KALISPELL — Educators from across the Flathead Valley and from around the country had a unique opportunity this week to explore what's called Personalized Competency Based Education (PCBE).
PCBE is different from a conventional school model where students learn based on well-defined targets for all students and shifts the focus from traditional grading to meeting competency goals.
Educators gathered at the Doris Mountain Summit to learn from those who have been successful in this model. They worked together to explore how they can properly implement PCBE in their classrooms.
“I think in a conventional school system, you have presentations and material that's really geared towards the middle group of students. And, you know, Kalispell Schools has made this transition for several years," Kalispell Public Schools Superintendent Matt Jensen said. "And so we're just we're just taking this transition to make it even better. But the concept would be, instead of putting out something that is uniform for all students, you're meeting students where they are."
Kalispell Public Schools will continue to transition to this teaching model throughout the coming years. While transitions like these take time, the hope is to have this model better prepare students for college and real-life skills.
