The article "Flipped Classroom: Pro and Con" is an article that summarizes the good and the bad of using a flipped classroom setting. A flipped class is when the students are expected to read the book, view a lecture, or otherwise learn the content of their subject at home. Then they are expected to come to class with the knowledge, and then they can do more activities, have more teacher to student time to work through problems, and can have more interactions in the classroom. The pros of this method are that it centers the learning that is occurring around the students. They are able to learn more at their own pace, and can have more teacher help in the actual classroom. The cons of this teaching method are that the students may not all have the same access to technology at home, and it is not often convenient for the parents to have to take them somewhere for several hours a night just to use a lab computer.
I personally think that flipped classrooms are a fantastic idea. Lectures are usually boring to students, and getting through this content on their own at home opens up school time for more activities and real learning to occur. I like that as a teacher I would not have to repeat the same boring lecture 4-5 times in a row. I could have individual or group discussion with my students about where they are struggling, and we can all work together to make sure that we all have a good understanding of the topics. It could also be really fun to put together lessons and content via technology uses for my students. Most students nowadays do have technology at home to use, and I would want to make sure that if I did have students that did not have the proper equipment at home that the school would be able to rent out equipment to their family, or that alternative learning materials could be given to them.
This topic relates to ISTE Standards for Students 2, 4, 5 and 6. Standard #2 requires that students use technology to communicate and work collaboratively. They would need to do this if they are using discussion boards or online modules such as Edmodo to complete at-home class work. The article also relates to standard #4 in which students will need to think critically and make decisions about their schedules. If they are responsible for learning all of this material at home, then they need to schedule their homework time properly and make sure that they are actually absorbing the content that they are reading. Flipped classrooms also relate to ISTE standard #5 since most students would need some form of online login to access their course. The students must also relate to standard #6 in which they need to be able to understand and operate their technology given in order to be successful in their homework.
What do you think about using flipped classrooms? Are there pros and cons that the article did not cover?
Hertz, Mary Beth. (2012, July). "The Flipped Classroom: Pro and Con". http://www.edutopia.org/blog/flipped-classroom-pro-and-con-mary-beth-hertz
I agree that a flipped classroom is a great idea. Sitting through lectures can be very difficult for many students, including myself. If teachers can make the material more palatable, then why not.
ReplyDeleteEnsuring that all students have access to the needed technology will always be a challenge, but in addition, we need to ensure they also have a working Internet connection too. Having the ability to use classroom time to collaborate and work through problems to reinforce concepts seems to be the most logical choice.
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ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your post and what you had to say. However I think the idea of the flipped classroom is good in theory, but not reality. But who says that lecture has to be boring and unproductively repetitive? As a teacher your classroom is what you make it. Having time to go over the chapter being taught shouldn't take away from learning through activities but to be inte- mingled. When lecture or chapter notes are to be done at home, things can get lost in translation, it’s not as easy to ask for clarification when there isn't access to your teacher. Say for example a class is going over fractions one week. Monday could be lecture with a little bit of homework to get their minds thinking, then activity on Tuesday to make sure they are comprehending; and have lecture be every other day. Or even doing a half lecture and an activity each day is better in my opinion then having a student trying to figure out a lecture and what the teacher meant at home. I believe that teacher instruction should come first to guide students, when they are learning new chapters and/or concepts.
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