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.
In Shelby County, we are eager to begin a digital conversion of our classrooms. What will our brick-and-mortar schools look like in the future, and in what ways will our students critically interact with media different than the passive modes of the past?
Having just completed reading Michael B. Horn and Heather Staker's excellent book Blended: Using Disruptive Innovation to Improve Schools, I certainly have flipped and blended learning on the brain. In a previous entry, I offered a checklist for things to consider when pursuing a flipped classroom. Today, I want to offer a specific tool that would help with any blended digital environment: EDpuzzle. This website allows a teacher to grab an online video (or upload their own) and add assessment questions and text information at chosen time-stamped moments in the video. The teacher creates a class which has a unique code (you can have multiple classes). Students use the class code when registering in order to get to their assigned videos. You can use your email, Google, or Edmodo credentials to create your EDpuzzle account. The students' answers will be viewable in a teacher dashboard and you can give them feedback; a report can also be run of your class's submissions.
How could you use it? Even just doing a multiple choice assessment will never be the same after doing a "EDpuzzle video quiz." Of course, open response questions enable students to actively use critical and high-order thinking skills. In a flipped experience, you could use content videos and questions to pre-assess where the students are in order to better work with them when they come to class. Oh, and no worries about whether the students watched the video. You'll know because they answered the questions, and since they can't fast forward the first time they watch it, you know they had to see it at least once in real time. (For reinforcement, students can rewatch a video after answering questions as many times as they like.)
Downsides? Since the playing of EDpuzzle videos necessitate headphones or an individual space away from others, an in-class use of the tool will either require 1:1 devices or possibly a lab station rotation model.
Have you used EDpuzzle in your classroom? What did you think? Have you used similar tools? How can you envision using it in your classroom? Leave your Comments below.
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.
Ms. Bullard facilitates while students take turns posing questions to their "mystery class."
Janice Bullard of Clear Creek Elementary is, relatively speaking, a new teacher. This has not hampered her ability to be a teacher who uses integrated technology in her classroom. I was very impressed to see her class in a Google+ Hangout video chat with students in New York. When I learned this wasn't even the first time she's had a video chat, I knew I had to interview her for Edtech Elixirs.
In a side note, Janice's son was a student of mine just a few years ago. Small world!
Share your story! Where did your learning of edtech begin?
This is my fourth year teaching, and I’ve been at Clear Creek for 3 of those years. I guess my learning of edtech began the summer before my KTIP year. I volunteered at a science and math camp for 4th and 5th grade students at U of L. We introduced kids to digital storytelling, which also meant I was introduced to it. I used some of those tools the following year, which was my first year teaching. I also used Voicethread for the first time that year; my students loved it and I found it added layers of learning to what was a fairly typical classroom activity. Students wrote a short piece titled “What I am most afraid of” and then recorded it on Voicethread. This required them to practice reading it many times, which they didn’t mind because they got to record their voice and share with the class. I realized how kids could be motivated by the technology. So that is what seals the deal for me - extra layers of learning plus motivation. Tell us about using Skype and Google+ Hangouts in the classroom. How did it begin? How did you find teachers to telecommunicate? How have integrating these tools impacted the learning of your students?
I read a book by Pernille Ripp this
summer- Passionate Learners- Giving our Classrooms Back to Students. Through
her book and blog I learned about the Global Read Aloud project, in which
students from around the world read the same books and connect with each other
over them. My class is participating, and through the teachers and classrooms
we have connected with I learned about using Skype and Google Hangouts. I first
connected with the teachers over Edmodo; we have since set up class blogs so
that our students can talk about the books. We did a "mystery Skype" which was
great fun. We have also shared via Padlet.
Pictures taken by the Student Photographer, one of the roles in the project.
My
kids have completely embraced every part of the project. They loved the Skype
and Google Hangout. It was planned so that the kids took ownership as much as
possible. They had roles as questioners, answerers, greeters, map experts, etc.
They propose discussion questions and decide which ones are strong enough to
put on Edmodo, and are working at writing thoughtful responses. Reading,
writing, speaking, listening, thinking - it’s all there!
What other edtech tools are some of your favorites?
Right now, Edmodo is one of my
favorites. I also continue to use Voicethread. Animoto is great for producing
short videos. Padlet is very cool for sharing thoughts about pretty much
anything.
What tools have you heard about recently that you are looking forward to trying out?
My teacher friend in Canada shared https://100wc.net, where people respond to prompts and share creative writing.
I’d like to introduce that to my kids.
Any advice for teachers wanting to integrate edtech?
Just jump in, pick something, and
try it. Most of the time there is a fairly short learning curve; sometimes you
can even let the kids just figure it out for you! I would also say be prepared
to love it and learn as much as your kids!
Ms. Bullard, thanks for taking the time, and you certainly deserve your #ShelbyTUITshoutout.
For those interested in connecting with other Skype teachers, check out Skype in the Classroom.
