Education technology and game-based learning resources, tool tips, innovative pedagogical musings, and general "thinkalouds" of a Digital Learning Consultant. Follow my educational journey on Instagram, X , Threads and Bluesky @watsonedtech, my Facebook Page (facebook.com/edtechelixirs), and the blog hashtag #edtechelixirs. Note that opinions are mine alone, and reviews/mentions of edtech products do not qualify as an endorsement. Subscribe to the blog at bit.ly/signupedtechelixirs.
Brrrr. Day #4 of our Kentuckiana snowmaggedon. In Shelby County, we announced today's closing with some flair:
Here's a fun fact: Kentucky is "the first state to tackle the problem on a statewide basis," and several districts are piloting snowbound learning days. When a snow day occurs, students know to log in and get their assignments. (For those with tech equity issues, a "hard copy" packet is provided before the expected snow day or provided to the student when they return.) The big question, of course, is: will they do it? As always, students are willing to meet and exceed expectations. I actually wonder if students prefer the personalized, individual, comfortable learning they can achieve at home rather than the desks in a row, bell-driven experience that occurs for most of our schools. (I think I can guess the answer.) How can we replicate that experience inside our schools? (For further reading, Kentucky's pilot program is detailed in this national news story, and another article discusses how Lawrence County uses Google Classroom to make "no school" into "snow school.")
Here in Shelby County, several of our teachers and principals are using Twitter to communicate assignments, expectations and/or use of technology to continue learning at home. Here is a sampling:
AP Phys- make sure to read ch 15 and do problems pg. 494 #1,2,3,12,23,24 and pg. 496 #18,19. Submit answers on socrative. See canvas..
— Ms. Heather McCall (@msheathermccall) February 18, 2015
EnglishFam I sent a remind101 to you yesterday with the assignment again. Link got messed up so here it is again: http://t.co/Evkgqh0WQX
— Ms. Murphy (@MsMurf_MLCHS) February 18, 2015
On these snowy days I challenge every one to read a good book and tell your principal or a teacher about it when you return.
— East Middle School (@EastMSMissiles) February 16, 2015
Found this link from a Painted Stone friend. Anyone can use this website... Check it out K-5 available: http://t.co/WH6IEIp8Zb
— Dawn Riddle (@mrsriddleCCE) February 17, 2015
Whenever we return to the brick-and-mortar buildings (tomorrow? Monday? April 24th???), I hope that we continue to find innovative ways to blur the boundaries of where and when learning can occur. Until then, stay warm inside your igloos and be careful on the roads!
I arrived at Wright Elementary on Monday and have been settling into my new embedded home for the next three weeks: the library. That means it's time for a new Instagram photo!
Meanwhile, as I just begin my whole-school PD and plan for some classroom observations with the Jets, I wanted to give one more West Middle School #ShelbyTUITshoutout. As I mentioned in previous entries, WMS had an unusual amount of teachers that paired together to tackle an edtech tool....which leads us to English teachers Kate Herrick and Lillie Hall. Ms. Herrick is a first year teacher, working with veteran educator Ms. Hall. They have partnered together to integrate Edmodo into their classrooms.
For those that don't know, Edmodo is a Learning Management System (LMS). Student sign up is simple, and teachers can easily reset passwords of enrolled students. In Edmodo, a teacher can make and assign a quiz, create assignments and have students submit work, have discussions via forum posts, send alerts of upcoming deadlines and important news, and maintain a calendar of events. Last but not least, a teacher can upload files in a library so digital media can be shared.
But there are other uses for Edmodo. As Ms. Herrick explains, "In my instruction, I plan to use Edmodo both inside and outside of class to allow students to respond to written prompts or to watch short clips, view images, or read short texts to develop background knowledge for class the following day." In other words, Edmodo will help create a blended and flipped classroom experience.
The site also continues to improve. There is now an Edmodo "app store" (some free, some for a fee) that allows another level of interaction with and between students. Recently, Edmodo added a built-in assessment tool called Snapshot that can automatically generate Core Content-related questions and give teachers valuable data on their students' proficiency.
An overall class example of Snapshot results.
