Inevitable: mass customized learning [Paperback]

Chuck Schwahn (Author), Bea McGarvey (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 30, 2010

Meeting the individual learning needs of every learner, every hour, of every day although espoused by educators, has only been a dream.....an impossible dream for educators facing student-teacher ratios of 25 to 1. But, alas, it is now a reality....a reality that is hiding in plain sight. Inevitable: Mass Customizing Learning (MCL) describes a detailed vision of how schools can change from the present outdated Industrial Age, assembly line structure to a mass customized learning structure with the capacity to meet the individual learning needs of every learner.....that's every learner, not some, not most, but every learner. iTunes, Amazon.com, Verizon, Wikipedia, and Google (to name a few) are doing it right now. They prove to us daily that mass customization is effective and efficient and...well...doable. Let's marry those powerful, customizing technologies with the power mission of educators to personalize learning. Everyone wins. The learner wins. And when the learner wins, so do educators, parents, society, and the economy. Inevitable provides a solid rationale for the structural change, identifies the proven technologies of today that make the vision doable, details the potential MCL has to motivate learners to high achievement, describes teacher roles that are highly professional, and outlines and concretely describes what school systems must do to make MCL a reality. The authors of Inevitable use a "weight bearing wall" metaphor to identify the Industrial Age walls (practices) that prevent us from meeting individual learner needs. Leaders are then shown how new customizing technology walls can replace those Industrial Age walls . . . and the roof will not fall in! Yes, leaders can operate a MCL system and still remain in control! The transformational change of MCL becomes clear, logical, and believable. Mass Customizing Learning is necessary and ..... well.... Inevitable . . . and this book describes how to do it.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

ABOUT THE AUTHORS Charles J. Schwahn has made his professional life a study of leadership and effective organizations. For the past 30 years he has worked with school systems and businesses throughout North America providing consultation on the topics of leadership, change, and future-focused strategic design. His career has placed him in nearly all the critical roles of the education profession, and his last "real" job was as superintendent of the Eagle County School District in Vail, Colorado. Chuck received his doctorate from the University of Massachusetts, where Ken Blanchard of The One-Minute Manager fame was his doctoral chair. Chuck is co-author of Total Leaders: Applying the Best Future-Focused Change Strategies to Education, Total Leaders 2.0: Leading in the Age of Empowerment, and Learning Communities 2.0. Chuck and his wife Genny spend their summers in the Black Hills of South Dakota and winters in the Phoenix area. He can be reached at [e-mail].   Beatrice McGarvey has consulted with educators throughout the United States and Canada in the areas of teaching and learning, leadership and organizational development. Her knowledge and experience is a result of the thirty-year career she enjoyed in Maine schools - as a classroom teacher, as a middle school counselor and administrator, and as a district and state leader, including serving as Executive Director of Education for the Portland Public Schools in Portland, Maine and as President of Maine ASCD. Bea received her B.S. and M.Ed. degrees from the University of Southern Maine and is proud to be a Partner in Total Leaders Associates, a Senior Associate at Marzano Research Lab, and a faculty trainer for International ASCD. She is co-author of The Future is Now: Shifts and Trends That are Redefining Organizations, Careers, and Life and Total Leaders: A Leadership Curriculum used by the Pennsylvania Leadership Development Consortium. Her large and growing family of four grandchildren and nineteen nieces and nephews prove Bea's theory that all children are born with an inherent will and motivation to learn. Her mission has been to create learning environments which do not extinguish this natural drive. Bea and her husband Richard spend eight months enjoying the beautiful coast of their native Maine and four months appreciating the desert and mountains of Arizona. She can be reached at [e-mail]. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 212 pages
• Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (November 30, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1453748628
• ISBN-13: 978-1453748626
• Product Dimensions: 0.5 x 6 x 8.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #503,856 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 11 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Poorly written! March 6, 2012

By Judy K

Amazon Verified Purchase

This is one of the worst educational books I have read in a long time. While the ideas have merit, the writing is so bad that I struggled to get through it. I found myself growing angry trying to read it, because of the clunky sentence structure and heavy use of educational jargon. I heard Bea McGarvey speak in person and she was a very dynamic speaker. Maybe a video would be a better way to spread the word. These people have no talent in writing.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Read! March 10, 2012

By Ed Leader

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When Inevitable was published, my outlook as an educator changed. Chuck Schwann and Bea McGarvey outline a vision of what learning needs to become with a specificity that no other authors have done. Chuck and Bea forego the educational jargon to paint their vision. I use their book as my blueprint for creating ownership and an individualized approach to facilitating learning in my school! Great concept, great vision, great book!

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Preventing Learners from Slipping Through the Cracks January 16, 2012

By Maine Infomaven

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I was one of the students who slipped through the cracks in high school. With the technology available in 2012, we should not have the problem of students falling behind, or being disillusioned with learning. Sadly, the education system has not changed much since 1981 when I graduated from high school, and now as a substitute teacher, I am astounded to see the same signals of boredom from many of today's learners.

Thankfully, there is a movement occurring that will change the way education is delivered in the public school system. "Inevitable: Mass Customized Learning" is a ground-breaking book that suggests new methodologies to make learning inspiring, enjoyable, and individualized to reach all students at their levels. This is a must read for all educators and school administrators, as well as parents and community leaders who envision a brighter future for our children. We must better prepare our youth for success in the workforce and train them to become the leaders of tomorrow.

"Inevitable" shares the possibilities already available to bring learning communities into the 21st Century in a way that is quite doable...NOW! As an single parent of five children, I have been able to finally complete my bachelor's degree (with honors) at forty-eight years old because I have been blessed with an incredible support system and a tenacious determination to prove that I am intelligent - something that was never shown to me as a young learner. Changing the way information is provided to learners of the 21st Century and recognizing the potential in those learners will not only improve the education system, but may indeed change communities, and ultimately, the world...it's inevitable!