Unboxing Education

               Adjusting teacher captivity in an online school is tricky. It is difficult to “see” when the classroom is “full.” However, schools can consider several factors.  First, define all of the jobs a teacher is responsible for. Remember that teaching online and writing an online curriculum are two jobs and should be factored in as such. Then, define what “full time” would look like for each job.  If teaching Algebra 1 on a certain platform is full-time, on its own, at 120 students, create a formula that factors the portion of full time that a teacher has in that category. Repeat for each category. Remember that the number of different jobs reduces a teacher’s efficiency. If teaching 120 students in Algebra is full time, teaching 80 students in 6 classes may be comparable. This will vary by school. Lastly, identify the sweet spot for teachers. 100% capacity would indicate a completely maxed out teacher and this is not an ide...

       While many studies point to the superior power of intrinsic motivation, every classroom teacher still reaches for rewards as a form of extrinsic motivation and rapport building. Classroom rewards don’t only offer motivation, but they offer a way to connect with students, especially if the rewards can highlight the personal interest of the students. Rewards can also offer a way to connect to a specific student's " love language ." By giving a tangible reward that reflects a student’s personal preferences, a teacher acknowledges that he or she has learned something specific about that student.       In the online classroom, it is tricky to connect with students in this way.  One of the first methods I developed was to send personalized birthday wishes. During the first week of school, I send the students a survey that asks them, among other things, about their birthday. Then, as responses come in, I schedule a Gmail message with a birthd...

     Utilizing student assessments to guide teaching and learning can be one of the most impactful yet daunting tasks a teacher faces in any environment. In the virtual environment, this can be compounded by the time and space that separates the teacher from the student.      One way that I apply this approach is to use benchmark data to differentiate literacy instruction for middle schoolers. After encouraging students to complete the fall benchmark in reading, I keep an eye out for the results. Then, I review students who appear to be struggling with grade-level reading tasks. Next, I invite that student to meet with me one on one in a video chat. I incentivize this meeting by offering to skip an assignment of my choosing in the student’s ELA course. In that meeting, after getting to know the student’s interests, if I haven’t already done so, I will ask them to read a passage aloud to me. Then, I will review a few comprehension questions with the student....

  As much as I enjoy reading inspiring books about great pedagogy, most likely they describe a learning environment much different from my own. All the blogs about building relationships, all the Pinterest boards with cute decor ideas, and all the podcasts about great, tech-filled lesson plans are geared toward the face-to-face environment. Rather than let this get me down, I try to ask myself the following questions: Is there an aspect of this technique I could use in my virtual classroom? If not, is there another way to create the same result using the tools I have at my disposal?       In the case of step one, I have created asynchronous Kahoot games that I emailed to my online students. I leave the quiz open for one week and then email “winners.” See my previous post on building rapport through rewards.       Step two can be a bit less straightforward. In order to give my students a choice within an online classroom that is largely prewr...

        People sometimes ask me the key to “doing it all.” The key is very simple: Don’t. I don’t do it all, all the time. In fact, this is something I had to come to terms with as my oldest two children have birthdays at the end of August. Invariably, back-to-school duties conflict with their birthdays. It’s almost always falling on the first day of school for one and teacher PD for another. Also, funds seem to run short at this time. The mom guilt is real, y’all. I had to come to terms with this. We had to carefully plan. Some years, we celebrate early. Some years, we celebrate later, but bigger, like a girl’s trip to Chicago (close enough for a day trip), mid-September.       So don’t. Don’t do it all. Don’t try. No one should be expecting that. Recognize seasons. One of the great truths about teaching online is that is it so seasonal. Back to school is nuts. Nearly around the clock getting all my plates spinning at the same time. But November?...