
It was the problem of assessment.
Even in the same classroom, children are not doing the same things.
Some children are returning to the basics.
Some children are moving on to advanced problems.
Some children are referring to their friends' ideas.
Some children are learning together with the teacher.

Each person's learning is certainly meaningful.
It was the necessary learning for each child.

Everyone starts from a different place.
They struggle in different areas.
They progress at different rates.
They require different types of support.
As they advance through the grades, these differences become even more pronounced.

That is precisely why it makes sense to structure individually optimized learning.
However, at the end of the term, we try to evaluate it using a single format.
We try to present it in the same columns, using the same criteria, in the same way.

The moment we do that, the "differences" that we should have valued during class
become things that are difficult to handle within the assessment.

This child went back to a previous unit to relearn the material.
This child deepened their own thinking by referring to a friend's ideas.
This child was finally able to move forward by working together with the teacher.
This child took on a challenging task and expanded their own inquiry.

Every one of these instances was a valuable learning experience for that child.

But how do we express that in the end-of-term report card?
Is it really okay to present it in the same way, using the same yardstick?

Isn't that difficult...

These voices began to emerge from among the teachers.
"Isn't it difficult to evaluate this in the same way?"

When I heard those words, I nodded deeply.
Because I had been feeling the same thing.

Assessment, too, must be individually optimized.

The more we advance individually optimized learning,
the greater the gap becomes with traditional forms of assessment.

Children are starting to learn from their own respective starting points.
Their learning paths are progressing at their own individual paces.
When they encounter difficulties in learning, they look at tablets or refer to friends' ideas,
advancing their learning while receiving their own specific support.
Even children whose learning environment is not the school itself are learning in their own respective places.

The moment we try to summarize that reality into a uniform format,
it is self-evident that it will lead to inconsistencies somewhere.
And I suspect that teachers all over the country are feeling lost and troubled by this.

What is the inclusion of diversity...

Of course, in school education, it is necessary to
evaluate based on certain standards.
There are goals set out in the Course of Study,
and it is necessary to observe the learning situation according to specific criteria.

"Because everyone is different, there is no need to evaluate anything."
That is not what I am saying.
In fact, it is the opposite.

Precisely because everyone is different,
assessment must be more thorough.
Precisely because everyone is different,
assessment must return more to the process of learning.
Precisely because everyone is different,
assessment must not only be something that shows results,
but also something that supports the next stage of learning.

And, the inclusion of diversity...
As mentioned earlier,
learning that begins by seeing every child
as an individual who is different from everyone else.
That is what it is.
Yasuko Kimura, the first principal of Ozora Elementary School, also says that
if you take one wrong step, discrimination can occur.

Precisely because children learn in their own respective places,
assessment must be more thorough,
more immediate,
and more reflective of their learning.
Perhaps we need to reconsider
the very nature of assessment once again.

Megumi Nakamura, a member of the General Rules and Assessment Special Committee of the Central Council for Education,
writes the following.

In other words...

If we are to advance personalized learning,
doesn't assessment also need to be personalized?

Is the 'Ayumi' (report card) suited to current learning?

The report card is handed out all at once at the end of the term.
However, a child's learning is in motion during daily lessons.

At the very moment they stumble, there are words they need.
At the very moment they begin to understand, there is feedback I want to give.
At the very moment they are about to move forward, there is learning I want to support.

Should we really wait until the end of the term for that assessment?
Is the 'Ayumi' truly suited to current learning?

This question became something the entire school could no longer avoid.

So, I decided to pose this question to the School Management Council (Community School),
the Kizu-CS...

Then, from the parent representatives and local community members,
came words I had never imagined...

Next time, I would like to write about the discussion at the School Management Council.