Flipping Math

This article was sent to me today and I thought it was a good read that got me thinking.

I have been on a bit of a flipping journey since 2012 when my district went to 1-to-1 iPads for all students.  As I sometimes do, I dove head first into the world of flipping.  Even though there are some things that I really take my time and think about, there are others that I just dive into...this was one of them.  I decided I was going to flip my Algebra 2 class.  I found so many resources that had suggestions and ideas and it just seemed new and refreshing.  I think to reiterate what I've said before, I'm always looking for new ways for students to learn math; I was hopeful this would be a great option.

My perspective on flipping has definitely shifted and changed over the past two years.

I flipped for a while and then I ran into some of the same frustrations that I had before flipping.  Students weren't watching the videos (previously they weren't doing their homework), students had to be retaught many of the lessons in class the next day, students were not understanding any more or less than previously.  I was putting in a lot of extra work to create videos and then spending about the same amount of time creating activities in class that were reteaching.  I didn't feel like we were saving any time or learning any more deeply than previously.

At first I thought the problem was that the students weren't watching the videos.  But more recently I'm coming to the realization that even my students who were watching the videos weren't getting as much out of them as they could have had I done what I have done in class for the last few years.  Now, not to say my classroom is an amazing, engaging, thrilling place to learn math...but I like to think it's a little more interesting than sitting in your bedroom listening to your teacher talk at you about math.  I don't lecture; I usually don't say more than 3 sentences before a question to my students is interjected and a discussion takes place.  (I think it should be even less than 3 sentences, I'm working on that.)  I try to create a math dialogue.  Now, again, it's not perfect, but I try to pull the students in, ask lots of questions, engage them on finding patterns, trying things on their calculators.  My students tell me they learn best by doing, so I try to give them that opportunity to learn by doing.  Sometimes they have to be reminded that they need to 'do' in order to learn, but I usually have a large number of students participating...I don't know that you can always get 100%....but I do try.

Basically, I have found that flipping is good for a few things, but not for introducing new material in math...or at least it doesn't work for me.  Flipping is good for review material.  I have students who do like to have the videos to re-watch as review after we have had class discussions and practice together.  The videos serve as a refresher for them.  Flipping is also good for simple concepts that students need to bring back to the front of their minds; things they learned or had been exposed to in previous courses.

I think the best form of flipping I have experienced has been to have the students flip their assignments. Rather than turn in a worksheet full of problems, they can turn in a video explaining the work that they completed.  These videos help the students really truly learn and understand the material in a way they may have not previously.

Flipping may work for some people.  I think it depends on your teaching style and your students.  My style is to be engaged with the students in conversation.  This is how I build relationships with my students and let my students see my personality and it's an opportunity for me to model problem solving, risk taking, and mistake making (lots get made when I'm talking and writing at the same time).

I am all for new technology.  I LOVE technology.  But I'm not completely sold that flipping works the best for me and my classroom.