Education is always changing, and students are predicted to play a much larger role in that change.

Judy Seltz, ASCD executive director, joined other education experts in highlighting trends educators can expect to see next year, "including the continued growth of differentiated instruction fueled -- in part -- by technology," according to an article on DistrictAdministration.com.

"Some exciting advancements are on the horizon for classrooms in 2015," the article said. "While they sound technical, the biggest changes aren’t going to be driven by an app, a computer program or a new kind of tablet—they will come from new theories about how to engage both students and teachers in the classroom."

Vanderbilt University professor Barbara Stengel and Partnership for 21st Century Skills Executive Director Helen Soule said that technology "will continue to transform classroom instruction in the coming years," the article said. The duo also said "they hope to see an ongoing shift in what administrators, teachers, students and parents think a classroom should look like and how it should function."

“When we close our eyes and say, ‘Think of a school,’ many people see rows of desks with kids in them and a person in front of the room,’” Soule said. “Our biggest challenge is changing the mindset that that’s what good schooling looks like.”

According to the article, Seltz said "improvements in technology and a growing recognition that not all children can learn in the same way will drive big growth in differentiated instruction in 2015."

"Online and blended learning opportunities, flipped classrooms and instructional videos will allow teachers to work with students on a more individual basis," Soule said.

"That will be especially true in schools with 1-to-1 or BYOD programs. In a class of 25 students with 25 laptops, every student can be working on a different task," Seltz said.

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Article by Kassondra Granata, Education World Contributor