I agree with Wright about disliking assigning homework to my students. She also states “a lecture by video is still a lecture”. I couldn’t agree with her more. While this method works for some or even in small doses, I don’t think it would work for my students or me. Who says the only definition of a “flipped classroom” is to put your lectures on YouTube and let the students watch before the next class? I think there are many ways to “flip” a classroom. Mine would involve turning over the ownership of learning to my students.
I have stated before that I like to share the learning outcomes with my students for each unit/assignment in the form on “I can…” statements. By providing my students with choices to show their understanding and how they will meet those learning outcomes they then take on the responsibility for their learning. Wright poses three questions to her students: “What are you going to learn? How are you going to learn it?” And, “How are you going to show me your learning?” I would present theses questions to my students along with the learning outcomes for the specific unit/assignment and get them to make a plan for their learning. This plan will also include a tentative schedule for completion. They are then in the driver’s seat of their learning bus. They know what they need to learn; they simply have to set out on a learning journey that works best for them. This is how I want to give my students “control over their education” (Wright, 2012). When students are in control of their learning they have a sense of ownership and pride, which leads to higher quality learning.