CHOOSİNG YOUR OWN PATH

In the current time, the classical education system, based on the norm-referenced tests and the relative grading system, is mainly being used as the one and single education system. However it is not the only one. Another system called mastery based learning is becoming more and more widespread especially in the USA. According to many researches, it could be said that the mastery based learning system is much better and proficient at providing students a good education that actually stays with them throughout their future lives.

One of the reasons why is the way the classical education system forces students. Even though it is the most commonly used system in the world, not everyone is happy with its way of testing student’s abilities. Some say that the norm-referenced tests are putting students in unnecessarily stressful positions while making them compete with each other all the time. Some might even say that it is completely inefficient considering that it is forcing different types of students who need different kinds of attention and time to process , to have the same amount of understanding in every subject in a limited time frame. According to many studies, this type of education is the main cause of the students who drop off from the school. By not respecting the large spectrum of students, the uniformed classical education system causes many students to get bored from the subjects that they don’t fully understand and it also prevents many from focusing on those subjects by giving them the false reflection of education. The norm-referenced assignments mostly test student’s capacity to memorise certain subjects just before the exam day instead of actually measuring their proficiency in the subject. Hence why causes students to forget everything they had memorised and in the end creates unproficient young adults who are not competent in their fields. The end result is an unsuccessful society. As one can see this is not the most proficient way of educating people.

Thankfully this is not the only education system. Mastery based learning (or, as it was initially called, "learning for mastery") is an instructional strategy and educational philosophy, first formally proposed by Benjamin Bloom in 1968. Mastery learning maintains that students must achieve a level of mastery in prerequisite knowledge before moving forward to learn subsequent information. If a student does not achieve mastery on the test, they are given additional support in learning and reviewing the information and then tested again. This cycle continues until the learner accomplishes mastery, and they may then move on to the next stage.1 It is a more holistic system that requires students to demonstrate learning before moving ahead.2 The most important difference between the mastery based learning and the classical education is the pressure put on the students. In the mastery based learning students are not competing against each other, but rather competing against themselves in order to achieve a personal best.3 This way, they determine their own ideal pace instead of turning into a race horse. The type of assessment that is used in mastery based learning is called a criterion-referenced test/formative test and it is based on using test scores to generate a statement about the behavior that can be expected of a person with that score. 4 Criterion-referenced testing was a major focus of psychometric research in the 1970s.5

In the 1960s and the 1970s research on the mastery based education was at its peak. There was much research on the topic but mastery learning strategies are best represented by Bloom's Learning For Mastery (LFM) and Keller's Personalized System of Instruction (PSI). Bloom's approach was focused in the schoolroom, whereas Keller developed his system for higher education.3 They have both received positive outcomes both cognitive and affective. According to studies not only have there been a significant increase in student excellence in a subject but also a better sense of self-efficacy and confidence in the learners. But despite those mostly positive research results, interest in mastery learning strategies decreased throughout the 1980s, the ineffective implementations of mastery learning methods,[13] or the extra time demanded in setting up and maintaining a mastery learning course[12] But now, with computer-assisted teaching allowing for tailored exercises and online lessons, it is making a resurgence2 and it is for the best.

In the end it could be easily said that the mastery based learning system is much more efficient than the classical education system. Bearing in mind all of the benefits of the mastery based learning, replacing the current system with it would be in the best interest of the students and consequently of the society. A decent education is the root of a strong society. Hence why a transition to mastery based learning could be the way to salvation.

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REFERENCES

1: Benjamin S. Bloom (1981). All Our Children Learning - A Primer for Parents, Teachers, and Other Educators. McGraw-Hill. ISBN 9780070061187.

2: A New Kind of Classroom: No Grades, No Failing, No Hurry, https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/11/nyregion/mastery-based-learning-no-grades.html, Kyle Spencer, 11/08/2017.

3: Mastery Learning, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mastery_learning, Wikipedia, 06/11/2021.

4:Criterion-Referenced Test, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criterion-referenced_test, Wikipedia, 12/06/2021.

5: Weiss, D.J.; Davison, M.L. (1981). "Test Theory and Methods". Annual Review of Psychology. 32: 1. doi:10.1146/annurev.ps.32.020181.003213.

6: Sherman, J. G. (1992). "Reflections on PSI: Good news and bad". Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis. 25 (1): 59–64. doi:10.1901/jaba.1992.25-59. PMC 1279650. PMID 16795772.

7: Buskist, W.; Cush, D.; DeGrandpre, R. J. (1991). "The life and times of PSI". Journal of Behavioral Education. 1 (2): 215–234. doi:10.1007/bf00957005. S2CID143471864.