Tonight I was able to sit down and have a Skype conversation with Michelle Naidu (@park_star on Twitter). You can also read her on her blog at http://meandthedoor.wordpress.com/.
Michelle is a high school math teacher in Saskatoon and has described herself as a "Pessimist" regarding flipped teaching. I am intrigued by this statement, so I was excited to talk with her.
These are the questions I asked her:
1. You call yourself a pessimist regarding Flipped Teaching. Can you explain this statement?
2. Do you see any benefit to using a flipped approach?
3. How do you see technology being best used in math education?
4. Do you use a wiki as a class textbook?
Unfortunately, I ran into major technical glitches in this recording! I had planned to get into Khan Academy with her, but did not have the time.
Thanks again to Michelle for her time.
Please, post your comments and thoughts below.
Monday, May 28, 2012
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Flipped Class and Substitute Teachers: The Role of the Teacher
This post comes directly from my experiences in the past week.
My wife and I planned a vacation during the school year, which maybe wasn't the smartest plan, but it was supposed to be three days away from the classroom. Some unexpected things came up and I actually was away from my students for four and a half days of class. This can obviously lead to some learning issues, especially in secondary level math and science where substitute teachers are hard to come by.
I saw this time away as an exciting experiment with flipped teaching. Before I left, I decided that my best plan of action would be to use a flipped teaching method while I was away; therefore, I created videos for most of the examples to be covered in class. This way the substitute would not have to deliver instruction in class, rather they can show my videos in class or ask the students to view the videos at home. In the classroom, the substitute's main task would to encourage students to explore problems, work together and help as best as they can. My vision would be that the students would really band together to reach a high level of understanding.
Before I left, I thought this all sounded great! Unlike other times I have been away, this time there would be different. There would be no excuses. Unfortunately, the results weren't quite as envisioned. The results were probably a bit better than normal, but the level of student confidence did not approach the level I had hoped. Where did this plan break down?
This leads me into thinking about how important the teacher really is in a flipped or blended environment. With only the videos to watch, the students were able to view the videos, but failed to really make meaning of them. When I am in class
After having taken a couple university-level online courses and now blended courses with an online or face-to-face classroom component, I can see how important the teacher is to the process. At the very least, some contact time with the teacher gives you confidence and helps you feel like you are on track. In my experience, I feel apprehensive with the content until I can hear communicate with the teacher and feel like I am on the right track. Is this the main missing link when using flipped teaching with a substitute? If so, what other ways can we build feedback into our flipped method so that students can feel that sense of confidence without the teacher's presence? Can the substitute's role be to provide that confidence, even if they are not confident with the material?
Flipped teaching seems like a great method to use when you are away from the classroom, but there seems to be vital pieces in the flipped process that are missing without the teacher's presence. If you have had good experiences with flipping a class with a substitute, please share them with me in the comments below. If you have any thoughts on the topic, leave them below.
Thanks for reading!
My wife and I planned a vacation during the school year, which maybe wasn't the smartest plan, but it was supposed to be three days away from the classroom. Some unexpected things came up and I actually was away from my students for four and a half days of class. This can obviously lead to some learning issues, especially in secondary level math and science where substitute teachers are hard to come by.
I saw this time away as an exciting experiment with flipped teaching. Before I left, I decided that my best plan of action would be to use a flipped teaching method while I was away; therefore, I created videos for most of the examples to be covered in class. This way the substitute would not have to deliver instruction in class, rather they can show my videos in class or ask the students to view the videos at home. In the classroom, the substitute's main task would to encourage students to explore problems, work together and help as best as they can. My vision would be that the students would really band together to reach a high level of understanding.
Before I left, I thought this all sounded great! Unlike other times I have been away, this time there would be different. There would be no excuses. Unfortunately, the results weren't quite as envisioned. The results were probably a bit better than normal, but the level of student confidence did not approach the level I had hoped. Where did this plan break down?
This leads me into thinking about how important the teacher really is in a flipped or blended environment. With only the videos to watch, the students were able to view the videos, but failed to really make meaning of them. When I am in class
- I spend time preparing the students to view the videos
- We explore the content together before unleashing the videos on them. This seems to be a really important step in the flipped process
- When we return the next day, I always recap the ideas from the videos. Again, this seems to be an important step in the students making meaning of the videos.
- The next step in the process is the students actively engaging in the content; this is the main goal of the flipped classroom - more time for students to engage in content.
Flipped teaching seems like a great method to use when you are away from the classroom, but there seems to be vital pieces in the flipped process that are missing without the teacher's presence. If you have had good experiences with flipping a class with a substitute, please share them with me in the comments below. If you have any thoughts on the topic, leave them below.
