Boon Yih Mah

Aug 2, 20203 min

Personalised Learning Profile: Getting to Know Your Students' Multiple Backgrounds

Updated: Mar 28

What is a Personalised Learning Profile? Assoc. Prof. Ts. Dr Mah Boon Yih initiated the Personalised Learning Profile to facilitate the instructors toward personalised learning. It collects the learners' biographical data, understands their academic backgrounds, tests their proficiency levels, and identifies their learning preferences. The data obtained from the submitted forms can benefit learners of all ages and instructors of any subject.

Personalised Learning Profile 2.0

Personalised Learning Profile 2.0 is its next version, built on Microsoft Form, with an enhanced design and additional features. It collects additional data on the learners' online distance learning (ODL) readiness, biographical data, academic backgrounds, proficiency levels, and learning preferences to summarise the essential characteristics of a learner. Below are the five sections found in the Personalised Learning Profile 2.0.

Personalised Learning Profile 2.0 is the latest version, built on Microsoft Form, with the addition of the learners' online distance learning (ODL) readiness, as well as biographical data, academic backgrounds, proficiency levels, and learning preferences, are collected as a summary of the essential characteristics of a learner. Below are the five sections found in the Personalised Learning Profile 2.0.

1. Biographical Data

There are many kinds of information you want to know about your learners. To be an effective instructor, biographical data can help you know your learners, mostly strangers, at the beginning of the semester. Once familiar with your learners' names, genders, ages, hometowns, and contact numbers, it may be easier to use a messenger application like WhatsApp to set up a group for easy communication and file sharing with your learners.

2. Academic Background

Looking at the students' academic backgrounds, such as degrees of study, programmes, courses, classes, and past academic results, instructors can understand whether their learners need academic attention or further assistance. Besides knowing your students' biographical information, knowing them academically can be useful for helping weak learners understand the subjects.

3. Proficiency Levels

Besides the biographical and academic backgrounds, the next crucial aspect is the learners' proficiency levels. A learner's proficiency reflects how he or she functions in the real-world language through multiple proficiency in the English language, including vocabulary, grammar, reading, and listening. Before conducting assessments in a language classroom, the language instructor should measure their students' proficiency levels at the initial stage to benchmark their learning process.

4. Learning Preferences

The next component of the Personalised Learning Profile is identifying learning preferences. Click HERE to learn how learners can help themselves by knowing their learning preferences as measured in the Personalised Learning Profile. Based on the myriad theoretical models used to determine what the learners prefer in their learning process, an instructor can determine what works best for them. This can save plenty of time figuring out the best way to deliver your lesson and the contents you want to teach using various methods to reach all students.

5. Online Distance Learning (ODL) Readiness

To understand the learners' readiness and problems faced during the ODL session, some important aspects need to be identified and solved before the beginning of the semester. These include the learners' current location, the status of returning to campus in the current semester, internet connection problems, other related ODL problems, the readiness to use Microsoft Teams' live meeting, and other preferred ODL platforms besides using Microsoft Teams.

Form Submission Steps Solutions

You may use the Personalised Learning Profile 2.0 as the sample in your classroom. Below are the simple steps to answer and submit the form:

  1. Click Start now.

  2. Complete items 1 to 3 in the Welcome! section.

  3. Click Next.

  4. Complete items 4 to 9 in the Biographical Data section.

  5. Complete items 10 to 16 in the Academic Background section.

  6. Complete items 17 to 20 in the Proficiency Levels section based on the given links and state your result in the CEF level after completing the test based on the specified links. Each test must be attempted ONCE only in a full concentration manner. It is advisable to screenshot the pages of the tests' results after completion for future reference.

  7. Complete items 21 to 24 in the Learning Preferences section by choosing only ONE from each pair of dichotomous learning preferences as indicated by a longer bar in the comparison chart from the result page; for example, Choose one between sensing and intuitive, one between visual and verbal, one between active and reflective, and one between sequential and global. Make sure the total selection is only four. It is also advisable to screenshot the page of the questionnaire's results after completion for future reference.

  8. Complete items 25 until 28 or 33 in the Online Distance Learning (ODL) Readiness section.

  9. Click Submit once confirmed to submit.

To share your thoughts by commenting on this post, kindly sign up as a member by filling in your details in the Contact below.

    30030
    17