Still, some parents may balk at Edmodo because of its perceived social media appearance, especially for younger students. Ms. Herrick addressed these concerns in a letter to parents, which read in part:
Edmodo can be accessed through downloading the app or simply by visiting Edmodo.com. Edmodo looks like Facebook, making it familiar and exciting for students, but it is not a social media site. Some of the features include:
1.Students can direct message me, the teacher, at any time with questions or for homework help; however, students cannot message each other. This is a great way to open up communication between me and students without offering a “social media” type communication between students.
2.Edmodo allows for online discussion, giving students an authentic audience for their writing and an opportunity to engage in written communication with each other. As a class, we have established norms for what our “cyber behavior” should look like. If students cannot follow the norms, they will lose privileges of Edmodo and will be faced with appropriate consequences, just like with any other unacceptable behavior in the classroom.
3.My favorite feature of Edmodo is that it allows guardians access to see what both I and the student post on the site. For privacy reasons, guardians can see only what their individual students respond. I will soon be reaching out to guardians with directions on how to access Edmodo with a “parent code.”
I agree with Kate on #3: when I used Edmodo the last few years I was a high school English teacher, this was also one of my favorite features. Each student that enrolls in a class gets a corresponding parent code (accessible by the teacher), so a parent can register and see his/her child's Edmodo classes on their own. I posted what we did in class every day, not only so absent students could figure out what they missed on their own, but so parents of struggling students could see what we were up to in order to support their child.
There are certainly other LMS's that are more powerful; to give but two examples, Blackboard and Canvas by Instructure are used in higher education yet are increasingly seen in K-12. Few are as user-friendly as Edmodo, however, and by partnering with other webtools like Edpuzzle, make Edmodo even more compelling.
As our 1:1 student device initiative begins next school year, we will be able to utilize tools like Edmodo even more in an "always online" environment. Kudos to Kate Herrick and Lillie Hall for starting to experiment with that environment now. Congrats for your #ShelbyTUITshoutout!
One of the trends in education that is gaining popularity and has growing data to support its positive impact on students is game-based learning. The concept is not completely new; many older graduates and teachers today have fond memories of Oregon Trail (which first began in 1978!). The phrase "game-based learning" still makes some shudder, suggesting teachers are letting students play video games all day instead of utilizing real skills or learning content. But just as "edtech for the sake of edtech" should't be done, I am not suggesting games alone are the key. As always, it is the way the games are integrated into a classroom that can transform the educational experience:
Novel way of learning content. Which one do you think would be more engaging -- a PowerPoint lecture about the Great Depression, or roleplaying as a young person on a Dust Bowl farm?
Immediate feedback and gratification. By the nature of a typical classroom experience, we are all about the delayed gratification. You study or research, apply yourself to an assessment or write your essay, turn it in...and wait, sometimes days or even weeks for a grade and feedback. In a game, you know as soon as you try whether you succeed or fail. And if you fail...
The power of a 1UP. It's fascinating that the same young people who never want to revise a paper or "try again" are willing to sweat through a game level over and over until they defeat their big boss. But the philosophy behind the way a teacher assesses and grades is also interesting to note here. Is it right to only give students one chance with no "do-overs"? In standards-based grading, reaching proficiency in various areas is a continual process of opportunity, not given only once on that Friday in September. ("You failed the test, so you can never learn that skill. Let's move on.")
The power of a "Leaderboard." For many modern video games, there are virtual trophies you earn for achieving certain goals, called badges. Of course, this leaderboard of badges can be shared socially with other gamers as a point of pride. Although I used Edmodo my last few years of teaching, I regret not trying out their "badge" system in my own classroom. However, other teachers have totally embraced this approach with their own students (and not just with Edmodo!).
Cultivating creative and cooperative skills. Last but not least, we shouldn't ignore the creative and cooperative juices that get flowing with games. It takes intelligence to problem solve a riddle or determine when to use the right power at the right time. To take one popular game example, "modding" in Minecraft is the pinnacle of creativity (and recently in our own backyard, a group of enthusiasts are creating the whole city of Louisville as a Minecraft map). In team based endeavors, the virtual stakes are high to work together to achieve a goal where all will benefit.
If you still feel ambivalent about gamification of education, see if Jane McGonigal convinces you in her TED Talk that "gaming can make a better world."
In Shelby County, game-based learning is not completely uncommon. For example, the elementary students periodically play Dreambox to learn math skills. But a few months ago, I learned of a site for the first time that kinda blew my mind. The site is Classcraft, and the teacher that told me about it was Tim Oltman from Martha Layne Collins High School. Which is why Tim gets a well-deserved #ShelbyTUITshoutout!
