The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI) is reportedly laying off staff members and shifting its focus away from personalized learning, a concept CZI has been funding since 2015. The personalized learning platform, Summit, has not achieved the desired results and has not led to significant improvements in student learning. This highlights the challenges of using technology to improve education on a large scale. The author argues that the misunderstanding about education that led to the investment in personalized learning is the belief that individualized, computer-based instruction is superior to traditional classroom instruction. The author suggests that whole class instruction can be personalized and provides an example of a classroom where teacher-student interaction is responsive to individual needs. However, the appeal of personalized learning still persists among education technology funders, despite a lack of evidence supporting its effectiveness. The author questions why these funders have such power to shape the education landscape and advocates for less reliance on their influence.
https://danmeyer.substack.com/p/the-misunderstanding-about-education