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Fundamentals of Blended Learning
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My name is Michael Thompson,
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and I'm the director of school partnerships
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at Education Elements.
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We work with schools across the country
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to help them think about blended learning
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and to design instructional models
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which use technology effectively.
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Our primary product is the HLMS, which I will discuss
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in more detail in some of our other videos.
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In this video, I want to share
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the fundamentals of blended learning.
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I'll explain what is meant when someone uses
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the term 'blended learning,' describe some of
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the blended learning models,
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and discuss the results we are getting.
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What is blended learning?
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If you think about the traditional classroom
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environment on one end of the spectrum,
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and on the other end of the spectrum is a student
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learning on a computer at home,
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blended learning is somewhere in the middle.
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Now let's ask ourselves,
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"How do we differentiate and individualize
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instruction in the classroom?"
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Frankly, students are not engaged
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in lecture-style instruction.
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We know that small-group instruction,
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personal learning plans, guided practice,
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and inquiry-based teaching all lead toward
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a better and deeper understanding of concepts.
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Unfortunately, differentiation and feedback
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doesn't scale without technology.
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So blended learning is about leveraging
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digital content to provide students
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with skills and practice –
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meanwhile, the teacher focuses on
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depth and application of concepts
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to teach higher-order thinking skills.
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So what if we can create an environment
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where, one,students can get individualized,
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self-paced instruction,
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two, teachers can provide
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differentiated small-group instruction,
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based upon weekly or daily data,
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and, three, schools can operate
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at a much lower cost per pupil –
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which will allow them to reallocate resources.
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This environment is blended learning.
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What are some of the blended-learning models?
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Let's go back to the spectrum learning environments.
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As we see it now, there are four models emerging:
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lab rotation, class rotation, flex, and pod.
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I'm going to go over each of these now.
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Lab rotation is where students move in and out
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of a classroom to a computer lab.
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Many people seeing this model will think it looks
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very similar to a traditional computer lab.
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However, if you look under the hood,
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the difference is that in a lab rotation,
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the data from the content in the learning lab
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informs the instruction in the classroom.
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In a class rotation model,
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students are broken out into smaller groups.
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So a class of 30 may be broken out
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into four small groups.
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Every 20 minutes,
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the groups may rotate between stations.
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One station is with the teacher –
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two stations are with the computer –
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and the fourth station may be guided practice.
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In this environment, a teacher has the ability
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to monitor the whole class, manage behavior,
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and maintain the class culture.
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In the flex model, the learning lab might look like
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a large call center, with banks of computers.
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Around the edges of the lab might be
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smaller breakout rooms for classes.
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In this model, the students work
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mostly on the computers,
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and a teacher might pull out a group of students
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for seminar intervention or direct instruction.
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One of the newer models is the pod concept.
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Essentially, it's a school within a school,
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and each pod might have multiple grade levels.
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In this model the role of the teacher may be
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redefined and broken out into discrete roles –
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an adviser, a behavior specialist,
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or an instructor – to support each pod.
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All of these models are rethinking the traditional school,
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giving students more control over their learning,
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and providing students with targeted instruction.
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What are some of the results?
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From a student perspective, students are
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more engaged using online content
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versus paper-and-pencil practice worksheets.
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They like getting real time feedback
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and knowing where they stand at any time.
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Students can control how fast or slow
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they need to go through a lesson.
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In these schools, we see students accelerating
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past the skills for their grade level.
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And this is what we call unleashing their learning velocity.
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Also, even though the class sizes may be larger,
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students feel that their classes are actually pretty small,
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because the experience they have
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with the teacher is in a small group.
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Now from a teacher's perspective,
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the teachers we've spoken to find it easier
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to plan for small group instruction
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versus trying to teach to the middle
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and differentiating top and bottom.
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Teachers find teaching in small groups more rewarding,
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because the students are more engaged.
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And finally, teachers are surprised by how much easier
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classroom management is with students fully engaged
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on the computers versus when students
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are doing things on pencil and paper.
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Thank you for watching our video on blended learning.
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We are excited by the potential opportunities
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blended learning brings.
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And I hope you found it useful as you think about your own school.