Knowing each student well is essential to a year of flourishing for students and educators. It\u2019s a prerequisite to ensuring equitable access to belonging and wellbeing, a culturally-responsive learning environment, and deep learning. And it enriches the relationships so central to thriving among youth and adults alike. <\/span>Personal learning plans (PLPs) can drive a rich and sustained process of knowing each student well. Teachers, peers, parents and other important adults\u2014and certainly the student\u2014will appreciate the evolving insights PLPs can offer. And students\u2019 learning experiences from the summer, team development activities that launch the year, and <\/span>identity units<\/span><\/a> will help you use PLPs to know students well.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

We\u2019ve pulled together our favorite blog posts and other resources to help you launch or deepen your work with PLPs. You\u2019ll find everything here and plenty more in our updated toolkit. Below you can get a taste of some of the highlights. Enjoy!<\/span><\/p>\n

Introduction<\/h2>\n

According to <\/span>Vermont\u2019s Agency of Education<\/span><\/a>, \u201cA PLP is a plan created by a student, with the support of parents\/guardians, teachers\/mentors and peers, that defines the scope and rigor of academic and experiential opportunities that will lead to secondary school completion, postsecondary readiness, and civic engagement. Creating Personalized Learning Plans provides students the opportunity to reflect upon their learning and shape their future, and enables the adults in their lives to better understand each student as a unique individual…. PLPs not only help articulate and clarify students\u2019 goals and needs but also are a reflection of the importance of student agency in learning as they work to meet graduation proficiencies.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Clarify Your Purpose<\/h2>\n

Clarifying your own purposes for PLPs is key to unlocking their power. In our book, <\/span>Personalized Learning in the Middle Grades: A Guide for Classroom Teachers and School Leaders<\/span><\/a>, we invite educators to begin their planning for PLPs by first asking themselves a number of questions. These questions are meant to invite thinking about critical gaps in current schooling, especially for students poorly served by current practices, that PLP work can help to fill.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\n
• What life opportunities do I hope my students will engage in when they launch into adulthood 8-10 years from now? As citizens, wage earners, and family members?\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
• What kinds of learning would I like to see more of in my classroom or school?<\/span><\/li>\n
• What kinds of learning do I wish were valued more by the rest of my school system?<\/span><\/li>\n
• What kinds of evidence of learning and growth do these learning opportunities produce?\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
• How can I welcome this evidence into a system of student record-keeping?\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
• Who are the stakeholders in my educational community and what evidence or experiences do they need in order to support the learning I want for my students?<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

  And remember, PLPs aren’t just for the teacher<\/a>. Here are some ways we think PLPs can help various stakeholders. Notice the many ways stakeholders can use PLPs to know students well.<\/span><\/p>\n

  <\/a><\/p>\n

  Consider these purposes and discover new ones as you explore the resources below. Start by hearing what students have to say about PLPs that work for them.<\/span><\/p>\n

  

  <\/h2>\n

  Center Personally Meaningful Learning<\/h2>\n

  The <\/span>Vermont\u2019s Agency of Education<\/span><\/a> echoes what we\u2019ve heard from educators and students across Vermont and beyond when they observed, \u201cFundamental to the successful implementation of PLPs is a meaningful process much more so than a product, even though a clear and thoughtful product is key to ultimate success.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

  Foremost among the lessons we\u2019ve learned from teachers and students, PLPs must center the learning students’ find most meaningful. That often means learning at the edges of or beyond regular school-based curriculum. Moreover, while most facets of schooling serve other stakeholder priorities, PLPs are meant to focus on learning that students value most.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

  \n
  • What Matters Most Now: Lesson Two \u2013 Rethink What We Teach<\/a>\n
    \n
    • The learning students find most engaging and meaningful often reflects 21st century<\/a>, transferable<\/a>, or essential skills and dispositions<\/a>. These are learning outcomes valued outside of school as well. Not surprisingly, they form the backbone of Vermont’s Portrait of a Graduate<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
    • Outdoor learning<\/a>, community-based learning<\/a>, J-term<\/a> or year-end studies, service learning, place- and project-based<\/a>, and so many other effective and compelling approaches to curriculum are ideal fodder for PLPs.<\/li>\n
    • Student-centered personalized learning starts with identity<\/a>\n
      \n
      • Exploring personal and collective identity is a cornerstone of PLPs, essential for healthy adolescent development, and helps teachers know students well. It’s also deeply engaging for students.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
      • Introducing our updated Identity Toolkit<\/a>\n
        \n
        • Activities in which students explore and express their identities can be large or small, cross boundaries of curriculum and instruction, and help students pursue critically important questions about equity and justice.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
        • The rise of the project-based PLP<\/span><\/a>\n
          \n
          • Students and teachers across several schools discover that engaging project-based learning lends purpose and meaning to PLPs.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
          • Starting with the Learner Profile<\/a>\n
            \n
            • The learner profile, a standard element in most PLP designs, is an invitation to engaging, multi-modal, and deeply personal learning experiences.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

