Superintendent's Fall Message
August 2018
“You’re off to great places! Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting, So…Get on your way!” Dr. Seuss
Welcome to the 2018-19 school year! With the start of school comes a great deal of excitement, optimism and even a little bit of apprehension. We at the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District are working hard to make this year’s start the best we have ever had.
This year, all of our staff and schools are focused on meeting the individual needs of all students every day. This includes work on creating a safe, supportive and positive environment for everyone in our schools. We have emphasized and trained staff on instructional strategies that will fully engage all learners in a lasting and meaningful way. Some call this personalized learning. I call it good instruction that develops excellent thinkers, problem solvers and good citizens.
As we move through the year, we hope to implement more opportunities for students to apply what they learn in the classroom, outside of the classroom. This may include internships, concurrent credit opportunities, video-conferenced instruction with expert practitioners around the world, and greater partnerships with local business and community members to provide relevancy to our students’ experiences.
I am very optimistic about the future of the school district, borough, state and country. I believe this because of what I see in our classrooms every day. We have excellent staff, communities, parents and most importantly, kids. We are all “off to great places” and while we will be climbing some “mountains”, we are ready to start that journey together with all of you!
Sean Dusek, Superintendent
Learn more about PL, or read on:
Personalized Learning in KPBSD
Personalized learning shifts from a one-size-fits-all factory model of education to better prepare students for the jobs and needs of their future. The design of instruction and the classroom allow educators to respond to the individual needs of students instead of expecting students to fit the current mold or adapt to unsuccessful learning structures. PL does not replace teachers with computers. Many of our teachers implement elements of PL in their classrooms right now, and we will now build on this foundation to create an even better learning environment. Key elements your child will experience include:
- Teachers integrate digital content, which allows for a differentiated path and pace based on individual student needs
- Teachers use targeted instruction based on specific student needs and learning goals
- Teachers use current and relevant data to help inform instructional decisions and groupings
- Students engage in ongoing self-reflection that promotes ownership of their learning
When will PL formally start in KPBSD schools?
Every KPBSD school is doing some degree of work with personalized learning. However, the formal work of individual schools and teachers working directly toward personalized learning will be rolled out in three "waves" over the next year.
- Wave 1 schools began their work in spring 2017, and will continue in the fall of 2017.
- Wave 2 schools will begin their formal work with Education Elements in the fall of 2017.
- Wave 3 schools will begin their formal work with Education Elements in the spring of 2018.
Links
Personalized Learning
webpage
KPBSD Personalized Learning Blog
Personalized Learning
FAQs
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