Wearables, Virtual Field Trips, and TESOL With Technology

“What if I was to say that our inability to completely get our head around all these concepts and how they work is a limitation of this technology, which is the static page, or the explanation through written text. However, if you were to take and leverage simulation and interactivity to show what you can’t see, and to experience these things in real time, imagine what it might be like.”

A TEDx Talk I watched recently was about Unboxing education through gaming, playing, and making. Prior to presenting a virtual simulation, Lucien Vattel posed the aforementioned thought worth contemplating. Now, before you jump in blindly, harp on Vattel or question me about the possibilities, watch the talk and witness how he also instructed the audience in a scientific concept. He did this by utilizing the medium of himself with the technology of the human body though there was cutting edge technology at his disposal.

Google Glass showed up some years ago, and it seems to be continuing in development while it’s being used on factory floors. Some are wanting Apple to join in on innovating hearing aids. Where do these wearables that Vattel and others speak of fit within education? How will society view them? For merely entertainment and/or improving the quality of life for the world? It’s the quality of life and the education of those in my classroom that I have begun to consider the place that wearable technology could have. In my opinion, Chinese education is not close to embracing it since most schools don’t have a plan on how to incorporate phones, devices, or personal computers. I saw 3D printers at an experimental school once, but the connections weren’t operational. Nobody seemed to mind that nothing was being constructed for the scores of people visiting that day. It was like the future was stuck and not a single person objected.

With the current condition the way that it is, coding, programming, and more modern technology have found their ways into Chinese schools by being an after-school activity, or a school club. If I were to encompass wearable tech into my personal teaching, I would be waiting for a while. If educators or leaders in innovation in China want students to be prepared, they should first peel back the layers of historical, cultural, and traditional influences that lead to the ever-so-popular thought of how technology does much more harm than good in learning. I have never heard of wearables even mentioned until recently and after searching what the China Daily has reported on its place in advancements. Seems that while tech like these mind-blowing, futuristic gadgets created in China are being presented, at the same time VR is also being proven as “effective” in drug rehab. Therefore, like the US and many other countries worldwide, society and technology are moving forward. Education is behind the game. In its entirety, that’s not such a bad thing, but that topic is for another time.

One way that educators can launch forward is through Virtual Field Trips. Kyle Schutt defines a VFT as when “an educator leverages digital content and educational technologies to take educators and students beyond their classroom walls to meet people and see places they might not otherwise have the opportunity to experience.” Again, I hadn’t heard of these either until recently, and it reminded me of when my sixth graders and I were learning about The Underground Railroad. National Geographic provided an online interactive where the students could envision themselves as slaves on the run for Canada but had to avoid hunters, arrive safely at “stations,” and go through authentic emotional and psychological experiences. Though this wasn’t even a 3D/4D movie, it was an interesting class together exploring unknown territory and providing a dimension unmet before. It has me thinking what “advanced adventure” could be possible with my sixth graders next semester or my high school health class. (Side note: Connecting it to health has me recall being on a ride at Disney once where we were riding inside the human body.) Oh, the possibilities…Education World, Scholastic, and others have great resources for teachers.

These two topics have led me to a question I’ve been asking myself as a teacher. With technology, am I a user or integrator?

I would like to keep developing as a teacher who maintains pedagogy before technology integration, and through that continue to seamlessly embrace the utilization of educational technology most suitable. Currently, at the new school I work at, this is somewhat arduous seeing that the curriculum, students, and available technology (a smart board) is all novel too. That doesn’t mean I haven’t been mulling over how to improve. When referring to the picture above, I undeniably integrate technology in my classes while there are certainly some points I’d fall under using technology. Resources such as these push me to first examine my teaching, dissect the root of any problems I discover, and construct plans on how I can take steps toward practical changes. Each stride allows me to then apply proper critical thinking within the judgments I make to transform my teaching.
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Improving the Flipped Classroom in China

One of the teaching methods I have applied, analyzed, and been reflecting on this school year is that of the flipped classroom. It started out as an Action Research project that I simply placed hope in since I wasn’t sure how students in a bilingual school in China would respond. What happened beforehand, during the implementation, and afterward transpired in ways that inspired me to move forward. Part of progress is moving into the unknown, and before continuing to do so I checked out some blogs and well-known sites for any tips or suggestions when employing the flipped classroom.

One idea I received was from a first-grade teacher. Her students were too young to obtain internet access in the evenings. Therefore, she thought outside the box, and she did what she referred to as the “in-class flip.” She recorded and prepared the directions and examples for a project, and then made the video (and more thereafter) available to her students in order that they could independently look back to those instead of her. This provided her as the teacher to “work with individuals and small groups to address a range of learning styles and abilities.” For more details and steps on that, check out Creative Educator, where some teachers are Flipping the Elementary Classroom.

