Imagine a student with an interest in medical sciences participating in an internship to get biology credits in high school. The student develops a plan with her teacher and a mentor at a local medical center to study how infection is spread within a hospital.

Throughout the internship, the student observes healthcare workers and studies hand washing practices in the different units within the medical center. The student collects and analyzes data, combines the data with research and then presents the findings to the Infection Control Board at the medical center.

The student not only makes progress toward specific science competencies, but she also practices presentation skills, using critical thinking and problem solving, and applying graphing and map skills to present research findings. The student demonstrates learning, earns biology credits for high school and adds value to the medical center through the work and research as an intern.

How would we define the learning experience for the student in the example above?

It is personalized because the student was able to align work experience to her own learning. It is also competency-based because the student works with her teacher to demonstrate mastery based on the competencies that have been defined for receiving biology credit.

Can this type of learning take place in, or nearby, schools across North Carolina? Absolutely. But what exactly does it mean to have a personalized, competency-based education system?

Competency-Based Education (CBE) is a system in which students are awarded credit for a particular course without being required to complete classroom instruction for a certain amount of seat time, as long as the student has demonstrated a sufficient level of understanding in that subject. In short, instruction is customized, education is student-centric, and time and place are no longer constants because learning can take place at any time and in any place.

How is CBE implemented across the country?

In June 2015, CompetencyWorks and the International Association for K-12 Online Learning (iNACOL) prepared an issue brief titled “Implementing Competency Education in K-12 Systems: Insight from Local Leaders.” The brief compiled five years of research involving school and district visits across the county to learn about best practices and lessons learned in implementing CBE programs.

Key ideas include:

• the importance of investing in shared leadership (building leadership capacity and empowering others);
• the need to have a shared journey of inquiry (listen, respect and trust as you work with stakeholders in the process); and
• the value of having shared vision and shared ownership (engage the community and have a common purpose/goal among your stakeholders).

Several states across the nation, including New Hampshire, Maine, Vermont and Colorado, have led early efforts for CBE implementation. These states are re-designing polices to allow for the creation of proficiency-based diplomas and conversion of credits to align with skills learned without regard to seat time.

Additional states are also working toward CBE through implementing various strategies. Arizona, Connecticut, Iowa, Kentucky, Ohio, Oregon and Rhode Island are working on policy changes to open up opportunities for innovation in their education systems, such as credit by demonstrating subject area competency, community-based learning activities, and flex credit policies offering students options for high school credits. Alternatively, districts in Alaska, Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois and South Carolina are making an effort to transition to CBE without having policy supports in place.

North Carolina can learn from the successes of others to make its own progress in defining what CBE looks like in schools and districts. CBE systems allow students to advance at their own pace and demonstrate mastery based on a comprehensive set of competencies. To implement with success, North Carolina will need to ensure skilled teachers are available to facilitate and support students who might be working at different paces and in different places (in terms of competencies and location).

Personal learning for all students and quality teachers in all schools are themes that are embedded in the goals of schools and districts across North Carolina. Given a firm foundation, North Carolina can move CBE forward by further prioritizing personalization and learner-centric education for all students.

What is next for CBE in North Carolina?

In April 2016, a group of education stakeholders from North Carolina will travel to New Hampshire, the only state currently implementing CBE statewide, to see the approach firsthand in schools. New Hampshire moved CBE forward by removing time constraints that were limiting the ability for creating flexible and personal learning experiences for students. New Hampshire plans to build upon its work and expand CBE to cover P-20 education, as noted in their new vision document.

NC New Schools/Breakthrough Learning is collaborating with legislators, state and local educators, and other research partners to prepare North Carolina for changes that will lead to personalized learning and a more competency-based system, such as changes to hours and days required for instruction. There are also professional learning implications as teachers and school and district leaders will need training and time to learn and implement a new system based on competencies and mastery. Professional learning for educators should model the competency-based approach that will be used with the students. Educators will learn to be facilitators and mentors and foster more transparent and collaborative learning environments for students.

At the local level, some schools and districts in North Carolina are already starting to explore options to move toward implementing CBE. We will be highlighting these schools over the next six months as we collect information and best practices related to CBE efforts in North Carolina.

The important question for everyone to consider in this process of re-designing education is “Why does CBE matter?”

A competency-based approach to education can further support all students and empower them to drive their own learning and instruction in order to graduate ready for college and careers so they can provide for themselves, their families, and their communities.