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A B I G thanks to all my students, mentors, and all the many other inspiring professors that have helped me along the way. I couldn't have done it without you. ¡Muchísimas Gracias! Profesor Inspirador 2016

The post Profesor Inspirador 2016 – ¡Gracias a Todos! appeared first on OpenFlip Fall 2015.

For Unit 5, we have been tasked with planning a flipped lesson for our classes. I typically work with advanced English students that are learning English as a foreign language, so this flipped lesson specifically targets those students. I also think that, especially if the aim of the lesson is to develop expression of opinion communication skills as this lesson indeed does, introducing controversial topics really helps to facilitate this objective, as everyone has an opinion one way or the other. I also like to take advantage of current local/world events in doing so. So this lesson, which its primary aim is the development of communication skills, does so in the context of gun control. The topic simply serves as a relevant containter for faciliatating learning and enhancing effective communication skills. 

Unit 5 - Plan a Flipped Lesson

Title/Topic of Lesson

(Advanced English Level) Discuss and explain the reasons why or why not you believe gun control is important nowadays. 

Description of learning objective, what do you want the students to understand after this lesson?

Students will have a better command of expressing opinions in English in a panel discussion format while learning about diversity of citizenship values and laws between cultures. They will also learn how to effectively use technology to convene a synchronous panel discussion of geographically separate participants.

What is the pre-class content? This can be research, reading, watching a video or something else that prepares them for the activity in class. You need to stress to students that it is an active process: take notes from the video/reading, etc.

Students will research the constitutions and applicable laws of Mexico, USA and other foreign countries concerning arms ownership and distribution. They will also watch current event videos on the Paris massacre, the Charlie Hebdo massacre, the Shady Hook massacre, the California massacre, the Lebanese and Mali massacres, drug cartel violence, national rifle association (and other pro gun positions) etc.

How will you encourage (close to) full participation of your students on the pre-class content? WSQ or a survey? A quick 1 minute video by them of their summary/questions?

Along with  the pre-class content presented in a LMS (Blackboard, Tackk, etc,), I plan to include a Google form with a KWL-like warm-up task. 1. BEFORE RESEARCH/VIDEOS: What do you already know about gun control in a variety of cultures? 2. BEFORE RESEARCH/VIDEOS: What do you want to know about gun control, what unanswered question do you have? 3. AFTER RESEARCH/VIDEOS: What did you learn from your research and the assigned videos that you did not previously know? How did your point of view change, if at all?

What are you planning to do in the classroom to actively apply the learning or dig deeper into the topic?

In the classroom, we will watch a selection of panel discussion videos to model how a group exchanges opinions (and agreeing and disagreeing, etc.), similar to the weekly Q&A show in Australia. Along with these videos, students will notice (with teacher facilitation) and then review language snippets for 1. expressing opinions (I believe … research shows … etc.) and agreeing/disagreeing/Interrupting politely. The primary focus of the lesson is acquirement language for group discussion purposes. The topic of gun control serves only as a relevant-day container to allow these language skills and sub-skills to develop through discovery and practice. Classroom time will also be dedicated to going over the technical aspects of recording a Google Hangout on Air (technology component).

How are you going to evaluate the activity afterwards? As appropriate you could be testing learning of skills/knowledge and/or a survey of their reflection/opinion on this type of learning environment.

Students will create a panel discussion video on gun control using the Q&A program as a model reference. They will decide on roles within their group (moderator, gun sales person, victim, parent, politician (right and left), clergy, atheist, psychiatrist, etc. The evaluation with be rubric-bases since there will be a major deliverable (Google Hangout on Air panel discussion video)

Your reflection on the process. This can be as short or long as you like and of course will not happen until after this course is over. Just record your experience for your benefit and for others perhaps.

Forthcoming after lesson is executed with students. We are currently on break until mid January. So reflection on outcomes will be posted towards the end of February, 2016. So, what are yout thoughts about this flipped lesson plan? What would you do differently from the plan above to enhance student learning? Thanks! --Frank

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During week 4 of our flipped learning online course, we are looking at some of the aspects or qualities of a professional educator, specifically:

• I make myself available to all students for individual, small group, and class feedback in real time as needed.

• I conduct ongoing formative assessments during class time through observation and by recording data to inform future instruction.

• I collaborate and reflect with other educators and take responsibility for transforming my practice.