One of several suggestions from Teach Starter was to start with one lesson to flip in an area you as the teacher feel comfortable with. I’m wondering now if that’s the best piece of advice for everyone when mulling over the start of flipping one’s classroom. When I initially tried out the method, I actually had a class do it for a complete chapter that ended up lasting about three straight weeks with at least 2-3 videos a week. The kinks for the video-watching were mostly taken care of before the chapter began, as the rest were resolved after the first class period. From there on out to the end, the students knew the expectations with the short and succinct videos within our imperfect system, and they gave it all they had. It was a few fun weeks, but I’m not sure we (the students and I) would’ve revealed all that we did with one single time of flipping. The students and I discovered quite a bit through the experience, and it wasn’t just about our content. Thus, in my opinion, I’d say “yes” to the educator who asks, “Does Flipped Learning in a Primary Classroom Really Work?” Though there are more variables and other options a teacher should consider in accordance with one’s context before taking the leap since I wonder if there could be situations where it wouldn’t be suitable.

My students shared a healthy outlook on learning in that they control their learning, and the teacher is there to guide, correct, or challenge thinking within the subject and its interconnectedness to other subjects and, ultimately, life. The flipped videos were a nice substitute for the traditional homework that the students receive daily, and they expressed their desire for the videos since the beginning for they provided foundations for the classes we met face to face. The content in the videos was starting points for learning as well, and sometimes the students even did a little independent research of their own beforehand. Ultimately, flipping the classroom has felt like a success in professional and personal ways through the year, but that doesn’t mean I should stop growing and obtaining wisdom from experts on the issue. (Hence, the two hyperlinks in this paragraph stem from Jon Bergmann.)

Jon Bergmann on "What is Flipped Learning?" on Common Sense Media

Here are some more analyses on the flipped classroom.

A Student's Turn to Flip

Mr. B's Take on the Flipped Classroom

What do you think?

Would you incorporate or have you implemented the flipped classroom? If yes, what recommendations do you have? If no, why not?

When Should a Student (be Allowed to) Get Facebook?

Two different questions have been on my mind recently.

Firstly…

When should a student get Facebook?

I recall asking my sixth-grade nephew once if he had Facebook. “I don’t need it,” he responded.

That threw me off.

Students at my former school obtained a smartphone and/or an iPad by mid-elementary, and there’s certainly a different age requirement than 13 in China. I say this because a lot of elementary students already have WeChat or QQ (social media platforms with chats, posts, and so much more). I didn’t even stop to consider how one of my 6^th graders recently asked to add me on Facebook. Reflecting on all of that had led me to wrongfully assume that every child I met as young as mid-elementary would desire to connect via social media. Low and behold, every child’s life and context are different. When a child actually wants to get Facebook more than likely varies on lots of factors, many of which we as outsiders to their lives may not know about. (For more on ways we may misunderstand teens and technology, please check out danah boyd’s It’s Complicated.)

I didn’t think of the fact that my nephew was under 13 years old when I asked him either. Thankfully I haven’t met, heard of, or needed to report anyone under 13 using Facebook. This brought me to the following question…

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When should a student be allowed to get Facebook?

Little did I know about the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), a law passed in 1998 to protect children under 13 from having their personal information available. Thus, Facebook’s age requirement is 13. Most other apps/sites have the same condition while some range lower or higher.

Common Sense Media has much to say about protection and guidelines for social media, along with what is going on at age 13 developmentally. Parents and teachers alike should take heed and stay informed. This will help when striving to understand what pre-teens are going through. It should be strongly suggested for the parent as well to be involved in the child’s life during this time since children lying about how old they are may put peers at risk. (Side note: This would be a great time for adults to also examine our social media habits and behaviors because, as I have discovered in parenting and teaching, I and other adults still have some maturing to do too. Children are NOT alone in this manner.)

All of that makes sense while there are certainly “teachable moments” to be learned earlier in life, including those for a six year-old on Snapchat. But…can not the parent help guide the child in using social media such as Facebook before reaching the age of 13? Can the parent learn from the child? I’m not prompting you to push social media on to your child and lie about his/her age. (There are other ways to justify looking at your phone more than your child.) Don’t misinterpret that. What I’m urging is that we as adults be ready to understand the child, listen to his desires, and most importantly, steer him in the moral way to live before he is 13. The life the child lives offline will undoubtedly determine who he is online.