by Kim Loomis | Oct 31, 2020 | Blended Learning, Online Learning, Personalized Learning, Professional Development
This past week Aurora Institute held its annual symposium, virtually of course. Typically, I look forward to this annual event to catch up with national peers, hear stories of personalized learning and competency-based education, but most importantly to increase my well-being by enjoying time with like-minded professionals. Speaking of well-being… Dealing with the pandemic, the uncertainty on the political front, and the rising call for social justice has all of us in a bit of a craze. COVID-19 started as a crisis (back in March 2020), but if we continue to manage the educational setting as if it is a crisis, we will exhaust ourselves. We must recognize a need for finding our rhythm. Our mental health is at risk should we continue to act in haphazard manners – exhausting ourselves, our students, and families. Even prior to the pandemic, in December 2019, the Texas Association of School Boards posted an article titled Teacher Stress and Burnout is Real, stating, “It’s no secret that teacher stress is at epidemic proportions, and it’s affecting students in the classroom more than ever.” That was before COVID-19 came into our lives! Add in the stress of the last seven months. In September 2020, Psychology Today, posted an article about the effect COVID-19 is having on teachers, stating “A new study shows decreases in teacher well-being during the pandemic.” Educators need to find a rhythm, get over the manic crisis mode, and focus on their well-being. Like the airline steward who reminds us to put on our own mask first, educators need to breathe. Jumping from deployment models (classroom, hybrid, online) is...
by Kim Loomis | Sep 17, 2020 | Blended Learning, Online Learning
Remote learning has been difficult for teachers, administrators, students, and parents. No one signed up to be an online or from a distance teacher or student. Parents did not expect to be ‘home schooling’ their children. Administrators had no desire to run a hybrid or fully virtual school. Yet, these are the times we live in with the COVID-19 pandemic. Today’s world is all about “adjust and adapt” baby. This is new for all stakeholders. It’s like starting all over. Think about a baby, first learning to walk. That’s us! We will stumble a lot. We will fall down often. We will teeter on the brink many times. Also like an infant, we must fail forward. Get up, get over it, and try again. What we are forgetting to do is celebrate the successes along the way. Recall, the infant learning to walk was surrounded by people coaxing, cheering, and celebrating all the failures along the way. Teachers, administrators, students, and parents also need praise in their efforts and understanding that it’s okay to “adjust and adapt.” Knowing that failure will be part of the process and that we can fail forward by getting up, getting over it, and moving on. The pandemic reminds us that we must focus on where our feet are today. Planted in remote learning. We cannot linger in the days of yesteryear, nor dream of a better future down the line. I like to say, keep a WIN attitude. WIN is an acronym for What’s Important Now. When I say now, I mean in the moment – within the moment of the lesson or...
by Kim Loomis | Jan 7, 2020 | Blended Learning, Digital Learning Models, Online Learning, Personalized Learning, Program Design, Research, Uncategorized
When students struggle in the traditional classroom and absences become daunting, creating larger and deeper learning gaps, where can educators turn? One way to help struggling students is by providing opportunities for success in different learning environments. Past practices often led students away from neighborhood schools, to alternative placement educational facilities. Yet, not all students that struggle need such a drastic remedy. Access to digital curriculum in a comprehensive school setting can be an excellent way to create opportunities to thrive. Digital curriculum is the first piece of the CIA of Blended Learning (digital Curriculum, guided Instruction, authentic Assessment), yet it’s important to ensure that educators understand the partnership between digital content and teacher-led guided instruction. Otherwise establishments create digital learning environments that isolate and remove high quality instructional practices, such as teacher and peer interaction, plus they tend to lower standards/expectations. This is often seen in credit recovery programs across the nation, as documented by Nat Malkus in his whitepaper Second Chance or Second Track (September 2018), were second chance credit recovery becomes a lower-level pathway of isolated, independent study programs designed for struggling learners. When we lower expectations, we are creating a lower track of students, many of whom were struggling to begin with. The TNTP whitepaper Opportunity Myth (2018) notes how schools and teachers are letting students down with low level learning opportunities that just don’t meet the standards. Yet, we must cultivate classrooms where struggling students learn how to take ownership of their learning. Where students can track and manage their learning outcomes in a digital platform, that allows them to pick up where they...
