Admitting that videos don't work for all...

We just started a new term yesterday (our school works on quarterly terms rather than semesters) and a new nit (Ancient Rome). Since we were starting "fresh" so to speak it was a good opportunity for me to attack some of the problems and concerns that had come up in the flipped class. There are always going to be a few problems that occur but a major concern for me was those students who were not watching the lectures at home. There weren't many, but a small handful that I felt needed to be addressed.

I'll admit, I was angry with those student's. I felt like I was offering them such a "better" alternative to traditional homework. "How could they not want to watch a video?" I thought, "Don't they know I could be giving worksheets and busy work? I'm trying to do something for them!" Then I took a step back...wasn't the whole point of this to do what is best for the students? If they aren't watching the videos, they aren't getting the main content. There must be a way to fix this. 

As much as I dislike the textbook that has been assigned to my class (I don't even use it with the kids, I have 100 of them sitting on a shelf) and as much as I dislike assigning worksheets and bookwork (I feel students don't really read they just look up answers) I knew this could be a short-term solution. I found chapters in the book that corresponded for the most part to the video lectures and set up a reading schedule. I also found guided reading worksheets that go along with these chapters. In lieu of the notes that most students take while watching the videos, my "book" students would take these guided notes while reading, and take paper-based quizzes in class each week.

I had trouble squelching the voice, "But I want them to watch the videos, I don't want to use the book, this is a "flip" the whole point is to watch the videos." Its not, "flipping" really has nothing to do with videos, the concept of flipping is a shift in how we conceptualize the use of class time as application rather than delivery of content- and it looks different for every class. As much as I wish these students would watch the video lectures (there's so much I can do with showing images of the places were studying and telling human interest stories that the textbook doesn't cover) they aren't, and that is the fact of the matter at the moment. Getting content from the book is better than no content at all. Additionally I have to remind myself to do what's best for them, and maybe the videos just don't work for everyone. Do I think the videos are more informative and far more interesting than the textbook? Absolutely. However I'm willing to admit that for some students the flip is just to radical, and some old fashioned reading and worksheets might rectify the problem.

They will still be learning the main content outside the classroom and collaborating on projects in class, I am hoping that of the eight students I am assigning the book too, a few will decide that they would rather watch the lectures online. I told them that if they decide to go back to the lectures, if they complete two weeks in a row and on time, that they may return to the computer based rather than the book. 

At first I felt like going back to the book was admitting defeat, but I now realize its the opposite, its continuing to differentiate and adjust the delivery of content so that every student has the same access to the curriculum. It has even got me thinking about creating different "levels" of videos next year. Essentially different students taking different "course levels" so to speak right in the same room. Oh the ever lengthening things I want to do this summer!

I said this was a short-term solution because I used the book and the worksheets that came with it. Next year if I were to create an alternative reading plan for some students, I would probably create my own guided notes, and perhaps look into different texts (or maybe have them read an historical novel!?! :) ) and create something a little more inline with the videos.

Has anyone else come up with solutions for students not watching the videos? What has worked for you? What hasn't? I'd love to hear what some others have done!

The story of how I flipped...

As stated above I'm a 7th grade history teacher. I teach just north of Boston and have a geeky obsession with technology. I'm always looking for ways to shift my classroom and have it be more student centered. One night I had been toying with how to go "paperless" in the classroom. While I was searching, I kept finding links to blogs on "flipping." Aside from real estate I had never heard the term used before and became curious. This was a Friday night.

Cut to Sunday, and I had poured through every webpage, scholarly article and blog I could find about the subject. I became infatuated, my hunger for a student centered classroom was finally being satiated. Flipping! What is it you ask? Well its simple really (in theory...not sure about practice yet). Flipping involves taking the traditional model of teaching (lecturing to kids and then having them go home to complete an assignment that applies that concept) and reversing it. Students would watch lectures and home, and do the application part in class. Over the next few weeks I gathered every piece of related literature that I could find.

Much of the current research and information on the subject focuses on its use in the maths and sciences...could it work for me in history? Well by Sunday night I was convinced and started the process of flipping my class. No waiting until next year, this was going to happen now.

Of course once I stepped back I realized that it couldn't be such an immediate process and so here I am laying the foundation work. I already have my kids complete their homework online via Schoology.com so I don't think having them listen to lectures is a huge stretch. Some questions that have been running through my head...

1. What kind of software should I use..What will work best for me? Should I video tape myself lecturing, or lecture over my current PowerPoints with only voice? What will convert between my Mac at home and my PC at school? What if I look or sound like a total dork?

2. How will kids react to switching halfway through the year? I'm going to ease them in, one or two lectures this unit before fully flipping the next...is that enough prep?

3. How will parents react? Will they think I'm just being lazy...I'm not! I just want more individualized attention time for your students.

4. How will administration react? I am constantly being told that our principal wants to shift away from lecture based classes...but how will it look when I'm walking around my class instead of standing in front of it? Will it seem like I'm lazy having student driven projects?

5. What if the technology doesn't work? I have found many great websites that simply don't work on our servers...what if this turns out to not work either?

6. Finally my biggest concern...What if the kids don't like it? What if they don't listen to the lectures? What if they lose interest? What if I fail to teach them anything? What will I do with all the class time I have now?

These are big concerns I have that I'm planning to address. As I said I already assign online homework so the issues of computer ownership of students has already been resolved for the most part. I am hoping to gain the administration's support on this as I move forward. Its either going to work or it won't right?



Time will tell....