The following is an example of what I feel is a lesson which will benefit students by giving them the opportunity to change the traditional ways of teaching. Flip teaching is a concept that has proven to be effective to be used among students of varying ages. This article from Wired provides excellent information of what exactly it means to flip the teaching. 'Flip Teaching: What Happens When Homework is in Class?' explains that when the teaching is flipped the students are expected to watch lectures or videos about a topic at home. This leaves the actual class time open for discussion and collaboration among their peers. It makes sense when we think about how much time we always say we need as teachers and opening up more opportunities by eliminating the time we spend on explanation and showing videos. Some aspects to consider which will become very important to the success of this type of teaching is that expectations and requirements must be clearly laid out upon assigning the homework. Students must be required to watch the video more than one time to be sure understanding is happening. Additionally, students should be guided through the comprehension of the information through a note guide or study sheet. These elements are essential to the success of the lesson and discussion in class the next day.
The lesson I will describe is for use in a 5th grade classroom. It involves the introduction to the topic of the civil war. Students will be told that they will be beginning to learn about the civil war. A KWL chart will be done as a whole class experience by having small groups of 4 list what they already know about the civil war. After groups have had 10 minutes to work, each group is responsible for coming up to the Smart Board and listing their thoughts onto the large class chart. As a class the facts will be reviewed and a discussion involving information that we already know as a class will be known. At this point prior knowledge has been activated and the students are brainstorming and getting excited about this topic. From there, the assignment for the night will be explained. The assignment: 1. Watch the following video once through just listening. Civil War: Brain Pop 2. Play the video a second time and this time be ready to pause it to answer the following questions. Make sure you take your time, watching the video as many times as you need, in order to fill in the most detailed answers that you can. -In what years did the civil war occur? -What does it mean to secede? -What were the names of the two sides of the war? -What was the major disagreement among the two sides in the war? -Name the famous speech given by President Lincoln at Gettysburg. 3. Lastly, please click on at least 3 questions and read the answers to those questions. In class tomorrow, be ready to discuss the answers to the questions I have given you above in addition to the 3 you have read the answers to after the video. With this type of lesson students are using the technological resources available to them online that are both interesting and informative. Students are taking the time at home to prepare for discussion and be ready to continue their learning while in class.
It is important to note that the concept of flip teaching can and should be modified in order to fit the age and grade level of students. Most research and experience with flip teaching show the approach in the video below. Katie Gimbar is a teacher who posts all of her learning experiences on flip teaching onto You Tube. She does a great job of showing what she has learned about the effectiveness of flip teaching as well as explaining exactly why she does it. She lists great points such a trust and accountability that would be lesser issues if the lecture or learning based assignments to be done at home are coming from the students' actual classroom teacher. She also points out the aspect of not having enough time for differentiation during class time. This is a big deal in the elementary setting and the main reason for the lesson and the teaching method I have described. The lesson I have provided is geared more appropriately towards an elementary setting in that they are not expected to listen to a lecture. Watching a video such as the one I chose will engage students more at their interest level while still providing essential information about the unit. I have attached the video from Katie Gimbar, specifically the one in which she explains why she has flipped her classroom. A lot can be learned from what she has experienced.
Resources: Allain, Rhett. (2011, May 3) Flip Teaching, What Happens When Homework is in Class? Retrieved from http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/05/flip-teaching-what-happens-when-homework-is-in-class/
Brain Pop (nd). Civil War. [Video] Retrieved from http://www.brainpop.com/socialstudies/freemovies/civilwar/.
pocketlodge. (2011, May 2). Why I flipped My Classroom. [Video] Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9aGuLuipTwg&feature=related
ScienceTucker. (2011, October 3) What is Flip Teaching? [Video} Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2qkfSIOKzBM.
