Building Consensus and Momentum: A Policy and Political Landscape for K-12 Competency Education
Survey Survey Results Results In November and December of 2013, KnowledgeWorks and NMEF conducted a national survey of innovative practitioners to better understand the barriers to implementation of highly personalized learning models such as competency education. The survey had 72 respondents. Results were used to shape a sample federal policy framework to guide discussions at a convening in Dallas, Texas in February of 2014 and check our assertions about the barriers that exist to scaling this work nationally.
Figure 1
Interested in Competency Education 1
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2.82%
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8.45%
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26.76%
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61.97%
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1 = Not at All 5= To a Great Extent Figure 1: The first survey question focused on interest in implementing competency-based learning in the survey respondent’s classroom, school, district, or state. Of the 72 respondents, 88.73% rated their interest at a 4 or a 5 (with 5 being “to a great extent”). This affirms strong interest from the field in the concept and implementation of competency education.
Figure 2
Implementing Competency Education 1
1.41%
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21.13%
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33.80%
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23.94%
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19.72%
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1 = Not at All 5= To a Great Extent Figure 2: The second survey question asked participants, “To what extent are you implementing competency-based learning today in your context?” Compared to the previous question where 88.73% (4s and 5s) of respondents were interested in competency education, only 43.66% (4s and 5s) had taken action in their own school or district. While there could be many reasons for this disparity, one clear reason that emerged from the survey is the existence of policy barriers that make implementation challenging. Some participants emphasized these barriers in the short-response section of the survey, suggesting that they force early adopters to keep “two sets of books” — one that aligns with the competency-based system the participants value and one to satisfy federal and state reporting requirements.
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