Flash Blog - Balancing workload

I implemented a new structure for my flipped mastery classroom a couple weeks ago. Students are still getting used to the structure and mastery pieces, so we have not implemented many activities in this unit. We have brought in quizzes almost every day on 2 concepts at a time. This Unit I am allowing students to retake quizzes as many times as it takes to get them correct before the test in a week and a half. 

In talking with students, we have decided to move quizzes that normally happen on Mondays to Tuesday or Wednesday. We meet every other day. We also decided to move the quizzes to the last 10 minutes of class instead of the first 10 minutes. That allows students to ask questions throughout the class period. 

As we move into our next unit, I will be adding in more activities and less practice problems. That will allow them a chance to make a connection to the material other than rote practice. My goal is to not give 50 practice problems and an activity, but to narrow the focus of the practice problems and use the activity to solidify the learning. 

So balancing the practice, activities and quizzes will encourage learning and limit stress.  Instead of trying to give students full sets of everything in the time allowed in class. Sometimes less is more.    

Flashblog - Homework grading a new way

I have been teaching Algebra 2 for over 10 years and have been through various methods of HW checks.  When I started, I checked homework everyday for correctness and entered the grades accordingly.  The policy was no late work, so students who didn't turn in work could do it for the learning but not for credit.  Of course students did not go back and do the work for no points.  The students that did the work, hand it in and received comments on their work didn't correct their work either.  This was a loss of learning possibilities, so I started requiring students to make corrections to their incorrect problems and handed back in to be checked.  Students were continuously handing work back in for a recheck.  This became extremely overwhelming for so many students and I had to keep going back to old solution keys and was grading all the time after school.

I tried just giving students credit for turning it in completed with work.  I didn't check the actual work, just counted up the problems that were completed fully.  Most students would turn in work for the lesson, but some would try to pass off an old assignment for credit fir the new assignment.  When it got to be time for the test.  Surprise!  Students who had done work and not checked it or copied their friends or turned in an old assignment performed poorly on the assessment.  So conferences went something like this..."Billy is doing great on his homework, but when he gets to the test he freezes and does poorly.  Billy is just not a good test taker."...and then I would have to reiterate that homework is not checked for correctness but for completeness.  I told them that their child needed to check the answers and correct their mistakes on their own before turning it in.  That didn't seem to work very well.

I wanted to be able to assess student learning without having students continually turn in their homework so I could grade their papers every night.  Students work better in my classroom when they get to work with peers of their choosing and ask me questions when they are stuck.  So my policy now is that students are to work in teams of 3 that they get to choose.  The team is responsible for helping its members learn the material and ask me if they have questions.  In order to receive credit for their work, each student needs to complete a one questions quiz on the material individually with me.  They will have 1.5-2 minutes to complete the problem.  If they get it wrong, we will talk about what went wrong and then they are sent back to relearn the material.  They are not allowed to quiz on the next material until the previous quiz has been passed.

This allows me to work with students individually, get to know what they need and allow students to learn responsibility for their learning and not just a piece of paper to hand in.

What is Working in Class Today

Looking back at this past semester and forward to the next semester that starts on Tuesday, Schoology has started to work.  Using Schoology to trigger the assignments has helped me keep track of where students are in their progression through the Unit, as well as, help students recognize where they stand with the material.  The Unit is currently set up to open each folder and assignment in a linear progression.  It starts with the first folder and the first video assignment.  Once students post pictures of their note packet filled in, then the WSQ opens and they can fill in their summary and questions.  Once that is submitted, the assignment opens.  Students submit pictures of their classwork and then the next folder opens for the next topic.

I need to use the information I gain from the WSQ more strategically in class. At first I was responding to the questions individually, but I would like to take a group review approach in class the next day for common questions.  That way I can clarify and get more feedback on what isn't understood through the video notes.

I, also, use Interactive Notebooks to review the concept at the beginning of class.  It gives students one page of procedures and examples to put into a bound notebook that they can use as they progress through my class, then PreCalc and on to Calculus.  For students who have used the notebook, it has been useful.  I am still working to get students to understand that you cannot just remember or ask for every procedure to be explained each time you need it.  You have to refer back to something.  That is the biggest struggle I have with students and notes.  They need to use the notes and not just check it off as an exercise in writing things down and then just set them aside.

This coming term, I will be allowing students to fast forward past material that they already understand and move on based on quiz results.  If students do not pass out of the material, they will detour into video notes and practice for those topics.  I need to find a way to structure this in Schoology along with allowing students to choose the application problem that they are going to complete next in teams.

Lots to think about!