Setting up an account in Classcraft is free. Teachers first ask the students what kind of role they want for their character ( Mage, Fighter, or Healer) along with some limited customization of the character's looks. The teacher then inputs the students and their character choices into Classcraft, grouping them in teams, and gives the students login information. From that point on, Classcraft becomes something that quietly runs in the background until the teacher has an event occur where students can gain or lose experience points (XP) or health points (HP). (These events can be customized by the teacher.) There are also peer incentives to do well in class; for example, not turning in a homework assignment can affect everyone on your team. Over time students can earn class rewards or use XP to get upgrade armor, spells, etc. for their characters; this part is typically done outside of class. Keep in mind that currently Classcraft is static. There are no moving parts, no animation, no actual jumping/scrolling/fighting. In a way, it's a much more glorified and clever system of digital badge delivery.
The following video gives a quick overview of what Classcraft is, how it came to be, and what it looks like:
I recently visited Mr. Oltman at MLC HS, and he was kind enough to submit to an interview.
Tell us about yourself!
Here at MLC I teach the Project Lead the Way engineering classes. This will be my 4th year teaching. I learned about integrating edtech in my college classes and enjoyed it because I have always been using technology plus it is a great fit with engineering classes.
How have you integrated Classcraft in your classroom?
In 3 of my classes I have Classcraft running in the background during class and as questions are answered I can quickly add experience points to the characters. However, they get their main experience points after assignments are added to their characters. The other advantage I have is we are already 1:1 in the engineering classes [each student always has a desktop computer], so they have their characters running in the background because they love to keep up with their experience points. You could also do this with cell phones because there is an app also.
Sounds like the students enjoy Classcraft. Do you think it has improved learning? In what way?
The students love the game. They come into class and ask to the daily spin [a random event generator] to see if they get anything that day. They want to use their powers whenever they can. It has improved learning because once again the students are more invested in their learning. [The academic work in class results in rewards.] They can see something they are getting out of it. The game allows you to alter many of the spells and achievements they get so you can alter the game to fit each of your classes.
A student's character takes health point damage from a random event. If the team has a Healer, however, they can recover quickly, adding to the cooperative nature of Classcraft.
In the "dashboard" of the teacher's account, Mr. Oltman surveys the state of the various teams in his class.
Before Classcraft, what did you think about gamification in education? Had you tried any game-based learning before? How has Classcraft and other tools changed your attitude toward gamification?
I have always loved the idea of gamification in education. Being an avid gamer myself I have seen many ways games teach lessons in a way that can work for education. I have never tried gamification before because I have been looking for the right game to integrate.
What other edtech tools are some of your favorites?
Other favorites I have is Canvas [a free Learning Management System] and of course our 3D printer. I love Canvas because you can get everything on one place for the students and then let them submit assignments online. It is also nice because I never have to answer the question what did we do yesterday because they know to go online and look for it.
Mr. Oltman's first generation 3D printer.
Any advice you would like to share with other teachers wanting to integrate Classcraft into their classroom?
Integrate the game in one of your classes to start with. It does take some time to get used to and definitely get the students involved in helping to design the game that way they are really part of it. You will have some students who do not want to play to start with but after a week all of my students have gotten really involved in it. Remember too you can make it a large part of your class or a small part depending on how the students take to it.
Thanks again to Tim for his interview and insights! How do you feel about using games in the classroom? Do you already use gamification? Please share in the Comments below. Update 1/23/15: After publishing this entry, I saw a tweet (embedded below with a great infographic) that led me to a detailed article about the differences between gamification and game-based learning. I realize now that I somewhat vaguely used these terms interchangeably, which is incorrect. So please check out Steven Isaac's article on Inservice ASCD.
Flipping the classroom has been on my mind for a few reasons. Firstly, I am leading a PD on flipping and blending at East Middle School next week. Secondly, Heather Bell from Collins High School emailed me today looking for some resources and guidance in flipping her classroom. As I pondered and put together my response, I realized that sharing some of that information on Edtech Elixirs might be helpful to others. So thank you Heather for inspiring this entry!
