Modeling and Inspiring: Building a Foundation for Growth

TLC Cohort 8 – Blog Post 3 

Tim Arnold 

Combining modeling and demonstrating with new learning strategies or tools 

Modeling and demonstrating best practices (#2 above) combined with inspiring teachers to try new learning strategies and/or tools (#7 above) would be my choice of where to start with teachers because it checks multiple, but very important, boxes: It takes the pressure off of their shoulders if something fails, places another adult in the classroom for support, and allows for the demonstration of new teaching tools while giving them the distance required to reflect on how they might use it most effectively. 

Examples of how this has worked for me as an eLearning Specialist include: Breakouts, Skype, and Coding Spheros and Ollies. 

Breakouts  

Breakout EDU(@Breakout.edu) can be used to introduce a new lesson or concept, to reinforce and strengthen learning, or at the end of a unit to bring closure to a lesson and reinforce skills and concepts learned, all in a fun way.  

These activities “teach teamwork, problem solving, critical thinking, and troubleshooting by presenting students with challenges that ignite their natural drive to problem solve,” according to founder James Sanders, all while facilitating inquiry, problem solving, and collaboration. 

What sold me on breakouts, other than the instant engagement, was the type, level and depth of questions that students asked themselves, classmates, and teachers once the relevance was established. Failure (and there was a lot on the way to success) became a necessary step in the process of solving every clue/lock and not a limiting or defeating prospect. 

Skype 

When connecting your classroom to the larger world and worrying about the technology, your students, and the experience – there is tension.  By facilitating and modeling the process for teachers and staying in the room for trouble-shooting, teachers have started to venture out on their own into the world of Skype.

This semester, teachers have connected locally (classroom to classroom), with Holocaust survivors at the National Holocaust Memorial Museum, and internationally with engineering students in Europe. 

Top Ten Reasons to Skype (Jed Dearybury) 

Coding with Spheros and Ollies 

Students discussing, experimenting with, and asking questions about velocity, angle, and degrees while trying to code a small robot through a maze ending with a ramp jump into a box demonstrates the incredible opportunities of modeling the use of new technologies. 

The look on the teacher's face as her students engaged in rich discussion, posed questions based on failure, and charted another attempt to succeed was priceless! The joy of successful students was palpable, the frustration of "not yet" was evident, and both groups wanted more! 

The reflective gains with each of these experiences (both teacher and student) are as valuable as the experience itself. The Habits of Mind are present in each and will lead students and teachers to continued growth. Certainly, all ten of the items listed on the original drawing are integral in supporting teachers, but I believe that modeling and inspiring will pay the biggest dividends early and lead to the most growth in the long term.