Sometimes Educators can be their OWN Worst Enemies.

   
I am an associate professor of Learning Technologies at the University of Northern Iowa. 

One of the classes I teach is an educator preparation course where we prepare future teachers to use technology to support learning in their classrooms. This course is provided in a T-Th 50-minute session format. 

A couple of years ago, we changed our class into a blended format. We provided the weekly lectures online so we only needed to meet for 2 days to work in our labs.  The learning strategy was that our students would read, watch, or listen to the foundational material for the week and then watch the video lecture which was between 20 - 40 minutes long. On Tuesdays, the students would break into their working groups of 3-4 individuals and discuss what they learned in preparation for this class session. 

At the beginning of the semester, this worked well. Most of my 35 students followed the learning strategy and came to our Tuesday class prepared to discuss the topic at hand.  It might be Global Collaboration, Digital Citizenship, Systematic Instructional Design, Classroom Computing, or any of a large selection of topics. 

Today's Discovery

Today, I noticed the discussions seemed strained and asked how many of my students had read the material and watched the lecture. Only 6 students raised their hands. I asked why, and they told me that they did read and watched the content after our Tuesday class. They learned a great deal in the lecture/discussion I held on Tuesday so they could use that knowledge as background for their learning.

I examined how I had run the Tuesday classes.  Instead of asking my students to provide the content for the discussions, I was providing an overview of the content in a slideshow.  This provided a source for content other than the aforementioned resources . This meant that I was completely undermining the classroom discussion pedagogy because my students were not coming prepared.  

Having realized the problem, I discussed the situation with my students.  I made it quite clear that I was not criticizing them or blaming them for the situation.  I pointed out that this was an example of a teacher working against themselves. They needed to pay attention to situations like this when they have their own classrooms and are organizing their learning environments. 

From Here Forward

One of the things that my students liked was discussing content with their group. I pointed out that if they didn't prepare for the discussion properly, they wouldn't have anything to discuss. I didn't want to deprive them of their discussion.

    

Before we moved on to the rest of the class, I told the students that I would be changing my teaching strategies for the rest of the semester. I would no longer present the content material but rather discuss the content with them after they had had a chance to discuss it with their group members. 

I look forward to next Tuesday to see how the discussion goes and whether or not their quiz scores have increased.   Will keep you informed.

Z

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Dr. Z Shares his Research on Building Student-Teacher Connections on the Teaching-in-10 Podcast

I recently had the privilege of being interviewed by Dr. Sarah Montgomery for her Teaching in 10 Podcast.  This podcast is designed to allow higher education faculty to share teaching strategies and stories about how they engage students and support student success and well-being.  

In my session, I discussed how I have been using an Opening Question Activity in my classes (both on-line and in-person) to build connections with my undergrad students.

I begin each class session by asking each student the question for the day.  These questions might be "What are your hidden talents" or "If you could have a super power, what would it be?"  Taking the time to ask each individual provides them a chance to share something about themselves and for me to learn more about them.  The most important part is that it builds a connection between me and my students.  It makes a BIG difference.

We discuss the research I have been doing on using these questions to start a class. You may remember that I discussed this earlier in Dr. Z Reflects (Connecting with Students through Opening Questions).  We even discussed the additional research that I did at the same time about Why Students Turn Off their Online Cameras which I also shared on this blog.

Please give it a listen and give me some feedback about what you have experienced using icebreaker questions or other methods for connecting with your students.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Z

Mind-Up for Life with FlipGrid

I just partook in an interesting FlipGrid Live Event called "Build Your Mental Fitness with Goldie Hawn and Dido Balla."  This was part of a FlipGrid Live Event series that I had not previously attended.  Great event. 

Dido Balla was the main presenter.  Goldie joined us through some pre-recorded videos but she was informative.  Dido shared the intricacies of the mind and how mindfulness can help you get the most out of our noggin. His website identifies him as a "brain trainer."  

My favorite parts were where Dido explained the intricacies of the mind using simple metaphors. He described the problem of test anxiety using his fist. The premise was that people can have problems with tests even though they know the material completely.  Unfortunately, the emotions in the brain cloud the cognitive function.  The knowledge was represented by the thumb and the emotions were the four fingers covering it.  The pathway toward success is to find a way to "open the fingers" so they can free the "thumb" to share the knowledge.  

Dr. Z and Dido Balla

His answer to this problem was to "Seize Today." Spend some time being mindful. Deep breathing and centering your consciousness can bring you to the present. He said that we have to ask ourselves, "Is my  mind where my body is?"  Ignoring the past and future can provide us with what we need to use to have success today. 

I reviewed Balla's blog and it is filled with videos and postings that discuss dealing with emotions, memories, happiness, optimism, and much more.  I know that I will be spending my evenings learning from this blog. 

An interesting benefit of this event was my discovering the MindUP Brain Break.  This is a 3-minute video where Dido Balla leads you in mindful breathing.  I plan to use this with my students to show them how they can engage in mindfulness.