From the perspective of edtech tools, here is a Prezi I made on that very subject. Along with some general pointers and resources, I discuss how Khan Academy, EDpuzzle, ShowMe, Flipgrid and Youtube can be your technological allies for flipping.
But as I've often said, tools are just that -- tools. They are only a means to an end. What you want to be careful about is how and why you are flipping your classroom. Why change the paradigm? How will it meet your learning objectives more effectively, especially if following a workshop model? Additionally, be careful of replicating ineffective teaching practice in new emperor's clothing. If you lecture in class for 45 minutes in a 102 slide PowerPoint without discussion or interaction or a break, and you decide to flip your classroom by recording and uploading a 45 minute video of yourself just staring into a web camera and talking and talking and talking.....well, it's likely the same students that tune out at school will not stay focused for the experience at home. (At the very least, go shorter and include visuals!) The trick as always is to find ways that technology in general and "flipping edtech" specifically can transform your teaching into something different and more impactful on learning.
Tools aside, if you are considering flipping your classroom, here is a reflective checklist for you to use. Ask yourself the following questions:
"What's the best use of your face-to-face class time?" The quote comes from Jon Bergmann (see note and links below), a pioneer in flipped classroom instruction. The heart of this question is the "why" of flipping. Before you worry about edtech tools or the logistics of recording, make a list of what you would hope to do more of between the bells, so you can determine what you might be able to reschedule for outside the brick and mortar of a school.
What will be the learning content you will flip for home? For many, this will be some kind of video, either one you make or one already made (Khan Academy, TED, etc.). There are other options, however. For example, have students watch a Prezi of yours, perhaps with embedded audio made by you that narrates each movement of the “slides.” Or the students experience an online science simulation game. The key is some kind of content delivery and/or hook to get them interested in the learning to come. Note: as a rule of thumb, don’t make a video/presentation any longer than what you would expect them to handle in one sitting as a lecture in your class. (In fact, Bergmann and his partner Aaron Sams recommend the length to be 1 to 1 1/2 minutes per grade level; therefore an average 12th grader video would be about 15 minutes long.) Without you as an in-person guide, having students watch long videos will probably make them stray and lose focus. Obviously, anything flipped for home that can be made interactive will keep them more involved.
Be honest to yourself about the time commitment. When preparing flipped material, it will take longer to plan and prepare instruction -- especially at first. But there's good news. Flipped material will be reused in the semesters and school years to come, and you are saving class time delivering content in order to spend more time workshopping with students as they apply and refine their knowledge.
Where will you put the flipped material? If you don't have a site that pairs with your finished product (for example, Prezi and ShowMe), you could put it on your own website or LMS (Learning Management System, like Edmodo or Canvas by Instructure). Just make it easy to access. I should point out that putting your videos on your own YouTube channel (like this) not only makes it easy for students to find and play them (it's in the same place all year long), but gives you other teaching tools, such as making playlists and Liking videos you might share with students.
How will you make them accountable? Don’t make it overwhelming, but have them commit to some kind of meaningful action before coming to class. Note the "meaningful" part; as in class, if it feels simply like a compliance tool or a lower order thinking worksheet that can be easily Googled and cheated on, consider other options. It could be a short reflection tool, inspired by educator Mary Lohr. Or it could be to answer higher order embedded questions while they watch the video, which you can do with a tool like EDpuzzle. Be firm in this as you would any other "legitimate" homework (it is assessed, it is collected, it is required, it gets feedback and returned). If they have issues with Internet access at home, see below.
How will you address tech equity? Do all students have some kind of device and Internet access at home? If they do not, see what arrangements they can make to use the library’s computers before or after school, or stop by your classroom during lunch to use a class iPad while eating. (For some districts, this is a widespread, pressing and valid issue. Be aware of your community's reality and adjust your flip plan accordingly.)
What if they don’t do it? The whole point of flipping is to save time by doing content delivery for homework and spending classtime DOING and APPLYING. Have clearly communicated consequences and remedies for those that don’t do your flipped (home)work, while honoring those that did what they were supposed to do. For example, If you simply end up playing the video for the whole class at the beginning, you will teach students to not waste time doing it at home….and cut into precious workshop time. Perhaps the handful of students watch the video on personal devices and headphones while the rest of the class workshops; later, you drop a polite note to home, asking if there's anything you can do to help the student successfully complete their important homework. Point out that by not watching the video, it takes away from one-on-one time in class with you, where you can make the most difference in their learning.
