I'm tired of the term "Flipped Classroom." Besides the fact that it is a mouthful to say, no one seems to like it. Apparently no one likes the idea of having the students more engaged in class with less HW to do outside of school. No one likes the idea that the teacher, by no longer taking up time to lecture, no longer the focus of the classroom, is now free to converse with students for longer periods of time. No one also seems to like the idea of experimenting with new teaching methods, but rather would prefer to judge them based on articles and blog posts on the Internet.
So I am tired of using the term Flipped Classroom to describe what I am doing. When I cut my students' workload in half by using this method, I got attacked. When my students began to do more inquiry labs, which require more time on everyone's part to develop, people questioned my methods. When my students' grades in class began to rise and the lowest anyone earns is the grade that they want to earn, I am told I inflate grades (despite the fact that my students complete 3 times more work to get that grade).
So I am going to just use the term #LEARNING. Maybe it will involve #flipclass, maybe PBL, maybe lecture, maybe discovery, maybe Mastery. It might even have a little bit of a lot of things. But no matter what method we choose to use, it will be about my STUDENTS and their LEARNING.
Now that's something I can't get tired about.
Hold in there.
ReplyDeleteMarc
ReplyDeleteI like that your students are more engaged in class and that you have cut their work load in half. More than like, I celebrate you, your efforts, your willingness to try something new, to give it your all. Even more than celebrate, I cheer loudly and enthusiastically for you cause I know how much you care, how much of you goes into to your work. I know what a positive impact you are having with your kids and on other teachers and on the flip class community as a whole.
Call it whatever you want and I will continue to cheer my friend!!
Best to you,
yours in learning,
Carolyn
I am so with you on this, Marc. I resist using the word too, but it's become almost a brand name now, like Kleenex. We all know what we mean by it, and we all want the same things for our kids, so I say we just call it, I don't know, how about Sponge-Bobbing? That'll give the critics something to chew on for a while, and in the meantime, we can keep sticking together, sharing, supporting, teaching, learning!
ReplyDelete