Betty Jo Malchesky, assistant superintendent with Perry Local Schools in Perry, Ohio, has been in the education field for more than 30 years and says that right now she is experiencing the biggest shift of her entire career.
“This is a time where the world is in a vastly different place than when I came out of teacher’s college, and we simply focused on teaching content. I think now, we are teaching people to be great citizens. That’s a big shift […] To understand each other better. Understand the diversity of needs.”
As an experienced educator and self-described “people person,” Malchesky sees this as an opportune moment for the future of education in Ohio.
“It’s a gift, being able to develop young minds in collaboration with our community’s values and interests … to me, it’s an incredibly exciting point that we are in.”
This enthusiasm is mirrored among fellow educators moving toward personalized, competency-based learning in Ohio. Educators participating in the KnowledgeWorks professional learning cohort report that implementing personalized learning is having a positive influence on their school culture (51% agreement in 2024 compared to 31% in 2023). Approximately 91% of educators in 2024 agreed that they were encouraged to experiment with new instructional approaches, an increase from 75% in 2023.
Perry local schools began its partnership with KnowledgeWorks in September 2022 and since that time they have been working to build a system around access, agency and meaningful choices.
Personalized learning as an education philosophy
About 200 miles south in Warren County, Shanna Bumiller, a learning experience supervisor, is also witnessing the benefits of implementing personalized learning. One of her greatest joys at Mason City Schools: Supporting a team of nine curriculum designers as they dig deep into personalized learning.
“We’ve been on our personalized learning journey at Mason for roughly six years now. It’s one of our district’s big rocks — which is the value system that we use to make all decisions in the district.”
A student-centered approach to teaching and learning is simply ingrained in the district’s education philosophy.
“That’s just how we do things in Mason,” Bumiller said.
Some of the most significant changes Bumiller has seen in the classroom are the various opportunities that students have to use their voice.
“And when I say that I’m not just talking about in discussions, but how students help to influence and shape with their teacher what their learning experience will look like. Whether that’s co-creating classroom norms or talking about how they might demonstrate what they learn.”
Empowering students and teachers
A shift toward personalized learning is not just about the students; it’s also about the educators who guide them. It’s about fostering a culture where students and teachers feel empowered to explore, create and grow together.
As part of the Ohio Personalized Learning Network, more than 700 educators from across the state participated in grant-funded professional learning cohorts facilitated by KnowledgeWorks. The aim: expand systems and approaches that center the individual needs of every learner. The approach is not only positively influencing school culture but could also be influencing retention. In 2024, 63% of respondents said that implementing personalized learning has made them want to stay in their school, compared to 44% in 2023.
Bumiller agrees that educator agency is critical to successful personalized learning implementation and an area of emphasis in Mason schools. Throughout Mason, the administration gathers input from educators to create the supports and system changes necessary to continue personalized learning growth.
“I always like to say it’s more about creating the structures and systems to support a personalized learning ecosystem. It’s a journey,” Bumiller added.
An investment well worth the effort
Joshua Harris, an educator from the Twinsburg City School District in northern Ohio, concurs that embracing the shift toward personalized learning means committing to the journey and it’s not always an easy path to navigate.
“To a fellow educator, I would say that personalized learning is so worth it. It’s not the easiest path, especially at the beginning. It is very frustrating. To really break your mindset as well as changing the mindset of students, but once you get them to a place where they feel like they are really in control and that they can achieve their goals, it is invaluable. Students take so much from it.”
At a time when students are reporting a lack of interest and engagement in school, Ohio educators reported witnessing positive changes in their students’ engagement and motivation when integrating personalized learning practices into their lessons. Of the 114 educators who responded to a survey in April 2024, 89% agreed their students were more engaged and 83% agreed that their students took more ownership of their learning.
Twinsburg began its personalized learning journey through its involvement in a school-level personalized learning cohort offered by KnowledgeWorks. Educators and school level leaders had access to industry-leading insights, resources and tools, along with continuous quality improvement supports to inform goal setting and action planning. Building on this foundation, they later expanded their efforts by establishing a district-level design team to scale and sustain personalized, competency-based learning across the district. Through a comprehensive self-assessment process, the district developed a roadmap for planning and implementing personalized, competency-based learning.
“As educators move forward with personalized learning implementation in Ohio, I am filled with hope and excitement for what the future holds,” said Deion Jordan, a teaching and learning director at KnowledgeWorks. “The transformative journey has taken root in Ohio, and we see tremendous progress through the emphasis on student and educator agency and the commitment to continuous growth and improvement.”
With guidance, personalized coaching and technical support from KnowledgeWorks, Perry Local, Mason and Twinsburg are all successfully pursuing their vision of district-wide education transformation.