by Kim Loomis | Jul 10, 2019 | Blended Learning, Digital Learning Models, Online Learning
Clay Christensen writes of the Theory of Jobs to Be Done, “When we buy a product, we essentially ‘hire’ something to get a job done… People don’t simply buy products or services, they ‘hire’ them to make progress in specific circumstances.” Understanding the “job” for which one is hiring for will benefit the client in selecting the right product and service in need and maximize its fullest potential. When developing a digital learning program, it’s key to align our true priorities with the proper product and service. Just as important, is to ensure appropriate staff professional development when changing classroom pedagogy. Using online content and tools has become a regular appearance in the nation’s K-12 classrooms. Many different deployment methods have been utilized – often lumped into a single category of ‘digital learning.’ However, in the landscape of the classroom, when technologies are brought into the fold, not all programs are created equal. Especially in the eyes of the ever watchful National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), who is concerned when schools develop non-traditional learning programs. Thus it is important to note the various types and degrees of digital learning environments that are being offered to students. The table below attempts to describe the various digital learning deployment programs, in degrees from non-traditional fully online learning, to the traditional classroom’s utilization of digital content (e.g. content area instruction) and tools (e.g. productivity software and apps) to enhance student success and engagement. What is your digital learning vision? What deployment program best describes the ‘job to be done?’ Knowing the answers to these questions will help you seek the best products...
by Kim Loomis | May 14, 2017 | Blended Learning, Online Learning, Program Design
I often get asked about changing mindsets for digital learning. This is a great question. I tried to tackle this question in the June 2016 blog post. In the last year, I’ve come to realize there are four identifiable mindsets for digital learning. Before we get ahead of ourselves, let’s first ask, “What is a mindset?”. Mindset as a Competency The Learning Accelerator partnered with the International Association for K-12 Online Learning (iNACOL) to work with experts and practitioners around the country to draft the iNACOL Blended Learning Teacher Competency Framework. The document identifies 12 key competencies, organized into four large domains and mindsets is the largest domain. In the document, mindset is defined as “the core values or beliefs that guide thinking, behaviors and actions that align with goals of educational change and mission.” Four Digital Learning Mindsets Teaching is a craft, an art, and the core values stem from seeking instructional methods that better serve students’ understanding and growth. The digital learning environment requires teachers to re-think their place, their role, and the needs of students when digital curriculum aides in the delivery of content. When looking back at the 10 models of digital learning we begin to see several different educator mindsets when deploying digital curriculum: Online Blended Innovator Designer Each of these minds sets come at a different cost of change. See the Four Digital Mindsets infographic below. Online $$$ Too often when digital content is first introduced, the initial thought is, “I’m now an online teacher.” This is a huge mind shift change. Teachers feel out-of-control when the digital content takes the lead and determines the...
by Kim Loomis | Aug 6, 2016 | Blended Learning, Online Learning
Too often we hear talk about teacher-absent online courses, where someone made the decision that the digital curriculum was enough, but is that what we really want? The human touch is so important. When a teacher shows that they care about their students, the student in turn cares about the class. Many times over we have seen students who showed that ‘mean and nasty’ teacher a thing, by failing their course. Student can also rises to the occasion and achieves more than possible because the kind heart of the teacher coached the student to believe in their abilities, grew self-confidence, and pushed them to success. Keeping the human touch in the online classroom creates a student-centered learning environment and conveys a sense of who the real person is behind the academics. Don’t think that just because your classroom is blended and your students see you on a daily basis, doesn’t mean that you can be absent from the online environment. These strategies are just as important to the fully online arena, as well as the blended learning environment. Be seen. Your presence in the online classroom is important. Use video clips to communicate with students (and their parents). Start with a welcome video that shares your passion for the subject. Consider weekly video announcements. Provide assignment feedback in video format, using the student’s name and looking directly into the camera so they feel your presence. The discussion area is a wonderful place to give public praise by quoting students. Get to know your students. The first week of any class is tough for both the students and...
Recent Comments