Flipped My Classroom

The Flipped classroom.  I have for the past few years been in conversations with other teachers about whether it is the best way for instruction to "flip" their classroom to better facilitate learning for their students.  I have always enjoyed the conversation about flipping and as an English teacher found it hard to get my head around.  I have gone through the different years I was a student and tried to put myself into my current student's shoes.  What does a flipped classroom ask them do to? They are to learn specific material at home through video or some other resource and then come back into the classroom for enrichment or help about the content they should be now familiar?  Part of me has thought we demanded this of our students for decades.  Assigning reading and work at home before we have the kids come in and work on the material.  For me, I demand this of my students especially when I have them read a novel. It is almost impossible to effectively teach a novel without them having read it first.  So, how do I continue to foster this trend of placing more technology into my classroom and flip my novels? Do I create small summary videos that break down each chapter and have a quiz at the end? Do I read sections of the chapter that I find important and have them pick a line or two and bring them back for class tomorrow?  Should I make cartoons of the chapters and that way the kids can be entertained by the doodles so they know what the book is about?
The best way I have thought to do this is that my flipped video content shouldn't be about the novel at all.  I as a flipped classroom teacher must think about the things I want to talk about in class around the book and present those in the videos.  I need to establish the thematic content and present materials that extent those connections to other works.  That way the students can then be prepared in class with their own connections they find online or otherwise.  This prepares the kids with ammunition for discussion that they otherwise would never have had.  The main difference I needed to get over is the suprise factor. I used to think that the discussions and the stories I would tell in class needed to be secret.  I have found, going back to my Mass Com movie research, that the kids want to be teased about what will happen in class so they don't want to miss it.  I still get to have the kids talk to each other about the book and the themes we need to discuss. And now the kids are much more engaged in the process.  I am able to add the clips and videos they find to the collection to share in future lessons.

Technology - I think that when my school is preparing for the "formal" introduction of flipped classrooms the kids will take to it easily.  The difference is that the teachers need to rearrange what and how they think in lesson prep.  They will have to be comfortable with the kids being at times more quiet and doing work on their own.  The best thing about the teachers who are in on the flipped classrooms is that they get dedicated computers and first step tech support.  I cannot think of anyone who wouldn't want that.  The trend I see with this and all new initiatives coming down, the days of shutting your classroom door and just doing work with the kids are growing old and antiquated.

I have chosen this 6 word phrase to characterize my view of the flipped classroom.  I wanted to ensure that the students know that they will need to use technology to move their work forward and together.  The focus in the 21st century learning about the need to collaborate with many different types of people will be one of the aspects of my flipped classroom. Even though the technology of a truck is older the advancements on how to use them effectively needs someone who is skilled and ready to adapt to changes. 




http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ELI7081.pdf

http://www.flippedclassroom.com/

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/businessclub/7996379/Daniel-Pinks-Think-Tank-Flip-thinking-the-new-buzz-word-sweeping-the-US.html