Over the next few months, we’ll be publishing a new series on this blog featuring interviews with educators from around the country and highlighting their inspiring examples of edtech in practice. In this first article of the series, we focus on two teachers using technology to flip the learning in their classrooms. (What is flipped learning?) These teachers show us how tech tools can create space for interactive learning and enable deeper relationships between educators and students.
Let’s meet the teachers!
Bobby Barber teaches math at Millville High School, a Title I school in New Jersey. Mr. Barber’s calculus students have always come to class with lots of thoughtful questions about their homework assignments, but when Mr. Barber was busy introducing new math concepts in class every day, there just wasn’t enough time left to assess every student’s understanding and address all of their questions. That’s why Mr. Barber began flipping his class four years ago, giving the students video lectures to watch at home and focusing on math practice in class. He started off by assigning videos from Khan Academy and Brightstorm, but soon decided to record his own lectures using a simple FlipCam setup in his classroom, eventually building up a library of custom math lessons hosted on EDpuzzle.
Matt Macfarlane teaches history at Templeton Middle School, a small, high-performing central California school. A veteran with over 20 years’ teaching experience, Mr. Macfarlane was driven to flip the learning in his classroom because he could see the world changing around his students. Gone are the days when the best memorizers are the most successful students. Today, his kids need to be prepared with a new set of 21st century skills, including problem solving, time management, and collaboration. As he describes it, “I don’t want to spend my precious minutes with students on lecturing. I want to impact my students, which comes when I can interact more with them, when I’m working alongside them and engaging at a deeper level.”
“I don’t want to spend my precious minutes with students on lecturing.
I want to impact my students."
Mr. Barber sums up the greatest benefit of his flipped classroom: “Since flipping my class, I get to talk to every single kid every single day.” This has led to deeper relationships with his students, who aren’t afraid to ask questions or make mistakes in class. Students also appreciate the control over their own learning. Busy students can watch when and where they want to, and they can review challenging concepts as many times as needed. On top of all this, Mr. Barber’s students have seen a dramatic improvement in their test scores.
“Since flipping my class, I get to talk to every single kid
every single day.”
What advice would Mr. Barber and Mr. Macfarlane offer to anyone thinking about taking the plunge?
- Try it! Start small, flip one lesson or one chapter. Talk to your students about it, and see what happens!
- Keep your videos short: 10-15 minutes for high school students, 5-10 for middle school, and under 5 for younger students.
- Keep in mind that students may not know how to learn from a video. Watch the first few videos together in class. Show them how to take notes and how to check for their own understanding.
- Give students a deliverable for the next day, even if it’s as simple as a comprehension question.
- Have a back-up plan for students with limited access to online videos. You can provide copies of the videos on DVD or USB drive, or allow time for students to watch at school.
- Reach out to your networks! Both of our featured teachers credit their professional networks with guiding their flipped classroom journeys. Talk to people in your school who have flipped their classrooms, or check out the #flipclass community on Twitter for great advice and support.
Mr. Macfarlane and Mr. Barber are actively helping other educators in their districts to get started with flipping. What else is ahead for these flipped learning aficionados?
Mr. Barber is experimenting with self-paced learning in his classes. Students have access to all of the video lessons for the entire year, so now his strong students are pushing ahead to challenge themselves with more advanced content, while struggling students focus on mastering each concept before moving forward.
Mr. Macfarlane is experimenting with new tech to support collaboration among his students. He’s also making plans to connect them with other classrooms around the country for geography scavenger hunts!
Learn more about Mr. Barber’s and Mr. Macfarlane’s flipped classrooms.
Watch Mr. Macfarlane introduce the Bill of Rights on Educreations.
Watch Mr. Barber’s calculus lesson on EDpuzzle.
Connect with Mr. Barber @MillvilleAPCalc & Mr. Macfarlane @mrmacsclasses.
Tweet your flipped class stories and tips to @imaginek12 #flipclass.