Based on feedback from students and parents, there is a significant need for students to feel more personally connected to their learning path. Specifically, students want to take a more active role in deciding what they learn, how they engage in the learning, and when and where they learn. Additionally, there is a growing body of research that points to the efficacy of student self-regulation (Heritage, M. 2010), student self-reported grades (Hattie, 2008), and the impact of the personal learning approach (Zmuda, Curtis, Ullman, 2015) on student engagement and achievement. Students need to be in a school and classroom culture that empowers their learning by developing Habits of Mind (Costa and Kallick,20o9), a set of 16 dispositions such as persisting or thinking flexibly. This does not mean that teachers have less of a role in education, but, rather, that they will shift from exclusively focusing on teaching to becoming expert activators of learning (Hattie, J. 2012). The Personal Learning Challenge project is intended to promote a complete transformation of the educational process that has at its core five components of a personal learning path: Student Talent Profile, Technology Infusion, Personal Learning Path, Innovative Learning Environments, and Competency-Based Education.
