What is CBE?
Competency-based education (CBE) is a student-centered methodology of instruction that incorporates elements of constructivist philosophy, 21st Century Skills education, and flexible learning models.
It is fast becoming adopted by many learning institutions because of its focus on learning useful and applicable skills rather than broad content and an increased emphasis on student responsibility for learning.
This can mean that students feel like they have to do a lot on their own, and it’s true; in CBE the teacher goes from being the Sage on the Stage to the Guide on the Side.
Teachers act as facilitators of learning and guide the students as they struggle through learning different skills by monitoring their progress and providing feedback as they master each competency.
Because this shift in dynamic can be so different for both students and teachers, we have curated a list of tools and resources to use alongside the other blog posts in this series to help equip everyone for success.
This list is by no means exhaustive, but it is a great place to look at things all in one place as you either teach or participate in a CBE course.
Resources and tools for teachers
| Resource Name | Subject(s) | Resource Types | Paid or Free |
| ELeducation | ELA Life sciences Social studies | Lesson planning tools Texts Professional development | Free Optional Paid Content |
| OER Commons | All | Lesson planning tools Activities Full courses Lectures Texts | Free Optional Paid Content |
| Khan Academy | All | Lesson planning tools Activities Full courses Lectures Texts | Free Optional Paid Content |
| OKC CBE Resources | General CBE | Lesson planning tools Readings Rubrics | Free |
| Global Learning Landscape | General education tools | Links to platforms, websites, and tech for teachers | Free |
| Education.com | Math Reading and writing Typing Coding SEL | Lesson Planning Tools Activities Workbooks Texts Songs | Free |
| Cube for Teachers | General education Tools | Various– teacher made and curated content | Free |
| GoNoodle | ELA Health Math Music Science Social studies Spanish | Lesson planning tools Videos Activities Blog Posts | Free |
| US Department of Education | General CBE | Searchable database of CBE programs Overviews of successful programs | Free |
Resources and tools for students
| Resource Name | Subject(s) | Resource Types | Paid or Free |
| Froguts | Biology | Virtual labs Videos Lending library | Free |
| Physics Interactives | Physics | Interactive simulations Videos Calculator Study tools | Free |
| Science Friday | General science | Videos Podcasts Articles Activities | Free |
| Cells alive! | Biology | Virtual labs Videos Activities Study tools Presentations | Free |
| Interactive Periodic Table | General science Chemistry | Study Tools Videos Printables | Free Optional paid resources |
| PhET Simulations | Physics Chemistry Math Earth science Biology | Interactive simulations Virtual labs Activities Videos Study tools | Free |
| Codeacademy | Computer science | Lessons Coding tasks Coding cheat sheets | Free Optional paid resources |
| Academic Earth | All subjects | Full courses Lessons Videos Activities | Free Optional paid resources |
| Desmos | MathematicsGeneral science | Calculator tools Lessons Assessments | Free Optional paid resources |
| Better Explained | MathematicsBasic computer science | Lessons Articles Videos Blog posts | Free Optional paid resources |
| Prezi | Presentation software | Videos Tutorials | Free Optional paid resources |
| Canva | Presentation software | Videos Tutorials Social media Integrations | Free Optional paid resources |
| Biteable | Presentation software | Tutorials Videos | Free Optional paid resources |
| IXL | All subjects | Full courses Lessons Videos Activities | Free Optional paid resources |
| Audacity | Audio editor | Documentation Tutorials | Free |
| Gimp | Image editor | Documentation Tutorials | Free |
| OpenShot | Video editor | Documentation Tutorials Integrations | Free |
| Wikiversity | All subjects | Full courses Lessons Videos Articles Tutorials | Free |
| Duolingo | Foreign languages | Full courses Lessons Videos App | Free Optional paid resources |
Final thoughts
While CBE is very much different from other types of learning, we hope that the tools listed here will be of help to learners and educators alike.
Remember that part of learning in CBE is productive struggle and persistence, both on the teacher and student sides! Keep going and achieve mastery.
For more information on CBE, check out our previous research blogs about classroom challenges and CBE and how CBE is designed for student success.
Competency-Based Education Blog Series
Thank you for being a part of our Competency-Based Education blog series! Check out additional resources regarding CBE below:
