U N PA C K I N G T H E C O M P E T E N C Y- B A S E D C L A S S R O O M
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more meaning to the final projects that require hard work, perseverance, creativity, and innovation. Through performance-based assessment, teachers can offer support and provide feedback on the academic standards or competencies necessary for success in a particular course of study and the adaptive competencies that we know are important for life beyond the classroom. CPS can ensure students leave its schools with the skills needed to advocate for themselves and others, collaborate and communicate effectively, adapt to changes or respond to constructive feedback productively, and take the initiative or lead when they are so inspired or called to take action. The goal is to ensure students have a seat at the table and that their voices are informed and heard.
(T. Howell, D. Smith, personal communication, July 14, 2021)
Evolving Policy According to ExcelinEd and EducationCounsel (2017): Effective implementation of competency-based education demands attention to an intricate array of education policies, practices and systems at the federal, state and local levels. Some decisions can be anticipated in advance (e.g., the need for flexibility from time-based credits and requirements) while others will only become apparent during implementation (e.g., challenges logging competency-based credits into time-based databases and IT systems). (p. 5)
The best thing that states can do (and have done) is to create opportunities for innovation—a way that schools and school districts can explore and adopt various competency-based models that work within the confines of the state laws, policies, and procedures. According to ExcelinEd and EducationCounsel (2017), “Innovation programs and pilots provide a reasonable and actionable first step for policymakers. They also provide an important opportunity to work through challenging issues and strike an appropriate balance of state and local responsibilities” (p. 5). Many states in the United States have begun or advanced their work in competency education by way of an innovative program or project that falls into the category of one or more of the following six strategies. 1.
Policy language that provides flexibility from time-based systems
©️2022 by Solution Tree Press
In CPS, we have seen that by connecting academics to the social-emotional learning, adaptive competencies, and social justice aspects of the work, we can bring out the excellence in staff, students, and families that will help make this world a better place. After all, isn’t it our role as educators to uplift and empower young people to take charge ethically and responsibly in this fast-paced and ever-changing world? Competency-based education, focusing on the whole child, rigorous learning targets, 21st-century or foundational skills, social justice, and social and emotional learning, allows students to sit in the driver’s seat of their educational journey, take charge of their learning, and pursue their passions.
