If you were to ask me what I imagined my 17th year in education would look like, I can guarantee you I would not have expected this. We finished our last "regular" school day on a Thursday in March, right before Spring Break. We never expected Covid-19 to devastate our world the way it has. Call me crazy, but for the all of us in the education world, it was the *gift wrapped inside of the curse.
My innovation proposal (click on the link) for our school scripts how to take advantage of the opportunity that Covid-19 has given us by using the technology we were given in order to implement the blended model format. The teachers can lead best by giving the students the platform to take control of their education and eventually fall in love with being a life-long learner.
The education of today's youth is a process that is an instructor-lead, arduous task that we love to do. The planning, the decorating, the late nights, the grading, the early morning coffee, the amazing lessons, the detailed rubrics, and perfect lecture, and the minimal response from students. WHOA! We think "They should LOVE this topic! I've dedicated so many hours to making it great!" 😒 Not so much.
The work ethic from the teachers is not wrong. The process should be a little bit, well, a lot less stressful. We need to put the learning in the students' hands. We need to have the students become more engaged and gain the passion to be life-long learners. We can do this by simply implementing the Blended Learning model.
Blended learning is a model that implements online learning as well as in class instruction. There are multiple formats that can be implemented so it gives the educators the opportunity to be as flexible as they choose. The students will be more engaged because they will have more choice in their learning path. Whether they are using the Rotation models, the Flex, A La Carte, or Virtual Enriched platforms, students understand that they have more freedom and less stress in their education.
The purpose is not designed to take away jobs from teachers. That is not an option. These learning models enhance the need of teachers. Teachers can actually help the students with their more specific needs.
I'm sure that there are many questions that a person could have. I've created a literature review that documents other programs worldwide that use blended learning so a skeptic can gain insight on success rates for students and school districts. The information listed is designed to present factual information that will inform anyone that is unaware of how the program functions.
Rome was not built overnight. My implementation outline will explain the time frame expected for the program to be in full swing. I plan on implementing this model by building virtual classes online and then piloting them during the school year. The students will be engaged at a higher rate because they will be in control of their time of study, pace, place, and path they choose to learn. When they have questions on ideas or topics, they can always reach out to me for assistance. The students will quickly realize that their stress level for these classes will be significantly decreased.
In the initial stages of implementation, there will be a lot of questions and answers. There will be many days where I will work on making the pilot classes perfect, but I will probably fail in some capacity. That is okay. I will receive the feedback from the students and staff, fix the inaccuracies, and then deliver a stronger product. This process will repeat until the school year of 2021 is ready to begin. We will build more classes in various subjects that will benefit the students in their next step in life, whatever that may be.
Learning should not feel like punishment. It should be progressive, engaging, and student driven. The technology we have received has made it possible for all of our students to reach heights that have never been reached before. So instead of being angry that we are learning how to incorporate technology into our lessons, be optimistic. Let's take advantage of this amazing opportunity and begin preparing our students for the future that is already here. The time is now.
**Disclaimer- I am completely sympathetic to all the people who have suffered during these tumultuous times. I have family and friends who have been infected with Covid-19. By no means does this post mean to minimize or belittle anyone's struggles with this disease whether past, present or future. Please, be safe.
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