If you have advice on flipping or blending your classroom, or integrate edtech tools that are helpful, please tell us about it in the Comments below.
Note on revisions to entry: 12/17/14: After publishing this article, I found a very enlightening series of flipping/blending articles on Edutopia by Jon Bergmann and Aaron Sams. One of these discusses how to get ALL participants -- teachers, students, parents, administrators -- on board with flipping and blending. It's a great read and a wonderful start to their related articles. You should also check out their website here.
4/27/15: I inserted a recommended length of flipped videos, a link to Sams and Bergmann's website above, and added Bergmann's quote about the best use of classtime as the first bulleted question.
5/26/20: Inspired by Mary Lohr's original reflection tool, I created a Google Doc that can be copied or downloaded for student usage. That Doc is now linked inside the entry above.
Just a few short years ago, Yasmine Fleming and I were teaching colleagues at South Oldham High School. She was there for a short time, but I remember being impressed by her ability to not only teach content but develop an instant rapport with students. I was sad to see her take a position in Shelby County.
And now, the wheel turns. Knowing that Ms. Fleming was teaching at Collins, I couldn't wait to observe her classroom. Boy, she did not disappoint. Yasmine has a class set of MacBook Airs embedded all year long that she is using with multiple classes. If you have any doubt how transformative teaching will be next year as our 1:1 initiative begins, watching her for an hour will convince you.
Ms. Fleming pauses a Kahoot for a mini-lesson, while students bask in the glow of MacBook Airs.
Ms. Fleming was kind enough to accept my offer of an interview. So without further ado, here's our Q & A. Yasmine, introduce yourself to our readers!
This school year began my third year as a teacher and my second at Collins. I teach 8th and 9th grade math, specifically 8th Grade Math, Algebra I and Geometry. Teaching is a second career for me; I spent five years in telecommunications prior to pursuing a career in education. My first interaction with edtech was while working on my BS at UofL, I was taking a Criminology course online over the summer. I loved the freedom. Around this time LMS’s [Learning Management Systems] became very popular, specifically Blackboard and what I most liked about Blackboard was having everything all in one place, assignments, teacher contact and grades. While working on my MAT I had the privilege of having an amazing technology professor who challenged me and allowed me to try new things as a student. My passion for edtech integration as a teacher actually stemmed coming from my prior life in telecommunications where we were always connected and ever changing, to the somewhat archaic traditional methods of education. I am constantly asking questions, researching and trying out new things. Once I find a tool or resource I look for similar tools, comparison reviews and how they are currently being used in other classrooms. I also pester my peers about the awesome tech they are including in their classrooms. Twitter is my new friend for all things #edtech although I still have yet to participate in any chats. I faithfully follow Kathy Schrockand Adam Watson (of course). Kathy was the keynote speaker at my first edtech conference.
How have you used your MacBook Airs to create a blended learning environment in your classroom?
Last Spring when I began thinking about what I would want my blended learning classroom to look, feel, sound like I had one primary goal I wanted to accomplish, to give all my students exactly what they needed when they needed it. So I set out to design a structure that would allow students to move at their own pace all while having a hand in how they demonstrated understanding of the content. I came across the Concept Checklists from Brian Hill and I loved how it allowed me to meet the students where they were and gave them options for which tasks they completed. I decided to design my Algebra I classes with these ideas in mind. Currently my students go through self-paced lessons with differentiated tasks. They watch a video or participate in a mini lesson with me, take notes, complete a basic practice activity and then choose from other tasks (sometimes optional, sometimes mandatory) that may have to be completed with a partner, group or alone. Once they have completed these “prerequisite” activities they can take their concept quiz. Once mastered, they move on to the next concept. If they do not master the quiz they must have a consultation with me and complete at least one remediation activity. Then once they are confident in the concept they reassess to show mastery on the quiz. The MacBook Airs allow the daily differentiation of lesson delivery, tasks and assessments at the pace my students are most comfortable at with structure and guidance from me. Students have time if they need it but those students who are ready to move can do that as well.
One of the ways you manage those self-paced lessons and differentiated tasks is your use of Canvas by Instructure, a LMS (Learning Management System). How has it impacted your students' learning?