In addition to the above, we read some provocative blog posts concerning underespresentation of a code of ethics in educational technology that is common in other fields where the art of craft and science intersect. The notion of not harming in any way a student's learning path resonated existentially with me. In today's educational hustle and bustle to get this project done, that report written, those tests graded, and so on and so on, it's easy to overlook one of the most important aspect of being a professional educator: compassion by putting others' (students') needs front and center in a holistic manner. And, taking care to do so with empathy, yet academic objectives are not abandoned or excluded (but they are not the entirelty of the end game either). It's a balancing act, one which requires more thoughtful consideration and implementation. In an earlier unit of the course, we heard a TED talk by young student that empahsized happiness and health. I think these two themes go together nicely. Should a teacher keep an every watchful eye on ethics and compassion, then students will both learn and be joyful.

As far as making myself available for feedback, I have 2.5 hours every day, Monday to Friday, set aside for just that purpose. Students know that they can find me in the teacher's lounge from 8:15-10:15AM daily. I also advertise that I am always available for special apppointments when necessary. During in-classroom tasks, I am rarely in the front of the room. I move between and among the students giving on-the-spot formative assessments. Actually, I spend much more of my energy on formative rather than summative evaluation. As a right-brained predominant thinker, I have never been a numbers-obessessed tedious bean counter. I think qualitative feedback and support and father reaching and more meaningful than quatitative. However, the reality is that we still live in a heavily left-brained numbers-driven system. It's the job of the educator to dance around one system just enought to get the job done .... but to work more agressively behind the scenes with students to faciliatie their learning.

It seems to me that there might be a bit of connective tissue between last week's material (thinking Andrew Miller's mantra of "revise and reflect" and this week's inspection of "formative assessment during classtime through observation and by recording data to inform future instruction." I think I covered that fully in last week's video. Just as a public speaker needs to carefully read his audience's faces and body language to see where adjustments need to be made on the fly, so does an educator need to constantly play duel roles of doer and observer. The observing teacher notices what works and what doesn't seem to work as intended. If outcomes are terribly off, it's time to rethink, reassess, and redesign instruction for the next go around. Similar to marketing strategies, an educator must know their client and meet the customer's needs, not their own.

Follow me on Twitter (@metaweb20)

Another important point is building a personal learning network (PLN) with others, and not just other educators in one's field. While it is important to build professional aliances with others in one's field, the risk is always there that you are preaching to the choir or reverberating inside of an echo chamber of similar thought. I think it is critically important, no -- essential,  to build networks in the periphery of your PLN as well. Sometimes the most creative ideas come from other disciplines that can be combined and complemented with your own. I have all sorts of people in my PLN (twitter, facebook, Pinterest, face-to-face, etc.) from different walks of life. The seemingly craziest ideas from someone that you least expect can elevate a project, approach, technique and so one to new and more effective dimensions. As they say, "If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always gotten." I think there is a lot of valueable truth to that "dicho." Audrey Watters showed that to be true in her insights concerning being better educators by looking into ethical codes in other field of study in her blog post "A Hippocratic Oath fo Ed-Tech." Creativity and growth, the blending of academics and joy, don't come from being stagnant and closely guarded to what we already know. So, my challenge to readers of this post is to step outside of your discipline, peek around the corners of your blind spots, venture into other waters and create new boats and new seas to find new places of truth and growth. You can follow me on Twitter @metaweb20 where I have almost 2,000 followers and I follow over 2000 people from a variety of backgrounds.

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We have been asked to reflect about the 3 indicators for the professional educator in Unit 4, here are my thoughts.
I will have to agree with Frank and his entry on Intentional content post and say that action research also applies quite nicely to this pillar. I mean, I think that educators who ask themselves questions about their teaching practice, take action, gather data about their students'performance and perceptions,  reflect and evaluate their actions, and start the process over deserve to be called professional educators. Therefore, making the action research cycle part of one's own teaching sure will help making any sort of pedagogical implementation one can think of possible.

However, due to political issues, constant neglect of the teaching profession and low levels of commitment, only some teachers are up to the task. Unfortunately, intrinsic motivation tends to be elusive to worn out, under-estimated and under-paid teachers. I think flipping learning somehow refreshes the teaching profession making it fun again since one sees results in students fast. Anyway, I can't help but wonder if flipping learning works because teachers are professional educators or if teachers become professional educators because flippetd learning works. What would you say?

