The Learning Accelerator is pleased to pilot a one-year Fellowship (fall 2017 – spring 2018) with a diverse cohort of individuals who will be conducting research that advances our measurement agenda for blended learning. Through these fellowships, we will catalyze the measurement ecosystem (including future researchers, leaders, and educators) to work together towards the mutual goal of all students receiving an outstanding education, enabling them to reach their full potential.
Our Vision for Blended Learning Measurement
The Learning Accelerator’s vision for blended learning is the strategic integration of in-person learning and technology to enable personalization, mastery-based progression and the use of real-time data. There is much still to be learned about if, how, and when blended learning is effectively implemented in K-12 settings. Implementing evidence-based practices requires multiple stakeholders to take coordinated action utilizing a breadth of knowledge and skills traditionally associated with very different roles and responsibilities.
Knowing and implementing evidence-based practices increases our ability to meet each student’s instructional needs. Our Measurement Agenda for Blended Learning outlines the skills, knowledge, and activities necessary for stakeholders to build our evidence base and advance our collective understanding and implementation of effective blended learning practices.
Advancing measurement of blended learning includes increasing evidence-gathering access to funds, people, and classrooms; and the broad sharing of findings and their implications. If we expect to build a knowledge base that is relevant and applied to a diverse student body, we must build an ecosystem that is reflective of that student body and diverse along several dimensions including ethnicity, socioeconomic status, first or native language, identity, and others.
The goal of this work is to deeply understand what is and is not working, for whom, and under what conditions. We do not expect — indeed, we would be suspicious of — findings from these studies to be universally positive.
The Fellowship
The Fellowship is offered to degree-seeking students enrolled in any graduate program in the United States, who are intending to or conducting research on blended learning that is expected to be completed during the spring of 2018.
TLA is committed to facilitating diversity, equity, and inclusion through supporting individuals with diverse backgrounds and experiences, and a demonstrated need for opportunities and support in doing this work. We aim to grow the next generation of measurement professionals by building a cadre of graduate students who are excited to begin this work, not necessarily those who are already expert.
Benefits include:
- $1,000 research start-up stipend
- TLA support during the 2017 – 2018 school year to complete a blended learning research study
- Virtual and face-to-face access to the Community of Practice formed by the cohort of Fellows
- Registration, travel, and attendance to the 2018 Blended and Personalized Learning Conference, April 5-7, 2018
- Connections to established researchers
Applications are currently being accepted until August 31, 2017. For more information, contact Saro Mohammed, saro.mohammed@learningaccelerator.org
