The Not-Quite-Flapped Classroom Part 2

Perhaps you have already read about my first steps with The Not-Quite-Flipped Classroom and are wondering about my progress. I have continued my exploration of a hybrid classroom with mixed results.

Classroom Atmosphere

When my students know in advance that we are using personal iPads and video tutorials in class, they arrive and get right to work. Most students work alone, but others choose to share an iPad and are quick to borrow my headphone splitter. I allow students to pick their own partners for the most part.  Sometimes I step in and redirect students to more productive partnerships. Class begins quickly and efficiently.

Work Ethics

Students are able to concentrate without distractions on the video tutorials that I have created using educreations. They can really focus because they have blocked out external distractions by using earbuds or headphones.  Each student is able to get into the written work that is both the class assignment and the homework. This allows students to have less written work to do at home.

Assessment

Students continued to score within their previous grade range after learning material through the video tutorials; however, students were consistently below their previous scores by a few points. 

Drawbacks

Many times students will have a great response to something in class that helps us all to remember a topic or procedure. By eliminating a majority of the interactive portion of class, we are all missing out on these fun and surprising moments.

I am also a constructivist, so I try to ask students leading questions that I can edit on the fly if they are not getting the job done. When creating the video tutorials, I find it difficult (if not impossible) to include my usual leading questions. I don't feel that I can leave an unanswered question in the tutorial, but I also feel that the students must generate the answers on their own. I have told my students that after another math class, they may be able to answer every question in the book, but after my math class, they will be able to rewrite the book.

Conclusion

My conclusion is ... well, I am undecided. I may utilize the integrated classroom at times, and at other times I may assign a video for homework. I can see the benefits: more class time spent on actual production of work, more opportunities for one-to-one work, and more differentiation. But on the other hand, I am spending more time explaining the same concept repeatedly on a one-to-one basis. I guess that this is part of the journey. I plan to read more about flipped classrooms, perhaps some of these books, and continue on my journey!