Most teachers reflect daily about how their lessons went. (What could have been done better? What should I change? What’s the true problem?) This is the easy part for me. I am always able to observe and identify what needs to be changed. For example, tweak this part for the next class, add this question, or forget about that activity altogether. The hard part is gathering information through researched literature to make improvements on what needs to be changed. This takes time and let’s face it, time is an educator’s worst enemy but through my DLL classes I was forced to take the time to do it. I started this journey of changing my classroom environment in 2016 before I started my DLL classes. I realized that I needed to be more flexible on how I delivered information to my students. The question I pondered was… How can I differentiate for all my students and how could this be done? I had to use our district curriculum and I had to follow the recommended time allowance but the way I delivered the information was up to me. My first avenue of change was flipping my classroom. This experience was good but not great. Students still needed to hear the lesson even though they listened at home. The online collaboration piece that I created was great, learning was taking place at home for most, but some students didn’t have access to home computers. Something was missing from the puzzle and I researched all summer to figure out what it was. In August, I started my first DLL class and in 5305 I was inspired to test my innovation plan. It was through blended learning that I could reach each student at their individual level. I began combining the two pieces together (online, and teacher-led) and that combination was the piece I needed to complete the puzzle. In October I began using our LMS (Canvas) program to display some of the lessons that I created. I also used online tools that personalized student learning (Think Through Math, Prodigy, ilearn, and Khan Academy). Personalized learning paths was something that I also created for students to promote ownership and self-directed learning. Making this big change gave me the freedom to become the facilitator, form relationships, and differentiate the needs of my students. I still lead a mini-lesson but after the mini-lesson students are self-directed and take the lead. I believe I was using action research plan without knowing what it was called because I was reflecting and developing a plan to meet the needs of my students. Benchmarks and past STAAR scores were the tools I used to measure my results. I’m so anxious to see what this years STAAR results show in year two of my change implementation. Next year, I am moving to a different position. I will be the Advanced Academic teacher for another campus plus I will be able to coach other teachers within my new school. I’m ready to try out my innovation plan with other teachers. You must take the “Risk” and do what’s best for kids no matter how difficult it may seem. The benefits outweigh the risk! I’m so passionate about blended learning that I am presenting this summer at Region 6 in Huntsville, Texas (June 7), Region 10 in Plano, Texas (June 11) and at ISTE in Chicago, IL (June 24).