Anyway, thinking about myself and the advances I've made in teaching under this new paradigm I would say I try my best and being a part of this course is vivid proof of those efforts. Let's analyze the indicators individually:

1. I make myself available to all students for individual, small group, and class feedback in real time as needed.

Absolutely, yes. Like 4 semesters ago, I started to give my students my phone number so they could add me to their Whatsapp and Line apps and find me easily any time they needed. Some of my colleagues thought this was going too far and I was "blurring the line between me and my students". I'd say they are right. I dont want any lines to be drawn between us. I want full disclosure and clear communication. After all, they are adults and know how to keep relationships. I found out that students rarely contact me during ungodly hours... They are really thoughtful and respectful of my time, but they also feel I'm close to them. Right now, I have students from previous cohorts write to me to ask questions, references, even advice. They feel they have someone to talk to (academically speaking). They know I'm available. (I invite you to read a paper I wrote on the experience)

2. I conduct ongoing formative assessments during class time through observation and by recording data to inform future instruction.

Absolutely! I remember something Ken mentioned in the hangout about never using all the materials he makes in other offerings of his course. I agree! Even though sometimes it takes ages to design sound formative assessments and one wants to reuse them, every class is different and ends up dictating the "future". This also makes me think how I try not to make the same mistakes twice and to tweak my syllabus every semester in order to make it its better version every time I teach it. I have also found out that making notes of what happened in class, for example with certain technological tools, has improved my practice in future offerings of the course.

3. I collaborate and reflect with other educators and take responsibility for transforming my practice.

Yes, yes, yes... and it bothers me a lot others don't. I have met many teachers who think PD has to be provided not seeked. In my opinion, teachers should look for opportunities to self-actualize (as Maslow would put it in his hyerarchy of needs), but that's just my opinion.

I, on the other hand, have pursued self-actualization opportunities all my life. And fortunately, nowadays it is extremely easy to find ways to learn about anything and everything at a very low price and even for free. I can't understand why people wouldn't take advantage of all these resources, but hey, that's me, a geek talking! 

In sum, being a professional educator is one of the most important driving forces of my life and I try to become a better and more professional educator every day. 

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Offering students a flexible environment to learn is one of the most challenging ideas presented in the flipped learning strategy since that decision does not depend entirely on teachers but on many other stakeholders. Even though I know that when teachers close the door of their classrooms they tend to do whatever they want, we can’t ignore the fact that institutions have policies and expect teachers to observe certain rules and appropriate behaviors. Another reason for saying that offering a flexible environment is challenging is teachers’ ego. This new way of teaching removes the “sage on the stage” and some teachers became teachers in the first place because of their love for the spotlight! I think when flipping learning one has to unlearn many behaviors either learned or acquired through the years and open one’s mind to all kinds of new learning.

In my case, I have tried to open the floor to active learning in my graduate classes. Students who come to study only on a Saturday actually expect the lecture mode and the “expert” view on things. They come to us being a little insecure and full of expectations to become better professionals. Unfortunately, some of them expect to get there just listening to the experts, that means us! J I try to make them “think outside of the box” and offer them opportunities that take them out of their comfort zone. At the beginning of my course, many students report feeling overwhelmed and a bit disappointed because “my class is not what they expected”. Nonetheless, by the end of the course, they thank me for helping them discover their potential! That feels pretty awesome, I have to admit!

I have tried to offer students opportunities to problem-solve, to simulate difficult teaching situations, to study teacher’s cases, and to work with their hands in class. But, for that to happen I have had to step away and record my lectures. I have found that this new setting is much more enjoyable for everyone and makes us all happier every time we see each other (which is like 4 times at a semester).  Therefore, I would say I do do the first indicator: “I give students opportunities to engage in meaningful activities without the teacher being central”. I have to admit that I have had a hard time stepping away because I love to be on the spotlight. [Guilty, your honor!] But, I have found that it is so much better for my students and that I get much more recognition for helping them discover things that I would just by giving everything to them.

On the other hand, I still struggle a bit with the second indicator: “I scaffold these activities and make them accessible to all students through differentiation and feedback”. I’m still looking for ways to better differentiate learning for my students. I have started offering much more thorough feedback, though. I have been working with screencasts for giving feedback on their papers and learning objects and it has been really fruitful for everybody. Students love to hear me talk about their papers and give them comments on specific parts of them. I use Camtasia and Screencast-o-matic for doing my feedback screencasts and it has only gotten positive results for me.

Anyway, everything we do to offer a more flexible environment to our students comes with a price. It is time consuming but every second of it is worth the while!

