Assignment #6 - Flipping the Classroom

Read:
http://novemberlearning.com/wp/assets/flipped-learning-a-response-to-five-common-criticisms.pdf
Watch:

Download:
http://www.techsmith.com/jing- features.html

Post: Discuss your thoughts about flipping the classroom. What are the benefits, challenges? How might you overcome them? 

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I have been trying out a slightly flipped classroom with a small STEM class I'm teaching.  I haven't created any videos on my own--I have just created a wikispace as our classroom where I post videos, questions, and small assignments for my students.  

I am very excited about it because the online resources go way beyond my expertise with the content I'm teaching.  I feel like my role as a teacher is to sort through the massive amounts of resources out there to find the "gems" I want to share with my students.  

I'm also excited about it because when I organize all of the assignments, videos, and questions, I feel like I've prepared a gift to surprise my students.  I can't wait for them to open it, experience it, and share with me what they thought about it.

It has also been nice because we only meet once a week, and this format lets me spend valuable class time in engaging experiences, like labs, field trips, and projects.

The NovemberLearning article talks about several criticisms of the flipped classroom.  I have experienced one of these challenges:  How do I ensure accountability?  How can I be sure the students are doing the out of classroom experiences?  Actually this is not very different from traditional homework.  Homework is an issue regardless of the type of homework.  I ask the students to respond to what they've been doing, either in the comment box, or email to me, or with something prepared for the next class. To be sure my students are doing the assignments, I remind them in many formats.  I email them, I email the parent, I remind them in class, and I have a page on our wikispace that tracks missing homework.

It helps me seeing that my own children's teachers use flipped classroom techniques.  My children enjoy it and are learning, and I'm learning from them, too.

Here is my first try at creating a tutorial.  I'm explaining how to create a new page on a wikispace to write a journal response.  It's not perfect, but it's a start.

Assignment #5 - Professional/Personal Learning Networks

Read: Articles on:

Pinterest: http://www.eschoolnews.com/2013/08/20/five-follow-worthy-ed-tech-pinterest-boards/
Twitter: http://novemberlearning.com/educational-resources-for-educators/teaching-and-learning-articles/how-twitter-can-be-used-as-a-powerful-educational-tool/


Watch: www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9eqkWbjbbE 


Post:
How do you currently network and learn about teaching resources? What have you learned from reading and watching the resources provided? What will you do to expand your PLN? 
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Currently when I want to collaborate with others to give my students a real-world experience, I connect with my friends and acquaintances through email, texting, or facebook.  For example, when I was teaching geology to first graders in American Samoa, we emailed our questions to my geologist friend in Oregon.  The kids were so excited when he responded with personal experiences and photos of his work.

I generally learn about teaching resources in the usual ways: in a book at the school, with a library search, or an internet search.  I like to read teacher blogs to get ideas and resources.  Because teaching is so time-intensive, my searches are usually very specific and quick.  I can't spend all the time I want browsing on web tangents.  I usually google with a specific need, and try to find it in the first 10 hits.  Pinterest has come to my rescue quite a few times, although I don't have my own account.

From the articles I learned that a personal learning network is a collection of information resources that a learner draws on to reach his/her learning goals.  On Pinterest it emphasizes that this network is free PD* 24/7. (*Professional Development)  I also learned that online social networks can be an important part of a personal learning network.  I  really enjoyed the example of the teacher who tweeted about a moment in her life and had students generate the questions that would apply to their learning.  Brilliant!  This a great way to engage students about their world, in their world-- giving them experiences with real life through their "tech" culture. 

To expand my PLN now I will continue to develop my Diigo account, which lets me save and organize bookmarks easily.  I have many bookmarks of resources that I plan to use or have used with my students.I have enjoyed all of the great resources shared in this UH MEd program, and I've started listing them in this blog for myself and others.  

I would say that I'll expand my PLN through Facebook and Twitter, but unfortunately this may be where I draw my digital immigrant line.  I have an aversion to social networks.  I check my Facebook irregularly and with great irritation.  I have no interest in a Twitter account, and it would take more persuasion than this article to get me there.  I enjoy Pinterest as long as it serves my specific goals.  I am just hesitant to sort through the "mosh pit of random thoughts and lackluster chitchat" of society in general (November, 2012).  But, I understand that our world is changing quickly and as PLN's evolve into filtered, professional resources and serve my educational needs, I will proceed with caution.  Maybe like Sam I Am I will learn to like things I'm uncomfortable with someday.

Here is a look at my current Professional/Personal Learning Network: