Hello everyone,
In an effort to keep us connected and to answer question about remote and online learning, I decided to pull out my old sabbatical blog.
Let's use this post to discuss and ask questions about how do the work for which we now face. For example, an instructor recently inquired about the Whiteboard in canvas. I do not use this tool but maybe someone out there does and he could ask his question to the all reading or using this blog. So for now, I welcome you to use this blog space.
Here are some thoughts from this past week.
I started this whole process thinking I would teach my labs face to face. Then, within what seemed a week of time but was just a day, I had to replan and rethink my class and lab. I have done this about 3 more times since the start. I feel I am getting closer to something that is reasonable and humane for me and my students.
I have found that talking to students about their needs during my zoom sessions has been the best use of this tool. Currently, I use a combination of recording my lecture for asynchronous teaching, zoom lectures for synchronous and zoom question and answer sessions. I record all zoom sessions and post them by external url tools in canvas into a module I have created just for zoom recordings. I also post any subject recordings in the chapter modules as well. I have made all of it optional for students. They can choose how they want to get the information. Everytime I post something, I send an announcement. Everytime something is due, I send an announcement. I just pushing notes and announcements and tips and questions. Some answer, some do not. It's okay because I can see they are handing in work and trying to get the assignment done. Yesterday, was a online laboratory practical. Typically, this test filled with models, microscopes and dissections. It become pictures and questions in a canvas quiz. Thus, far in the grading, it seems similar to when we were face to face and only a small number of responses seem copied and pasted. It seems good to me right now.
Be well and take care all. Linda Staffero
Friday, March 27, 2020
Saturday, May 3, 2014
The Promising Syllabus
I just returned from the OnCourse National Conference. The
OnCourse crowd is truly a wonderful bunch of folks. I always feel inspired
by the workshops focusing on how to get students to engage their minds in order
to draw-out understanding and to learn about themselves. And, since I am
a life-long learner, I always pick up something for myself as a learner too.
One of the things I have been considering
as of late is the first day of my flipped class. I can feel inside me how
I want it to be different but have not created the syllabus or lesson. One of my OnCourse workshops presented a
"promising syllabus." The syllabus becomes the first lesson on
how the class will be conducted and begins the process of shifting students
into a more active learning approach. I really like the idea of telling
students the kinds of experiences they will have in the class to learn
biology.
The promising syllabus is based on the work of Ken Bain in his
book What the Best College Teachers Do.
In summary, your syllabus provides an invitation to the course and lays
out the promises and opportunities that the course offers the student. So, for my biology course I started to think
about the content, experiences and promises I want to communicate to my students
on that first day. Here is how I am beginning
to break it down.
·
Content
Goals for the first week
o
What
is flipped learning
o
What
kind of learner are you
o
Syllabus
and Schedule
o
YouTube
o
Learning
Catalytics
o
Relate
to Biology – Looking for an essay on biology and learning science
·
Experience
o
Model
using videos for direct instruction
o
Confidence,
inspiration, fun, empowerment
o
Group
work
·
Promises
– First Draft
o
Learn
biology in a way that allows you to explore and test your ideas, perceptions
and understanding.
o
To
give you regular feedback from me and your peers so you can better gage your
understanding and learning.
o
Learn
biology to gain an awareness of how science works, and how science answers
questions about the natural world
o
Learn
about biological principles through video, games, group work and case studies.
It is still a work in progress but it matches the more student
centered course I am developing and I like that.
I still have videos to make and I am about half-way through
writing my new lab manual. You think
they might consider giving me another semester? Well, I can dream.
Stay tuned…..
Monday, March 17, 2014
Defining Flipped Learning by the flipped learning network
Greetings,
The flipped learning network released a definition for flipped learning. I think this will be useful to have a working definition that we can all share and use to communicate and describe flipped learning. Stay Tuned....
Definition of Flipped Learning
Released March 12, 2014
To counter common misconceptions and bring clarity to discussions about “Flipped Learning,” the governing board and key leaders of the Flipped Learning Network (FLN) announced a formal definition of the term. They also released the Four Pillars of F-L-I-P™ and a checklist of eleven indicators that educators must incorporate into their practice. The group of experienced flipped educators also draws a distinction between Flipped Learning and a Flipped Classroom.
Released March 12, 2014
To counter common misconceptions and bring clarity to discussions about “Flipped Learning,” the governing board and key leaders of the Flipped Learning Network (FLN) announced a formal definition of the term. They also released the Four Pillars of F-L-I-P™ and a checklist of eleven indicators that educators must incorporate into their practice. The group of experienced flipped educators also draws a distinction between Flipped Learning and a Flipped Classroom.
Thursday, March 6, 2014
Cook'in with Camtasia
Greetings Everyone
I just finished making my thirtieth (30) video for my flipping introductory biology class. I have learned much about the process and want to share a few things.
I just finished making my thirtieth (30) video for my flipping introductory biology class. I have learned much about the process and want to share a few things.
- More pictures, videos and animations and less words. I started using my Powerpoint. and screen-casting myself presenting my power-point but I soon realized that was same kind of presentation I had been doing in class and the kind I wanted to change. So I quickly changed my ways ( need to go back and change some of those first videos) and now, I use the PowerPoint lectures as a foundation. I hide all the word slides and use them as the script for the images. I interweave videos and animations in between my descriptions to make them more active presentation.
- Camtasia will allow you to remove the sound track and talk over an animation. I do this when the animation is excellent but the description just does not fit my material. This flexibility can really help to create screen-casts for your particular student population.
- A good picture is as good as a video. Especially if you use the Camtasia tools like zooming in and call-outs. You can make a dynamic presentation with just a still photo.
- Record those great flash animations and gifs and then use them as demonstrations. I have a particular flash animation about diffusion that allows me to change the temperature, size of the balls, and other parameters. I used it to create a video to explain the movement of matter and diffusion. It was very visual and made the point well.
While producing thirty videos is an accomplishment, I need to make about 30 more. But, I am flipping ready to meet the challenge.
stay tuned......
Friday, November 15, 2013
I am flipping getting this flip classroom stuff....
It has been too long since my last blog. I have spent the past months collecting activities, attending workshops and in between a bit of cruising on the Brilliance of the Sea in the north Atlantic. I visited Maine, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia
Flipping Stuff
One of my challenges is to take the big picture I have imagined as my new flipped classroom and put it into real concrete lesson. So, I have researched active learning for biology classes and reviewed case studies and developed learning objectives and broken my ol lecture ppt into smaller chucks of information in anticipation of making videos.
Learning Activities
I attended the second session of On Course at the end of October and began to understand more how On Course principles are used to create a lesson based on active learning. Their focus is to have a balance of activities in which different learning styles can engage in the lesson. At this point, I will exchange the term lesson for learning objective. They call these different styles the Thinker, Doer, Feeler and Innovator. The activities become your tools for teaching the learning objective. There are so many of them - 101 plus activities to teach an objective. On Course emphasizes collaborative learning rather than competitive with activities that encourage discussion and student teaching each other. The most striking piece in On Course is the emphasis on reflection and I agree. The reflection exercises are important so that the student can reflect and identify their learning.
Videos
I have to admit I was starting to think I was using the research to avoid making videos. I knew what I wanted them to look like but had a learning curve as to how to get there. Well, just in time to help me was the flipped learning workshop I attended in San Antonio. The whole workshop was about techniques for active learning, flipping the classroom and making videos....YAHOO!!!! The best couple of days to help me get "on course."
Since the workshop I have made three videos using Doceri and Camtasia and have embedded them into a Google form using Google drive and YouTube and loaded the form to my learning management system (canvas).
I have learned how to edit my videos and add animations. I use Doceri to annotate while I am recording the video. The Google form is set-up to ask student a couple of question. Their answers go into a Google spreadsheet so I can see who has watched the video and if they got the answers.....Ta DA. I am on my way. The next step is to make the videos a little more fun.
Lastly, was in-class polling software to promote active learning. I learned about a couple : Learning Catalytics and Socrative. I think I like the Learning Catalytic best but it is $10 per student and Socrative is free. Both allow students to use smartphone, tablet or notebooks to answer questions and see the result in real time during class
So, it has been a productive couple of months and I am still getting started. I think I am going to work on building the videos for a section of material and then build the active learning for that material in hopes to see a routine for the class that I can describe to my students. Oh one more thing, I am going to take a week to give them an orientation to this style of teaching and learning. Videos and flipping, activities to self assess their confidence in learning science then bring on that flipping will be better helping them to learn than the ol lecture format....still thinking about that one
Flipping out and more to come.......
Flipping Stuff
One of my challenges is to take the big picture I have imagined as my new flipped classroom and put it into real concrete lesson. So, I have researched active learning for biology classes and reviewed case studies and developed learning objectives and broken my ol lecture ppt into smaller chucks of information in anticipation of making videos.
Learning Activities
I attended the second session of On Course at the end of October and began to understand more how On Course principles are used to create a lesson based on active learning. Their focus is to have a balance of activities in which different learning styles can engage in the lesson. At this point, I will exchange the term lesson for learning objective. They call these different styles the Thinker, Doer, Feeler and Innovator. The activities become your tools for teaching the learning objective. There are so many of them - 101 plus activities to teach an objective. On Course emphasizes collaborative learning rather than competitive with activities that encourage discussion and student teaching each other. The most striking piece in On Course is the emphasis on reflection and I agree. The reflection exercises are important so that the student can reflect and identify their learning.
Videos
I have to admit I was starting to think I was using the research to avoid making videos. I knew what I wanted them to look like but had a learning curve as to how to get there. Well, just in time to help me was the flipped learning workshop I attended in San Antonio. The whole workshop was about techniques for active learning, flipping the classroom and making videos....YAHOO!!!! The best couple of days to help me get "on course."
Since the workshop I have made three videos using Doceri and Camtasia and have embedded them into a Google form using Google drive and YouTube and loaded the form to my learning management system (canvas).
I have learned how to edit my videos and add animations. I use Doceri to annotate while I am recording the video. The Google form is set-up to ask student a couple of question. Their answers go into a Google spreadsheet so I can see who has watched the video and if they got the answers.....Ta DA. I am on my way. The next step is to make the videos a little more fun.
Lastly, was in-class polling software to promote active learning. I learned about a couple : Learning Catalytics and Socrative. I think I like the Learning Catalytic best but it is $10 per student and Socrative is free. Both allow students to use smartphone, tablet or notebooks to answer questions and see the result in real time during class
So, it has been a productive couple of months and I am still getting started. I think I am going to work on building the videos for a section of material and then build the active learning for that material in hopes to see a routine for the class that I can describe to my students. Oh one more thing, I am going to take a week to give them an orientation to this style of teaching and learning. Videos and flipping, activities to self assess their confidence in learning science then bring on that flipping will be better helping them to learn than the ol lecture format....still thinking about that one
Flipping out and more to come.......
Sunday, June 30, 2013
Tools For My Toolbox
I have been teaching for over 25 years and I have never been to a workshop that gave me tools both professionally and personally. But, I can now say I have because I went to OnCourse (http://www.oncourseworkshop.com/) this past week and it was a truly fabulous workshop.
The workshop guides defines it's purpose to provide educators with 1) learner-centered structures and strategies for helping students learn more deeply and 2) empowerment strategies for helping students become active, responsible and successful learners who thrive in a learner-centered environment. The desired outcome of this approach is the improve student academic success and retention. Jonathan, a peaceful man, was my workshop leader and he engaged participants in activities that exemplify the eight OnCourse principles:
Now, along with making my 200+ videos, I will be looking at my content to determine which active learning activities, tools for my toolbox, and match these with my content and begin to build the in class teaching portion of my flipped class. Yahoo!
Personally, the workshop guides you through these same principles and provides opportunity for personal growth. One activity had each participant list the qualities they wanted to "mill" for the workshop and put into a sentence. My qualities were creative, innovative and passionate and the sentence was " I am a creative, innovative and passionate person." This become my personal affirmation to say to myself and to other in the group. It become a powerful tool to focus on what I could do rather than listening to the inner critic telling me I could not be any of those three affirmations. Also, there was a optional evening session using guided imagery to determine your dreams and obstacles. Both of these were very emotional sessions for me but I found personal growth through the process.
Lastly, my "AH moment"
For many years, I have been on a journey of self-discovery. I have gained more and better tools to engage with those in my personal life. I found, of course, that this has spilled into my teaching. The things I have learned personally has lead to greater confidence to try new approaches in my teaching. I feel I have better interactions with my students but that has not necessarily lead to better performance for them. So, that is the path I am on now. To bring together my personal and professional "toolbox" to create a class that increases my personal-professional growth and my students success.
Stay tuned.....
The workshop guides defines it's purpose to provide educators with 1) learner-centered structures and strategies for helping students learn more deeply and 2) empowerment strategies for helping students become active, responsible and successful learners who thrive in a learner-centered environment. The desired outcome of this approach is the improve student academic success and retention. Jonathan, a peaceful man, was my workshop leader and he engaged participants in activities that exemplify the eight OnCourse principles:
- accept responsibility
- discover self-motivation
- master self-management
- employ interdependence
- gain self-awareness
- adopt lifelong learning
- develop emotional intelligence
- believe in themselves
Now, along with making my 200+ videos, I will be looking at my content to determine which active learning activities, tools for my toolbox, and match these with my content and begin to build the in class teaching portion of my flipped class. Yahoo!
Personally, the workshop guides you through these same principles and provides opportunity for personal growth. One activity had each participant list the qualities they wanted to "mill" for the workshop and put into a sentence. My qualities were creative, innovative and passionate and the sentence was " I am a creative, innovative and passionate person." This become my personal affirmation to say to myself and to other in the group. It become a powerful tool to focus on what I could do rather than listening to the inner critic telling me I could not be any of those three affirmations. Also, there was a optional evening session using guided imagery to determine your dreams and obstacles. Both of these were very emotional sessions for me but I found personal growth through the process.
Lastly, my "AH moment"
For many years, I have been on a journey of self-discovery. I have gained more and better tools to engage with those in my personal life. I found, of course, that this has spilled into my teaching. The things I have learned personally has lead to greater confidence to try new approaches in my teaching. I feel I have better interactions with my students but that has not necessarily lead to better performance for them. So, that is the path I am on now. To bring together my personal and professional "toolbox" to create a class that increases my personal-professional growth and my students success.
Stay tuned.....
Friday, June 21, 2013
Getting the Urge to Flip
Last fall, I was facilitating a department meeting to review our program review report and spring 2013 schedule. Susan Ramones, a now former member of the department, seemed to be struggling with which set of classes would make the most sense given her varied responsibilities as the curriculum chair. She announced that she "just wanted to teach, flip her class and do case studies." This was the first time I had heard the words "flipped learning." In the meeting, I asked "what was a flipped classroom." She stated it was a model in which the lecture was given online prior to classtime and during class students complete homework or case studies to learn and apply the information.
I was intrigued. I started teaching the non-majors biology class about 5 years ago and at this point I feel pretty good about the materials I have developed: lectures, labs, homework, exams and such. Additionally, I split the 140 person class into two 75 person sections. I think ultimately, for a flipped class, it will need to be 50 students. Anyway, most of these students are just out of high school and coming to community college and not UC or CSU. Even if they are not 18 years old, they all tend to struggle to understand what they need to learn, to have confidence that they can learn and to have a set strategies to apply to their learning. I can put all the resources up on a website, provide tutors and review sessions but I have come to think that time spent lecturing cannot ever address these three things. So, how can I still teach biology and all they need to know and give them the best chance to learn? My answer is the flipped classroom.
Thus, this year I will break-up my lecture material into 8-10 minute videos using Camtasia ( i think). That means I will make about 10+ videos per chapter and an approximate total of 200 videos over the course of the next year. Ya!
Next, I will research case studies, group work and other activities to complete during the class time. Also, I need to think a great deal about how to get the students to buy into this type of teaching model, how to grade them....lots of stuff.
So, I have a basic model to start this process.....stay tuned
flipping out, L
I was intrigued. I started teaching the non-majors biology class about 5 years ago and at this point I feel pretty good about the materials I have developed: lectures, labs, homework, exams and such. Additionally, I split the 140 person class into two 75 person sections. I think ultimately, for a flipped class, it will need to be 50 students. Anyway, most of these students are just out of high school and coming to community college and not UC or CSU. Even if they are not 18 years old, they all tend to struggle to understand what they need to learn, to have confidence that they can learn and to have a set strategies to apply to their learning. I can put all the resources up on a website, provide tutors and review sessions but I have come to think that time spent lecturing cannot ever address these three things. So, how can I still teach biology and all they need to know and give them the best chance to learn? My answer is the flipped classroom.
Thus, this year I will break-up my lecture material into 8-10 minute videos using Camtasia ( i think). That means I will make about 10+ videos per chapter and an approximate total of 200 videos over the course of the next year. Ya!
Next, I will research case studies, group work and other activities to complete during the class time. Also, I need to think a great deal about how to get the students to buy into this type of teaching model, how to grade them....lots of stuff.
So, I have a basic model to start this process.....stay tuned
flipping out, L
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