Our district is doing something they are calling Mass Customized Learning. When discussing it with other parents, and even teachers, we often laugh at the title itself. A lot of eye-rolling, etc. And I feel it is primarily a move to a more electronic system, an amount of screen time that cannot be healthy, and could also just be a bunch of buzz-words and hot air.
However, like everything else in life, I don't believe it's either all good or all bad. I am skeptical, and am curious to see how the pendulum swings, and what trend comes next. The good that I have seen come out of this, at least for our family, is not just a willingness but a push (from the district) for acceleration. There are so many threads here and elsewhere in which the parents are fighting and pushing for acceleration, but we never even had to ask. DD7 is currently going to 3rd grade for math. 4th grade is in a different building 15+ minutes away, and they have already voiced intention to bus her there next year in order to continue the acceleration. So, at least in our case, they are not just having the gifted kids work ahead on their iPads individually (though that does happen to an extent) but are also being flexible in grouping children by ability and not just by age.
State law still mandates that she have a GIEP and the differentiation that goes along with it (which is never enough!) and she has a separate document for her acceleration plan. So I suppose my overall stance on the individualized learning movement is that it's probably good for gifted kids, as they're less likely to be stuck working so far below their ability. If it leads to states no longer requiring IEP/GIEPs for the gifted, then I would probably reconsider. If you live in a state that already doesn't require differentiation, then that's a whole other problem, I guess.