Have you had an opportunity to explore Mind-Up or engage in mindful learning?  Please share your experiences in the comments below.

Go BEYOND ZOOM BASICS with OK Zoomer!!

You have used Zoom but want to GO BEYOND THE BASICS.

Doug Shaw and I have been leading educators beyond the basics of Zoom for the past 18 months. It has been a wonderful journey working with motivated educators.

I have asked the OK Zoomer, Doug Shaw, to share our journey:
===========================================

It seems like an eternity ago, but it has been less than two years since we teachers experienced a global pandemic and associated quarantine. Take a moment to reflect on that – less than two years. 

Fortunately, plenty of basic “how to zoom” resources appeared. Blog posts, videos, and even workshops. And then more basic “how to zoom” resources. And even more. All covering the same things.

In the meantime, in the professional facilitation world, people were creating new techniques to use in business contexts. I remember being part of that process – it was so exciting. I’d be on for two hours in the afternoon (for one part of the world) and then two hours after midnight (for another part of the world) – sharing ideas, talking, but mostly playing around. We took ordinary features of zoom and tried to break them – or at least use them in ways that they weren’t intended. And we facilitators from all over the world came up with exciting, wonderful techniques, but nobody was telling the teachers . . .

Dr. Doug Shaw

And thus OK Zoomer came to be . . .

This is an exciting, fun, but most importantly intermediate workshop aimed specifically at teachers who were now remote teachers. Word of mouth was amazing, and after the first 100 participants came the first thousand, then the second thousand, and it kept growing. The United States became the US and Canada, and soon Dr. Z and I had officially taught over 3000 teachers from over 20 countries.

People love this workshop. We have dozens and dozens of testimonials, but I think I want to share this one, that I don’t even think Dr. Z has seen, and it really encapsulates a lot:

"I loved the extreme density of useful information in this presentation. So many of these pedagogy webinars (and I've been to quite a few at this point, some by very expensive and famous people) end up padding out 2-3 minutes of semi-useful insight with 60-90 minutes worth of time-wasting filler and restatement. 

By contrast, every single minute in this workshop felt well-used and packed with genuinely new ideas. That has literally never happened to me before in any professional-development training and, gotta be honest, it was pretty refreshing to the soul. I also appreciated the psychological insight underlying a lot of the techniques we learned: rather than just focusing on cool tech tricks, this presentation felt as though it proceeded from a genuine understanding of how learners relate emotionally and cognitively to the Zoom experience. … 

 I appreciated the opportunity to see how an experienced, charismatic performer would handle a lot of the techniques we discussed in the session. Finally, I appreciated that this session also achieved what it proposed to teach: it delivered an "engaging and lively Zoom experience" where I felt genuinely "seen" as a participant and felt myself forming active connections to the other learners present. Having had that experience is going to make it a lot easier to understand my students' perspectives as I work to build the same kind of rapport in my own classes this fall."

Speaking of Dr. Z . . .

the Q and A portion of the OK Zoomer experience is not to be missed! As a reader of this blog, you are probably impressed at not just the depth of his insight, but also its breadth. During the Q and A, the entire contents of his creative and knowledgeable mind are open to the participants, and I’ve never seen him leave a session without answering every question people have, often sharing information for further brainstorming.

If you would like to know more, please email me at doug.shaw@gmail.com!

The ENTER key is LAVA!: a Massively Multiplayer Participation Technique

Enter Key is Lava

Dr. Doug Shaw Shares:

Hello. Don’t you hate it when you look up a recipe online and you have to wade through paragraphs of introductory text about someone’s grandmother before you get to the ingredient list? I’m going to share an amazing technique with you, and then if you like, you can stick around and read why it is so awesome.

Technique name: The ENTER key is LAVA

Use:
This technique enables students in an online synchronous class to share their opinions on a prompt or their answers to a question and to then engage with each other’s thoughts.

Time:  About 8 minutes, but this will vary.

Details:

Step one: Tell the students, “I’m going to ask you a question. Please type your answer in the chat window, but do NOT hit ENTER! The ENTER key is LAVA! Just type your answer in the window.”

Step two: Ask your question. Type your question in the chat room as well in case they didn't hear it. Follow by typing, “You have [x] minutes. Remember: The ENTER key is LAVA!” I’ve found that two minutes usually works for me and my students, but it really depends on your topic and your class.

Step three: While the students are working, I like to play some low-volume music in through zoom. You can do this by clicking “share screen”, the “advanced” tab, then select the box at the bottom of the window that says “share computer audio.” Now cue music on your favorite music player. (I’ll tell you why at the end)

Step four: After the time has elapsed, stop the music, and say, “Okay, we hit ENTER on three! One! Two! Three! PUNCH IT!” Observe the huge stream of comments.

Step five: Explain to the students that their next task is to read all the comments, find one that resonates with them, and type a response in the chat window. But DON'T HIT ENTER. As they do this, cue music and type the instructions in the chat: “You have [y] minutes. Read, respond, and the ENTER key is LAVA again!” The amount of time you give them will depend on how many people are in the class.

