I am currently picking up bits from the BlendedSchools.net MOOC, currently being run via a combination of Google+ and a SoftChalk course. I have seen BlendedSchools present at events and thought it was an interesting idea for them to offer such a course for free, in addition to their traditional services including offering of professional development.
So far, most of my interest has been in seeing the US-centric conversation’s similarities with the UK including concerns about school systems delivering the highest quality education. Much of the Google+ discussion in week 1 seems to have centered on the limits of professional development in the US. However, the main issue, that teachers see personal development as a set number of hours/days a year, would be the same as the UK’s approach via inset days. This is not to say this is unique to teaching, I once attended a trade union health and safety course to be shocked that most people wanted to drag the day out as an escape from their day jobs. Even in the banking sector there seems to be a need to encourage staff to realise learning does not end with school/college/university graduation, within the wider L&D agenda.
This week’s MOOC ‘create’ activity offered a number of options the below is my response to:
The Pie in the Sky
This activity is ideal for theorists or for pre-service teachers who do not yet have their own classrooms.
Write a blog post describing an ideal blended classroom in the year 2013.
You may post this blog using any tool you would like. If you want to build your blog using Blended Schools Networks’ BSNshare blogging tool, you can view the tutorials above for instructions.
- What sort of content is delivered online? What is delivered face-to-face?
- Which assessments use the Internet? Which assessments do not?
- What benefits does this environment have for students?
- What sort of resources are being used in the classroom?
My Pie in the Sky
I have mentioned on blogs and in conference discussions in the past my belief that we need to totally overhaul the predominant model of British K-12 schooling. In the USA, and elsewhere, we have seen the growth of online K-12 schools. What I would see as ideal in UK, in 2013, is a ‘hub and spoke’ approach. The responsibility for learning will be shared between pupils, parents and teachers. Large amounts of knowledge work will be completed electronically via video, reading and other asynchronous technologies. Students will then congregate in synchronous learning ‘hubs’ which are both virtual and physical. Physical hubs could make use of unused shops and other buildings to offer students across the community access to the latest technology, such as 3D printers, whilst most learning is undertaken remotely from home, public libraries and other low-tech study centers. The ratio of study center to student would partly be determined by the area’s technology, if high speed home internet is easy to establish there would be less need of hubs.
Formative assessment and tracking technologies, such as the Tin Can API, ensure students are ‘attending’ school via appropriate learning outcomes, not bum on seat time. This also allows for learning time to start later in the day (as recognized by science, teenagers need to sleep later than some other ages groups) and be more flexible for those who have major extra curricula interests such as acting and sport careers.
As with any ideal blended learning solution, the focus would be on valuable synchronous communication to develop student capabilities in communication, timekeeping and problem solving whilst allowing them to learn at their own pace at other times. Reflection, through blogging, would be a key aspect aspect of this model, ensuring the key attribute of understanding the importance of lifelong learning is achieved.
Whose Education Is It Anyway? 