Thanks for reading!
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
Where I'm at with Flipped Teaching
I first learned of Flipped Teaching in April 2011. When I first heard of it I was excited by the possibilities, but also grounded by the question, "What if the students don't watch the videos? Then what?" I kept the idea in my head as I finished the school year. At the end of the year, I discussed the concept with one of my classes and most students were apprehensive about the idea of flipping math classes. Due to this apprehension, I put off implementing it until I could learn more.
As I went through the next semester and taught more of the new math curriculum, I found that I was having more and more trouble finding time to explore and investigate the content with the students, complete examples for the students that need it and still provide time for the students to practice. The student practice was almost always pushed to the last few minutes of class or completely at home. This led to a lot of students never really engaging in the content on their own, which in my opinion, is when the actual learning takes place. Students need to struggle with the content in order to learn.
Due to this increasing struggle to find time, I decided that I couldn't wait any longer; I had to try to implement a flipped classroom. I began fipping some math lessons in the second semester of this school year. My method of flipping is as follows:
Now when students hit a roadblock in their work, they are able to talk to each other or me to get through it, rather than being alone at home and simply giving up. In terms of timing, we are not spending two days per lesson; instead, we work on practice for the first half of class and explore/investigate for the second half of each lesson. Then students go home and watch the videos and return the next day ready to do practice. Here is a link to one of my class wikis that I use to host the post the videos on: http://mathf20.wikispaces.com
Here's an example video:
Overall, I am very satisifed with my experience with flipped teaching so far. All students are now actually working on assignments in class and are able to get the assistance they need. This is a huge improvement over the past where many students wouldn't complete any questions and home, which meant they were never actually doing any thinking on their own. Of course, there have been questions, issues and concerns that have arisen from this flipped method too. Examples of these are:
That is where I am at today. I am using my basic flipped model for most of my classes and I am happy with the results. Some students have expressed how much they like the videos and other students have expressed their disdain for them.
Over the next few weeks in ETAD 802, I plan to research and explore current articles and research on flipped teaching and other forms of blended learning. I will be posting a new blog post every few days.
If you have used flipped teaching, have suggestions for good articles or have questions or concerns regarding flipped teaching, please leave me a comment below. I would love to hear from you and learn with you!
As I went through the next semester and taught more of the new math curriculum, I found that I was having more and more trouble finding time to explore and investigate the content with the students, complete examples for the students that need it and still provide time for the students to practice. The student practice was almost always pushed to the last few minutes of class or completely at home. This led to a lot of students never really engaging in the content on their own, which in my opinion, is when the actual learning takes place. Students need to struggle with the content in order to learn.
Due to this increasing struggle to find time, I decided that I couldn't wait any longer; I had to try to implement a flipped classroom. I began fipping some math lessons in the second semester of this school year. My method of flipping is as follows:
- we still explore and investigate the content in class
- the regular lecture style examples are presented in video format for students to watch at home
- the next day in class we do a quick recap of the content and then students are able to engage in practice in the classroom surrounded by peers and the teacher!
Now when students hit a roadblock in their work, they are able to talk to each other or me to get through it, rather than being alone at home and simply giving up. In terms of timing, we are not spending two days per lesson; instead, we work on practice for the first half of class and explore/investigate for the second half of each lesson. Then students go home and watch the videos and return the next day ready to do practice. Here is a link to one of my class wikis that I use to host the post the videos on: http://mathf20.wikispaces.com
Here's an example video:
Overall, I am very satisifed with my experience with flipped teaching so far. All students are now actually working on assignments in class and are able to get the assistance they need. This is a huge improvement over the past where many students wouldn't complete any questions and home, which meant they were never actually doing any thinking on their own. Of course, there have been questions, issues and concerns that have arisen from this flipped method too. Examples of these are:
- student and parent concerns over trying something new
- some students not watching the videos
- does this actually fit the inquiry based math curriculum?
- the extra time it takes me outside of class to make the videos
- student outcomes seem to be improved, but the students this semester are also older and any have already taken another 20-level math course
- how would I implement this in other subject areas?
- can the flip be implemented within class time?
- how do I best use flipped teaching to differentiate instruction?
That is where I am at today. I am using my basic flipped model for most of my classes and I am happy with the results. Some students have expressed how much they like the videos and other students have expressed their disdain for them.
Over the next few weeks in ETAD 802, I plan to research and explore current articles and research on flipped teaching and other forms of blended learning. I will be posting a new blog post every few days.
If you have used flipped teaching, have suggestions for good articles or have questions or concerns regarding flipped teaching, please leave me a comment below. I would love to hear from you and learn with you!
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