“I’ve seen some really amazing things where kids take turns being the communications person for the classroom. They’re doing things like tweeting and putting messages up on blogs and updating their parents and telling the narrative about how the classroom was about to change into this amazing new way of learning.”
Inviting all key stakeholders to be involved in the transition to a flipped learning environment helps build support for both teachers and students and often leads to a successful technology initiative.
Integrate the Right Tools
In addition to ensuring the community has a strong understanding of what the flipped classroom is and how it can improve students’ learning, teachers need to consider how they are going use tools to support a curriculum that will accomplish the goals they set forth with the flipped model.
“Teachers must first consider the content and curriculum that would benefit most from a flipped learning model. Once they have those lessons in mind, they can experiment with different media that integrate well to convey course concepts,” said Ridgway. “A thoughtful transition to flipped learning is essential to make sure control isn’t shifted to students without proper guidance and tech support.”
There a various tools teachers can choose from that support flipped learning, but teachers need to ensure they are adopting the right tools that will not only enhance their curriculum, but also provide equal access to students.
“One of the barriers I see is teachers will [integrate tools] that only run in Chrome or Windows or Apple. You have to have tools that can be used on any device, anywhere. That’s a really important piece people don’t often think about,” says Barkley.
Furthermore, teachers need to take into consideration that not all students have access to devices at home.
“When I first started doing this, I didn’t do as much as I would have liked to because access was a problem with my students,” says Murray. “After doing this for a few years, my school is catching up with me and now all of our students have Chromebooks.”
If students do not have access to their own devices, schools need to consider implementing a 1:1 program with mobile devices in order for the flipped classroom to benefit each and every student.
Teachers also need to ensure they are using tools that will help their students achieve learning goals. For teachers looking to provide direct instruction to students outside of the classroom, they need to consider integrating tools that allow them to record video and capture lectures. Teachers also need to be able to deliver that instruction to each and every student no matter their device or location.
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