Steps six and seven: Again, stop the music, “One! Two! Three!” and their final task is to take [z] minutes to read these new comments.

Rationale:

Equity: The problem with the Zoom Chat window is that it is modeled after our familiar texting apps. This means that the place where you type is right below the place where you read responses. For thoughtful students, this means that they see other students have “finished” with a question before they’ve had a chance to really think it through. And for easily distracted students (and Zoom has made many people, including me, easily distracted) it becomes difficult to focus on their own answer as they see others’ answers cascading in their field of vision. Both of these issues are even worse for neurodiverse students. “The ENTER key is LAVA” technique removes those problems. Every student gets the same [x] minutes to write, the same [y] minutes to read and respond, and the same [z] minutes to read.

Encouraging contributions: By designating time for students to read as well as write, “The ENTER key is LAVA” technique demonstrates that both activities are equally important. This message is also reinforced by the music cues – they get music when they are writing, reading, and responding, implicitly signaling that these three actions are all part of the same process. If we want our students to consistently contribute in classes, it is important to make it obvious that their participation is valued.

Generality: Because this technique works for a variety of types of prompts, after students go through it once, you will be able to use it effortlessly throughout the semester. It will go from a novelty to “this is how our class works.” You will be able to get large amounts of participation and engagement with little work. You will even be able to use it spontaneously, based on what is happening in your class at the moment!

Credits: 
This technique was adapted from a workshop by Aneta Key from the Applied Improvisation Network.

Dr. Doug Shaw is a Guest Blogger. He is a Math Professor at the University of Northern Iowa. He originated the OK Zoomer online workshops in August 2020.

Cherish Their Dots

The Dot by Peter Reynolds is one of my favorite books. This picture book is a reflection on how to nurture creativity in people. It is simple. It is beautiful. It is insightful.

The story begins with a boy in an art class.  He sits with a blank piece of paper in front of him. He is frustrated because he “can’t draw.” His art teacher asks him to make a mark on the paper. The boy slams his pencil onto the paper and makes a dot. “There!”, he says. The teacher admires the dot and says “Now sign it?” The boy is surprised, but he signs it and leaves. 

The next week, he returns to art class to see his autographed dot framed and mounted above his teacher’s desk. Astonished, the boy looks at the dot and says “I can make a better dot THAT!” He proceeds to create red dots, purple dots, little dots, big dots, on and on. His dot creation is so profuse that he holds an art show to share his creations with the world. 

What happens at the exhibit is wonderful. I won’t share it with you here, but it is well worth getting the book to find out.

Cherish

The message of this book is that everyone must begin somewhere. It takes a great deal of bravery to stick our toes in the world of drawing or painting or writing or cooking or whatever. Making this initial venture can be scary, and whether or not a person continues will lie greatly on how the public reacts to their work. 

This is where The Dot demonstrates the importance of that reaction.  We MUST cherish new ventures. Every venture is better than the vacant space that would be present if nothing was tried. Every venture needs to have a supporter who cherishes the bravery and fortitude necessary to begin this experiment. 

When our children/students/friends "make a dot", we must support them. We must ask them to sign the dot and cherish what they have created.  This can nurture the strength it requires to do it again. 

We MUST Cherish their Dots!

ARGH!!! Today Be "Talk Like a Pirate Day!"

"Shiver Me Timbers, Matey."

TODAY, September 19 is 

"International Talk Like a Pirate Day." 

This is the day where you can enjoy being crazy.  You can dress like a pirate or just throw some "Args" and "Mateys" and "Ahoys" into your discussions with friends.

What Can You Do on "Talk Like a Pirate Day?"

• Dress like a pirate. 
• Translate your writings into Pirate Talk. (See Below)
• Gather your mateys to have a Pirate Party. 
• free printables, a pirate-themed cake, or hold a "best pirate costume" contest.
• Get Free Booty at Long John Silver's - Free Fish
• Tell Pirate Jokes
• Go on a pirate scavenger hunt

Whatever you do, have a fun time being who want to be and doing it with your friends!

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Translated into Pirate Lingo . . .

"Shiver Me Timbers, Matey."

TODAY, September 19 be "International Natter Like a Pirate Day." 

'Tis the day where ye can enjoy bein' crazy.  Ye can dress like a pirate or jus' throw some "Args" 'n "Mateys" 'n "Ahoys" into yer discussions wit' scallywags.

Wha' Can Ye Do on "Natter Like a Pirate Day?"

• Dress like a pirate. 
• Translate yer writings into Pirate Natter. 
• Gather yer mateys t' 'ave a Pirate Party. 
• free printables, a pirate-themed cake, or hold a "best pirate costume" contest.
• Get Free Booty at Long John Silver's - Free FishTell Pirate Jokes
• Go on a pirate scavenger hunt

Whatever ye do, 'ave a fun time bein' who wants t' be 'n doin' it wit' yer mateys!