data.ed.gov

"School of One (So1), named by Time magazine as one of the top 50 inventions of 2009, aims to ensure that students receive effective and dynamic instruction that is customized to their particular academic needs, interests, and learning preferences, thereby increasing student learning and preparation for high school and beyond. The i3 development grant would sponsor the enhancement of So1's adaptive and intelligent technology platform to support instruction in middle school math as it is implemented in four new schools beginning in 2011.
Addressing Absolute Priority 2, So1 has five key components. First, So1 leverages a learning progression-a discrete set of skills designed by pedagogical experts. Second, So1 gathers all available data about each student and based on that information, creates a unique set of skills from the learning progression for each student called a playlist. Third, So1 sources instructional content from a multitude of sources across nine instructional modalities. Fourth, a state-of-the-art learning algorithm analyzes the data from each lesson and creates a unique daily schedule for each student and teacher. Fifth, students take individualized daily assessments-the playlist update-to measure mastery of the skill they studied.
Year 1 of the grant will focus on the development of the technology platform to increase automation in the process and build capacity to support more schools. In years 2-3, we will implement So1 in four new schools for students in sixth through eighth grade math, providing the professional development and site support needed to effectively implement the model. We estimate that 3,000 students will be served by the project each year.
Finally, the proposed project will include a rigorous evaluation which will provide feedback to enhance operations and will determine whether So1 has an effect on students' mastery of math as measured by regular periodic assessments and standardized math tests."

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