              Build Powerful Opportunities into the Process<\/h2>\n

              A robust PLP process is rich with depth, complexity and culture. In the following examples we see educators and students embrace that richness with processes that are collaborative, reflective, and iterative–the same traits we seek from each students’ PLP experience. PLPs to know students well yields benefits across the curriculum and the school community.<\/p>\n

              \n
              • Peer collaboration on PLPs<\/a>\n
                \n
                • Partnering students for PLP work deepens the experience for students and takes much of the day-to-day logistical load off of teachers.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
                • PLP Collaboration at PAML<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>\n
                  \n
                  • Multiage student partnerships at Peoples Academy Middle Level helped younger students get up and running with meaningful goal-setting.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
                  • Elements of Personalization — Moving Step by Step<\/span><\/a>\n
                    \n
                    • Regular reflection, goal-setting, documenting evidence of learning in multiple ways are foundational practices in their own right. They are also integral to PLPs.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
                    • Using Data to Inform the PLP Process<\/span><\/a>\n
                      \n
                      • Collecting and analyzing feedback with students informs PLP implementation and deepens their role in a learning community.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
                      • Looking at PLPs<\/a>\n
                        \n
                        • PLPs hold promise for deepening relationships between students and their teachers. Looking at PLPs with relationships in mind, paying special attention to the students who need it most, can help fulfill that promise.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
                        • Use a student leadership team for feedback on PLPs<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>\n
                          \n
                          • A student leadership team was established to help guide a school’s PLP work. It ended up be vital to getting the PLP program back on track<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
                          • (Re) Designing PLPs with students<\/span><\/a>\n
                            \n
                            • Student leadership groups from five schools joined together to explore how to make PLPs work for them.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
                            • Student-led conferences and engagement in PLPs<\/span><\/a>\n
                              \n
                              • Teacher Katie Bryant’s action research reveals the power of integrating PLPs and student-led conferences.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                                Borrow from Others<\/h2>\n

                                Growing a PLP program responsive to the needs and interests of students, educators, and families must be iterative. Fortunately, embracing iteration is easier now more than ever. You\u2019ve got plenty of rich examples to draw upon. Some are fully formed systems honed over years. Others speak to creative approaches to critical elements.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

                                \n
                                • Don Taylor\u2019s work at Main Street Middle School incorporates a comprehensive and thoroughly tested <\/span>program of PLP implementation<\/span><\/a>, including a strong rationale and modules on <\/span>Identity<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>Goals, Growth & Reflection<\/span><\/a>, and <\/span>Gathering Evidence<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n
                                • Care and Feeding of the PLP<\/span><\/a>\n
                                  \n
                                  • Margaret Dunne and Emma Vastola of Two Rivers Supervisory Union describe their journey\u00a0 as an idea toward a sustainable system in which students feel invested in PLP work. Early on, they and their colleagues at Green Mountain Middle\/High School figured out how to introduce PLPs to students in the elementary and middle grades.<\/span><\/li>\n
                                  • PLP Overview for Students (in grades 3-6)<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n
                                  • PLP Overview for Students (in middle grades)<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                                    Consider Platforms with Purpose in Mind<\/h2>\n

                                    A clear purpose will guide you toward the technologies that meet the needs of students, teachers, and other stakeholders.<\/p>\n

