Tomorrow I will be going on a site visit for the second time to the Stillwater, Minnesota Flipped Classroom Pilot. The first time we visited, I understood the concept of a Flipped Classroom, but I had never seen one in action.
In a Flip, students view short lectures at home every night. These teach the basic concepts of the next topic. Students can pause and rewind as needed. Parents can view the videos with their students. After watching, the students take a five point assessment. When the teacher starts class the next day, they have a formative assessment that shows exactly who understood the concept and who needs more help and support.
I see this as such an exciting concept. By late elementary school, some parents can no longer help their children in math, for example. They may be able to solve the work themselves, but they may do it in a different method than the teacher is requesting. Or, the content is different than what they experienced themselves in school. Unless the parent is very good at math, it may not be long before the child is on their own to do their homework. If the student goes home without understanding the work, how does practicing problems really help? They may do twenty problems all incorrectly. Or quickly give up and not even do the homework.
In a Flipped classroom, more time is available during school hours between the teacher and student. The teacher can provide interventions, meet with small groups and individuals, and guide students in ways that their parents may not be able. The amount of formative data that is collected is staggering. Every single day the teacher knows where his or her students are. When I was in school, sometimes it wasn’t until the test that the teacher would discover that we didn’t really understand the concept.
Some people get really hung up on the technology. How will kids watch the videos? Doesn’t this dehumanize the contact between the teacher and the students? The Flipped Classroom is not about the technology. The technology simply makes it easier to deliver lessons and collect data.
The big change is in the philosophy of the classroom. The concept is more along the lines of a Guided Math classroom. I watched a Guided Math class just a few weeks ago. While it wasn’t a Flip, it may have well have been. The students were met on each of their needs, had different stations and jobs assigned, and met with the teacher as needed for support. In sixty minutes of raw video, I never once saw a student doing anything other than Math. THAT is the magic.
Farmington will also be piloting Flipped Classrooms next year. Many of our pilot teachers are coming along with us to Stillwater tomorrow. I can’t wait to hear their reactions and questions to viewing others. This will be an interesting, and rewarding, academic adventure!
To learn more about Stillwater, check out the following resources.
- Stillwater’s Flipped Classroom Web Page
- MN Public Radio: Stillwater tests ‘flipping” homework and lectures
- Stillwater Gazette: District classes ‘flip’ out
- Star Tribune: Stillwater teachers ‘flip’ homework and lectures
- PrometheanPlanet: Flipped Class Blog