#unit2 #openflip

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In my opinion, intentional content is one of the most interesting pillars in FL. I guess all teachers want to provide our students with intentional content, not with a bunch of useless facts.

However, set curriculum in most institutions and the "this-is-how-we-do-it" model some administrators preach have taken away the magic of teaching for some people.

In language learning, especially,  we have the possiblility to make every single thing we teach intentional. After all, we are teaching students to be themselves in a foreign language. Therefore, everything we share with students can be used in their own life. Unfortunately, sometime bureucracy, the set curricula and other variables have transformed language classes into meaningless moments for repetition.

Students in language classes could (and should) learn about themselves as people, about their community, about their profession, but most of the times, the use of a textbook and the set standards to achieve have taken all the fun out of teaching/learning.

In my context, an EFL one, it is crucial to use every class minute wisely, since class is the only contact students may have with the foreign language in a day. However, when students come to class to "stay busy" and when no connection whatsoever is found between the content and they, as people, I can only understand their lack of engagement and attention and their laid-back attitude towards the lesson. Students are tired of "studying" the language, they want to finally start learning it. I think that's how FL earns its place in the language classroom!

Fortunately, this is not my case! Even though the class I teach in the MA program I work for is set and has been taught many times, it evolves. I know it might sound a bit contradictory, but considering the class observes the use of technology and its implications in language teaching and learning, it can't be static. In that sense, I have plenty of room for exploration, design and decision-making. This possibility to innovate has led to my flipped graduate class.

However, not all teachers are this lucky. My students, for example, are educators in the public sector and have to face the worst possible conditions for teaching, not allowing them to offer the best conditions for learning to their students either. Some of them have as little as 2 hours of class a week, and rarely those 2 hours are used for English instruction. My students report they are usually asked to "give out their class hours for other activities" like meetings, or school cleansing or whatever. It is really discouraging for them.

Also, in the public education setting, students don't see much use for English in their real lives. They have challenging socio-economic situations, forcing kids to start in the workforce very early in their lives, some do it right after they finish high-school, others not even get to finish that. Therefore, English to them seems more a luxury than a need. For that reason, they don't invest much time and energy trying to really learn the language. Considering that, intentional content delivered through videos is a flipped learning environment could be a game-changer for these students and teachers.

In sum, the third pillar of FL is very important for me in providing the best experience of learning to students and in showing them the importance of English as a foreign language. I think we should always provide intentional content, flipping or not.

#unit 3 #openflip

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During this week, we have been taked with explore the concept of intentional content, specifically:

Consider your current status on thoughts on the following three statements:

• I prioritize concepts used in direct instruction for learners to access on their own.
• I create and/or curate relevant content (typically videos) for my students.
• I differentiate to make content accessible and relevant to all students.

After reading the Andrew Miller Eutopia blog post, Teachers are Learning Designers,  I recalled that in order to know what students need, we as educators must constantly observe our practice in and out of the classroom. What is working and what is not. In order to accomplish this goal, we must devise a routine of action research (referred to as revise & reflect by Miller) which can be described as follows:

"Through systematic, controlled action research, higher education teachers can become more professional, more interested in pedagogical aspects of higher education and more motivated to integrate their research and teaching interests in a holistic way. This, in turn, can lead to greater job satisfaction, better academic programmes, improvement of student learning and practitioner’s insights and contributions to the advancement of knowledge in higher education." (Zuber-Skerritt, 1982: 15)

According to Kolb (1984, the cycle for action research planning might look like this. The teacher plans, acts, observes, reflects, and then revises. The cycle continues as much as required to make iterative adjustments and fine tuning to best meet the needs of all students.

So, in order to effectively deliver intentional content to students, flipped learning or not, this action research process should always be a container in which learning takes place.

Now on to the more direct points to be convered in this post:

So, in closing, I am committed to spend more brain power on designing learning content for students in a more intentional manner by really thinking it out. Then trying it out and reflecting on the outcomes, making adjustments, and then improving the next go.

The post Unit 3 – Intentional Content (Pillar 3 of FLIP) appeared first on OpenFlip Fall 2015.

Starting out this course, we are exploring the 4 pillars of flipped learnnig. In #unit2, we are looking at pillar 2, learning culture, that educators create or faciliate. Here are a couple guiding points from the Flipped Learning Network's publication "What is Flipped Learning."

Note: This post is in progress ... more to come!

6 Scaffolding Strategies to Use with your Students by Rebecca Alber (Eutopia).

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