Blog Post #13

Brian Crosby
I found it interesting that Brian Crosby referred to learning as being "messy" in his Back to the Future video post. My assigned C4T4, Andrea Hernandaz, blogged about learning being messy in her post Learning is Messy. Interesting coincidence.

I find Crosby's ideas interesting. I like how he begins at point A and expands to many different approaches and viewpoints. This approach helps students apply their own knowledge and experience to learning and allows them to relate to the material while learning. He stated that we have been teaching students to be taught by teaching them to sit quietly and raise their hand when they have a question; now, it's time to teach students to learn through doing.

It is heart touching that technology has allowed students with health issues to stay at home while taking part in the classroom such as Celeste in Crosby's video. This allows a child to experience something he or she would not be able to without technology. It also can show students inside the classroom the value of having the ability to be there.


Paul Anderson
In his video Blended Learning Cycle, Paul Anderson explains how he flipped his classroom into a student centered learning environment through a blended learning cycle. He details an interesting concept that he refers to as QUIVERS. During each lesson or unit he follows this outline:

QUESTION: Anderson begins each unit with an intriguing question in order to capture his students' attention. He is creative in the way he presents the question.
INVESTIGATION: This is the stage in which students begin to check into the question. They begin forming questions of their own.
VIDEO: Videos can provide students with knowledge and information to begin researching.
ELABORATION: This is when students actively research their questions and learn through doing.
REVIEW: Anderson works with small groups to check their understanding. Students are not allowed to move on to the quiz until they can demonstrate that they fully understand the lesson and unit.
SUMMARY QUIZ: Students take a brief quiz on what they have accomplished.
After several learning cycles, students take a comprehensive exam as well.

I like the concept of QUIVERS. I think it is a great way to flip the classroom and give students some control in a structured environment. As Anderson explains, QUIVERS is easily worked into a science classroom; an interesting concept of science is a great way to capture students' interest and give them something to expand on. However, it can be worked into any subject area. It will take some creativity, but I could adapt QUIVERS to fit into my English classroom. The most difficult part would be presenting a "question" that is intriguing to the students and motivates them to want to learn. I really like that the flipped classroom is more doing and less lecture. I think this is the best way to learn. Doing leads to experience, and it is through experience that we truly learn.