Blended Learning: It is Worth the Effort!

Blended Learning:  It is Worth the Effort!

I have been practicing Blended Learning in my classes for about 6 years.  In the beginning it consisted of using the internet for research and producing power points and brochures to demonstrate student learning.  I also used careercruising.com in my Career Studies course as soon as I became aware of it.  Even as recently as 2 years ago, in my mind, blended learning was incorporating technology into a classroom as a means of providing content, posting assignments, sharing ideas and providing feedback (both peer and teacher).  Now I see it as so much more.  It can take many forms from use of  social media, class blogs, YouTube channels, Twitter backchannels, Wikki spaces, google classroom, one-note, the list goes on and on.  And then there are the thousands of Apps and websites that can be used to digitally enhance the learning in your classes.  Various presentation Apps, mind mapping apps, graphic design apps, data management apps, assessment and evaluation tools, the possibilities are endless.

I hope this post will help you determine if blended learning is something you and your students would like.  I will outline how I use it, how I went about implementing it, what issues arrose, and how you can solve them.

Blended Learning:  How and Why I Use It

I have found that blended learning is a fantastic way to differentiate instruction to ensure all students have an entry point into the learning.  For example, the Career Studies Course on the OERB has audio files for students to play for all of the pages in the course material.  It also has interactive activities/quizzes/tutorials that allow students apply what they are learning in an engaging way.  Any online platform would allow for text to speech and speech to text apps to be incorporated to help the struggling reader or writer, translation apps can help the user if English is not their first language.  Course materials can be posted in video form, written form, music can be added, visuals are in colour and can be magnified, links to other websites can be added to engage a variety of learning styles.  I also have a student with low vision and he is able to magnify everything on screen until it is large enough for him to see it.  

I am currently exploring the use of Google Classroom as our board finally got it set up last semester so that we could access it.  I am loving how students can access their assignments from home or at least find out what they missed and that once they start working on an assignment, they don’t have to remember where they saved it due to the autosave feature.  They also never lose their “hand-outs” any more. Providing feedback and opportunities for revision has never been easier.  No more physically collecting, marking and returning work.  It is just more seamless doing it online.   It’s the little things like this that make blended learning so worth the effort.  The many apps and extensions available for free through google is astounding and students seem to love using it.

Blended learning definitely allows my students to use inquiry based learning as there is the opportunity access a whole world of information, collaboration, and expression when you work online.  The resources at the students’ fingertips are limited only by their imaginations.  Every student can be exploring their own topic and producing unique work taking a variety of forms.  

Students are much more able to connect with their learning and draw on previous knowledge.  Course materials, content, discussions, student work, etc. is always available to see and use at any time during the year.  Students and teachers have access to work completed earlier in the year so they can both reflect on what they have all learned and how that can help with future learning.  Students are notorious for not keeping their work once the unit test is over, then having nothing to use to study for final exams or culminating activities.  Blended learning ensures that there is a digital portforlio of work saved in the student’s account, no matter what platform you use.

It is also incredibly useful for students who are away from class to have the benefit of viewing lessons at home so they do not fall behind.

How to Implement It:

Our school has been building our capacity to offer more technology over the past three years.  Up until then we were sharing 3 computer labs between 200 students.  Our internet service was not very reliable either.  Now that we have improved bandwidth and three laptop carts, the hardware is more accessible.  So my point is, first you need access to technology in order to implement Blended Learning.  Then you need to spend some lead time educating yourself on the platform you plan to use and try out the apps and other features available to you.  You need to have a vision for why you are using Technology.  How do you want it to transform your class?  What is your goal?  How often will you be using it?  It could be every day or only once in a while when the tech will really enhance the learning.  Then you need to ensure you are following the Privacy of Information laws when you access tech with students.

For a great article listing some awesome resources for implementing Blended Learning check out:

https://www.edutopia.org/blended-learning-resources

What Issues Arose:

The biggest drawback to any use of tech in the classroom is that the internet connection is not always reliable in our schools and hardware is not always available.  With every teacher getting on the blended learning bandwagon we do not have the number of devices nor the bandwidth to keep up with the demand.  Communication with other staff about the shared use of technology is critical.  Scheduling of computer time should be an ongoing item on the Staff Meeting Agenda.  Also, inquire about the Bring Your Own Device policy in your board.  Many students are able to bring in their own devices which alleviates the need to provide all students with a laptop.  However, not all activities lend themselves to working on an iPod or cell phone.  If your board is unresponsive to the issues surrounding availability of Tech, get together with some other teachers and your principal and put together a presentation for the Board convincing them to listen!

Check out the following link to see Sal Khan sketch a plan for how digital learning tools can make room for teachers and students to embrace more real-life creative learning experiences

https://www.edutopia.org/khan-academy-discovery-lab-blended-learning-video

Until next time!

Erin

Anywhere Any Time Learning: PLC's Re-igniting the Flame of Teachers

I chose to read “Building Professional Learning Communities” from the AALF.org website.  This is a very relevant topic for me as our school is just in the midst of building PLC’s in order to better focus on our School Improvement Plan.  Our school board has recently implemented a new model for traditional Program Leads or Department heads.  We are now called Learning Leads and the focus in my school is leading our colleagues in practicing high yield instructional strategies in the hopes of improving our students’ critical thinking skills.

I appreciated the following quote from the article “A teacher can never truly teach unless she is learning herself. A lamp can never light another flame unless it continues to burn its own flame. “--Rabindranath Tragore (1861-1941)  I have noticed a re-awakening of the flame in my lamp since I began to explore the benefits of using technology in the classroom.  I am also more engaged in self reflection now that I am the leader of a Professional Learning Community.  I have a ton to learn in this area as I have only participated in one or two groups in the past.  A big obstacle is that these PLC’s are being “mandated” by the board and the principal and all staff members are required to participate in one.  The other downside is that the focus for these groups has been predetermined.  In my opinion, PLC’s must be more organic.  Teachers who have a common interest in a new strategy or a new technology or a new program of any kind, should be encouraged to work together to explore their interest.  If teachers are working on something important to them personally, they will be more likely to make real progress in their learning and will be more likely to inspire improvement in their students’ learning too.  

In the the board’s defence, they have been encouraging these more organic groups to form for several years now and teachers have not all chosen to get involved.  We have been offered release time to get together with others in our school to work on any project that would show improvement in student achievement.  Only a few of us have taken advantage of this.  So, now we are being given more direction.  I am choosing to see the PLC groups in a positive light.  We will be able to share instructional strategies, practice moderated marking, track student improvement and hopefully feel like we are making more of a difference in our students’ achievement.  “Michael Fullan argues that 'when teachers are working alone, not learning together, they are not as confident about what they are doing...By contrast professional learning communities not only build confidence and competence, but they also make teachers and principals realize that they can't go the distance alone.' (Fullan, 44)”  I agree with this statement completely.

Key Questions

1. What structures and strategies would you need to put in place in order to build a professional learning community in your school or district?

We are well on our way in our school.  We have divided ourselves into groups of 4 and are meeting weekly for a half hour at lunch to work through the stages of the professional learning cycle.

2. How can technology assist in the development of shared, collaborative learning?

Everyone on staff will be contributing to a Google Slide Deck about the instructional strategies, samples of moderated student work, resources used and “discoveries” we make along the way.

Resources:

http://beta.aalf.org/cms/?page=Education%20Topics-%20Pro%20Learning%20Comm

Fullan, M. Leading in a Culture of Change. San Francisco: Jossey Bass, 2001.