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F2F Instructional Strategies

In this discussion forum share what you have learned about face to face instructional strategies. What do you plan to implement into your classroom? What do you already do in your classroom that was covered in the lecture?

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Eric Whitney on April 27, 2011 at 10:23pm

In my district, we are experimenting with Moodle as a way to enhance the face to face learning environment with some online components. It has been a great tool for us, and we are just beginning to tap into its potential. I worked recently with a middle school science teacher to convert some of the lab demonstrations she would typically do live into digital format, housed on her Moodle. This is a great addition to her classroom, as now the many variables that can make a live demonstration challenging have been removed. She is no longer confined to one place at the front of the lab during the demo, but can be more accessible among her students. She no longer has to prep her materials in the same way. And another bonus is that all of our science teachers have access, so even those who do not feel as comfortable with this instructional method can use it with students.

Permalink Reply by Emily on April 28, 2011 at 12:47am

One of my favorite things about Moodle is that you can make this mini-quizzes that students who don't perfectly understand or need extra help can do to if they're struggling. This would obviously depend on the age and motivation of your students. The best way I've found to do it is to make sure that the quiz is short (5-10 minutes total), gives immediate feedback and allows students to retake it until they get it right. Links to help pages are ideal, but time consuming. Still, I love Moodle.

Permalink Reply by Anna Cajiga on May 1, 2011 at 10:03pm

I have heard tons of people talking about Moodle, but I have never seen it used before. It sounds like a great resource - I am definitely going to have to check it out and see how I can use it in my classroom!

Permalink Reply by Samantha Forster on April 29, 2011 at 12:37am

I have been blogging with my juniors all year, and as the year comes to a close I really believe that the majority of them have come to embrace the activity and enjoy the individual freedoms that it encourages. However, it was very difficult to get them on board, especially with regards to the commenting and responding. As my freshman draw near the end of their first year in high school, I decided to attempt a sort of blog assignment with them for a couple of weeks. It was a much shorter version than that of my juniors, and instead of using Blogger, I utilized the access to Moodle that my school district offers. My freshman took off with the discussion. At first it was a new shiny toy and they tended to complete the assignment and then the comments turned into frivolous banter. But, after the newness wore off, and we had a class discussion regarding appropriate use of the forum and the desired content, the frequency of their comments remained, but the content became more classroom focused.

With this example in mind, I have decided that they younger the student, the easier it is to get them to embrace technology or try a new way of learning. This is true with many things; however, I would like to see these same students as juniors in a couple of years and test their tech skills or up their knowledge of blogging in the classroom. I would bet that the time it would take them to embrace the integration of new technology would be far less than the students that I experimented with this year!

Permalink Reply by Katherine Raphael on April 29, 2011 at 3:03pm

Hi Samantha,

I am interested in using blogs for Spanish language journals. What sort of collaboration and interaction do you find your students are experiencing with blogs? Do you require them to follow each other? I'd love for my students to connect with native speakers but am a little leery about sending them out there to Spain or other Spanish-speaking countries without some help and protection. Any thoughts? Thanks!

Kathy

Permalink Reply by Anna Cajiga on May 1, 2011 at 10:14pm

I want to try having my students manage their own individual blogs to use for publishing their writing and responding to what we are learning in class, but I have not yet found which blogging program would work best for my students. Right now I am focusing on learning more about what edublogs has to offer, but it sounds like I might need to look into Moodle as well! Thanks for sharing your experience!

Permalink Reply by Katherine Raphael on April 29, 2011 at 3:00pm

I like to use the CMS to add copies of anything I hand out in class. I also use it as a basic classroom website to post links, extra information, any presentation or video show in class, and for quizzing. It seems so simple, and CMSs have only been around for a decade or so, but I simply can't imagine teaching any face-to-face course without one. I also use it to post grades regularly, and for some quizzing. I really like Desire to Learn and Angel. Not impressed with Moodle yet and have not used Blackboard in years so I don't know what features they have that might be helpful. Either way, having a password-protected website is so helpful. One more thing I like is that I can use more copyrighted works within the CMS because the password helps me to not "reproduce and distribute".

Permalink Reply by Allyson bush on May 1, 2011 at 11:04am

Ok, being in the class I feel like I should know what CMS is, but I don't know what it stands for so could you please clarify for me? Thanks!

Permalink Reply by Chuck Commeret on May 1, 2011 at 8:07pm

CMS = Course Management System (also known as LMS - learning management systems, and VLE - virtual learning environment). In short, it is an "online classroom" where everything is stored and protected (like CEP 811 in ANGEL). Hope that makes sense. :)

Permalink Reply by Kelly Taunt on April 29, 2011 at 7:39pm

I am very fortunate to have a Smartboard and laptops available in my classroom. Although, there is a fair amount of time needed to learn all the in's and outs of a Smartboard, I tend to use it to supplement text and or lecture. The students also get opportunities to use the Smartboard as well.

I have found that in an alternative education setting, the range of basic computer knowledge is HUGE! So I tend to walk kids through a lot of resources, more of an exposure than an in-depth lesson. If students tend to work well on a particular technology, we may go and spend more time using that particular thing. Since I may only have students for 1 marking period or less, I think it is more important for me to make sure they just know what is out there vs. perfecting a few pieces of technology. I may have them look at someone's blog instead of creating one. I have used photostory to create commercials for student businesses. We have uploaded resume's to the internet for job applications. In my school building, we have had students use various forms of pod casting, music producing , etc. Overall, I think my environment lends itself well to introducing topics, and integrating Face to Face with pure technology.

Permalink Reply by Emily on April 30, 2011 at 4:10am

Where do you have you students upload their resumes?

Permalink Reply by Eric Whitney on April 30, 2011 at 2:44pm

Sounds like Smartboards are working well in your classroom. In our district we recently added Mobi tablets in every classroom from preschool to high school. I had never heard of them, but they are very versatile. The work like a Smartboard in some ways, making the content you display interactive, but you control the interaction from a tablet that you can have anywhere in the room instead of having to be at the board. The cost is a fraction of a Smartboard too. If you ever get a chance to try one out, I would highly recommend it!