Canvas currently houses our concept/Learning Target quizzes, common used website links, announcements/notifications, and shared discussions/surveys for my Algebra I class. In the beginning it was the hub for ALL of our materials, documents, videos, practice, quizzes, everything. I have since moved the day-to-day materials into Trello in an effort to track the daily completion/in progress tasks of my students, but the questions banks in Canvas are a huge time-saver for my transitional Standards Based Grading classroom. I am able to create a bank of questions that their quizzes pull from and when they go to reassess (if necessary) they receive a different set of similar questions.
For my other classes, I’m beginning to use Canvas to house materials for students who are absent and additional resource/practice materials for students who may need the extra assistance.
Ms. Fleming's students use old tech (mini-whiteboards) and new tech (Canvas on Macbook Airs).
What other edtech tools are some of your favorites?
I am currently loving Trello, TenMarks, and Kahoot!. Trello is currently my best friend and the main reason is my students like it and it became a huge solution to my progress monitoring problem. I use Trello (which is not marketed as an educational resource at all) to layout the materials for each concept/level in my self-paced Algebra I class. Each student has their own board which has a list for each Concept which includes cards with each video, practice file, task, and quiz link attached. There is also an in progress list titled “What I’m doing for Classwork/Homework” and a completed list titled “FINISHED”. What I love most about Trello is there is a time/date stamp for every action. So when my students move a card to the Homework/Classwork list and then to the Finished list, I can see if they are on track to hit, exceed or miss a concept deadline. My students love it because it is very intuitive, easy to use and visually appealing. They like the act of “moving” a task to the “Finished” list. They said they feel a sense of accomplishment. This is my second year using TenMarks and what I love the most are the hints and videos offered with each problem. I understand the importance of practicing a math concept for homework but what makes me most apprehensive is the reality that one of my students could get home and not know how to complete a problem and become frustrated with the process, the content and even the class. TenMarks helps to alleviate some of my anxiety and theirs. It also helps that TenMarks is successfully aligned to the CCSS. Kahoot! is a favorite in my classroom for the same reasons it is in everyone else’s classroom… The kids LOVE IT!! It is also very easy to setup for quick assessments and reviews. In the near future I hope to have them create their own Kahoot! to demonstrate what’s important from a unit and then play against other classes.
What tools have you heard about recently that you are wanting to try out for the first time?
I’m looking forward to designing and implementing content using Geogebra. It’s free, which is always a plus and I’m very intrigued by some of the lessons that are already created so I can’t wait to create my own. I also would like to try Explore Learning’s Gizmos. It’s not a free resource which limits my investigations but I think it has so much potential in the blended classroom. Lastly, Flipgrid is currently on my radar. Teaching math usually results in written responses to demonstrate understanding but the verbal response is invaluable and requires a different level of understanding to demonstrate mastery. I’m hoping to implement this resource regularly later this school year.
Any advice you would like to share with other teachers wanting to integrate edtech?
First I would say, research, research, research. When I come across a neat tool, resource, etc. I immediately google it and check out their website but what I’m really looking for are reviews and other similar/comparable resources. That allows me to decide if I like it, love it or want to try another one. Next, try it out for yourself. I always create a teacher account and a student account (usually multiple) to test out the features. It doesn’t eliminate all of the hiccups you may come across once you implement in your classroom but it will eliminate some and also allow you to anticipate some other unpredictable events. Next, begin with the end in mind. I’m not really one for tossing around buzz phrases but it’s true. I always start with a main goal or problem and then look for a tech tool to assist. If I want a fun way to review or formatively assess then my main goal is FUN, which is how I stumbled upon Kahoot. I have other mediums to practice content but they are often not as engaging and fun as Kahoot!. Simply put, my students like it so I use it because it's FUN and I’m ok with that! If I want my students to demonstrate knowledge of the content in a non-traditional way then I research with that main goal, insert FlipGrid or Blendspace. There are times that I am introduced to a tool and I look for ways to integrate it in my classroom but, more often than not, I am simply in search of a solution or alternate to what I’ve been doing. Finally, flip the switch to “work in progress” and enjoy the ride. Be unafraid and unashamed to try whatever has been occupying your dreams. Not everything will play out the way you planned but the successes you’ll experience will make every fall worth it!
Yasmine Fleming, thank you again for your time, and you absolutely deserve a #ShelbyTUITshoutout!