                                    \n
                                    • Using Seesaw with Google Classroom for PLPs<\/span><\/a>\n
                                      \n
                                      • No one platform or tool can serve all the needs of PLP work. But we can navigate how several platforms can be woven into a coherent system that works for students, teachers and families.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
                                      • PLPs in Seesaw<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>\n
                                        \n
                                        • SeeSaw has taken hold in some schools as a key tool for PLP work. While not a perfect solution for everyone, its use reveals important opportunities for what PLP systems can foster.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
                                        • Google Tools for personal learning plans (PLPs)<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>\n
                                          \n
                                          • Google Tools are ubiquitous in many schools. With attention to the deeper purposes of PLPs they can support many aspects of PLP work.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                                            Scaffold Evidence Gathering, Reflection & Goal Setting<\/h2>\n

                                            A commitment to meaningful learning and student ownership of PLPs opens many avenues for scaffolding key skills students will need for PLPs and their lives ahead.<\/p>\n

                                            \n
                                            • Evidence & Assessment by PLP Pathways<\/span><\/a>\n
                                              \n
                                              • Collecting evidence in a PLP is about more than charting progress toward declared goals. Students benefit as much or more from casting a wide net that welcomes day-to-day evidence of growth beyond the classroom and toward transferable skills.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
                                              • Providing support for goal-setting in a PLP<\/span><\/a>\n
                                                \n
                                                • Two educators share three key strategies to support teachers and students as they collaborate collaborate around goals.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
                                                • How can students reflect on their PLPs?<\/span><\/a>\n
                                                  \n
                                                  • There are as many ways for students to reflect on their PLPs as there are students. Here are six examples from students.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
                                                  • Screencasting as PLP reflection<\/span><\/a>\n
                                                    \n
                                                    • When their teacher asked for advice on how to make PLPs more exciting, students suggested screencasting as a way to bring images, video, audio and reflection together.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
                                                    • Increasing student engagement in PLPs<\/span><\/a>\n
                                                      \n
                                                      • An action research project reveals the power of providing students with flexible pathways for reflecting on learning.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                                                        Keep the Bigger Picture in Mind<\/h2>\n

                                                        It is important (and helpful) to remember that PLPs make sense within a larger system meant to spur deeper and personally-meaningful learning. We’ve found that PLPs often falter without meaningful learning opportunities and authentic assessment that values them.<\/p>\n

                                                        \n
                                                        • How personal learning is working in Vermont<\/a>\n
                                                          \n
                                                          • PLPs help us know students well. Flexible pathways and authentic, proficiency-based assessment\u00a0 bring them to life.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
                                                          • How personal learning is working in Vermont<\/a>\n
                                                            \n
                                                            • PLPs help us know students well. Flexible pathways and authentic, proficiency-based assessment<\/a>\u00a0 bring them to life.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
                                                            • Student-led conferences<\/a>\n
                                                              \n
                                                              • Student-led conferences deepen and drive PLP work.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
                                                              • Community-Based Learning at Montpelier High School<\/a>\n
                                                                \n
                                                                • Montpelier’s community-based learning program has been years in the making. It’s one school system’s vision of thoughtfully scaffolded<\/span><\/a> and expanded learning opportunities<\/span><\/a>, community partnerships<\/span><\/a>, and support resources for essential skills<\/span><\/a>. And it raises a key question worth pondering: how can your PLP program build capacity among students, educators, families and others for a longer-term vision of personal learning.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
                                                                • Walking the Walk: Educator PLPs<\/span><\/a>\n
                                                                  \n
                                                                  • One way to dive into the bigger picture of PLPs is to start small: create one for yourself!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
                                                                  • Do you know where you are? Taking stock of implementing Vermont’s Act 77<\/a>\n
                                                                    \n
                                                                    • Anywhere along your journey it’s worth taking stock of where you are.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

                                                                      Knowing each student well is essential to a year of flourishing for students and educators. It\u2019s a prerequisite to ensuring equitable access to belonging and wellbeing, a culturally-responsive learning environment, and deep learning. And it enriches the relationships so central to thriving among youth and adults alike. Personal learning plans (PLPs) can drive a rich … <\/p>\n

                                                                      Continue reading “Personalized Learning Plans (PLPs)”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":44,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-20057","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tiie.w3.uvm.edu\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/20057","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tiie.w3.uvm.edu\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tiie.w3.uvm.edu\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tiie.w3.uvm.edu\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/44"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tiie.w3.uvm.edu\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20057"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/tiie.w3.uvm.edu\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/20057\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":32151,"href":"https:\/\/tiie.w3.uvm.edu\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/20057\/revisions\/32151"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tiie.w3.uvm.edu\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20057"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}