This image demonstrates my feelings after spending time attempting to use three Google add-ons with my Sheets and/or Forms that I've already created. To start with, part of the problem seems to be that the recommended add-ons all do different things, which won't work with the items I've created. For example, some are for grading. Some are for charting. Some are for registering email accounts. To further complicate things, of the three Forms I have created, only two have collected responses, and neither of those were assessments, so I can't use Flubaroo because there were no "correct answers" I was looking for. Also, I've used two separate accounts to create these different forms, as some were for my students at school, and one was for this program. I was only successful using the Form Limiter, which allows the user to place limits on the amount of time a Form is available to be completed and also limits the number of answers that can be chosen. It was incredibly easy to figure out and use, and I can see myself doing this as opposed to having students email me their work and having to check what time it arrived to my inbox.
After reading the articles "Harnessing the Power of Google Forms for Just-in-Time-Teaching" and "The NEW Google Forms..." I certainly have a better sense of how, specifically, I can use them in my classroom. Up to this point, I have only created two, and both were created to survey students in order to collect data related to my action research paper. It seemed fairly intuitive; however, I did have a problem with the order of the questions I created. When in "edit" mode, the questions were chronological, but in the view mode, my students showed me that the questions were out of order, and try as I did, I couldn't correct it.
I love the way author Keith Hamon explained his weekly use of Forms, as I feel creating activities daily or even several times a week could become a burden. Also, much of what I seek to do with technology in my classroom involves students doing the creating, not me! I like the idea of the "branching off questions" as add-ons, too, because in general, my students tend to either ask for or give each other the quiz questions from one period to the next, and it's something I'm constantly trying to combat. I could create Forms to give reading quizzes, as a pre-vocabulary test, and covering literary terms. Really, with the options of question types that teachers can create, there is a myriad of ways I could use it, were I so inclined. One of the interesting things I discovered about my own district is that our technology plan expired back in 2014. Interesting! It begs the question who is leading? Who is in charge? As a professional educator, I realize that one of my responsibilities is to incorporate technology and to use ISTE student and teacher standards in my classroom, but it's disheartening to see that perhaps using technology, despite having all of the devices necessary, is not a priority for my district or administrators. I feel they should be encouraging reluctant teachers to do more, little by little, where tech is concerned. I guess the lesson here is simply that this issue makes it necessary for teacher-leaders to step up, once again, and do more.
It seems appropriate to be blogging about the topic of transformative leadership today, just as Napa Learns sent all of its Touro University fellows an email about participating in a Napa County Office of Education program wherein we're being asked to become exactly this type of leader, sharing our knowledge with other, perhaps less experienced educators. In all honesty, it's flattering that people in this program already view us as leaders, as that is part of the goal of this program. However, here is also where I revert to a 15-year-old student who lacks confidence in my ability to take charge and lead others. I feel like my journey is just beginning with integrating and exploring technology in my classroom, yet, as irony would have it, just when one masters technology, something newer, better, and more efficient comes along! Just like I "leaned into" this program, I will also need to slowly get accustomed to viewing myself as a leader in tech tools and practices. Looking back, I can see the work and learning I've been a part of over the past 10 months, and I'm hopeful that one day I will be willing to do more than simply lean in. Diving is simply a difficult thing to do!
Before reading the excerpt from the 2012 book Flip Your Classroom, I understood that this was a "new" model for approaching teaching, wherein significant content was delivered via video to students outside of the classroom, allowing many benefits for both teachers and students in regards to restructuring the use of in-class time. One of the first points made by the authors that caught my attention was the statement that they " no longer stand in front of our students and talk at them for 30 to 60 minutes at a time. This radical change has allowed us to take on a different role with our students." My response to this is simply who does that?!?! What "good teacher" stands in front of a group of teenagers and blathers on for that length of time? Well before flipping was a thing, we were already aware of the importance of student collaboration and engagement in education, so I find it shocking that the authors chose to open chapter 3 of their book with such an admission.
Some of the advantages that I can certainly see with flipping the classroom include the ability for students to pause and review the content as much or as often as they like, replaying the videos for clarification, etc. Additionally, I love the fact that it gives parents insight into the classroom, not only to have awareness of the work being done, but to then use that knowledge to ensure that it actually gets done! Yes, students today are accustomed to digital content, so bringing that into the classroom would seem more real world, perhaps. I think for certain types of students, such as those who are highly motivated and responsible, this model has many advantages, however, with inconsistent access to devices and Internet, this is not something I would rely upon regularly with my students. To add to that, doing work outside of class is a struggle for the majority of my kids, so it could possibly create even more of a deficit were I to require this model in my classroom. From a teacher's perspective, some of the benefits of flipped classrooms include the fact that once created, the videos are there for future use and modification, and it definitely makes it easier to share with other teachers, substitutes, etc. On the down side, however, these videos require much forethought and time, and they require more effort than impromptu teaching. Like everything else, I see flipped teaching/learning as a trend to lean into rather jumping in head first. |
Kirstin
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