Live webcast conference requirement for 5326

Here is the summary for my 3/31/13 webconference that I attended to satisfy the requirement for my 5326 course:


It's Easter Sunday and Dr. Abernathy is late arriving.  Several of us discuss questions that we have concerning both our week 5 homework and what exactly was supposed to be posted to tk20 for this course.  Confusion abounds, but we manage to sort through it.

About 6:20, Dr. Abernathy arrives and everyone rejoices!  We talk more about week 5 requirements and she confirms that we only need to give a reflection from the administrator's view.  I REALLY need a good score for this week to secure my A, so I'm still going to do all three reflections (they're only 100 words long).  She also clears up questions about tk20 and confirms that we were supposed to post our week 4 assignment.

She suggests that we continue working on our google site and use it as our portfolio (I thought that was the entire point of spending $100 on tk20?).  I need to really get busy recording intern hours and course embedded hours.  I don't want those piling up on me.

We wrapped it up with discovering that Dr. Abernathy is a closet Louisville fan and is toying with the idea of going over her kids house for dinner because they made too much to eat lol!  This was the first course webconference that I've attended live.  I've always watched the recordings, but it was nice to actually be able to ask the specific questions that I needed answered instead of waiting for someone else to ask them. 

HAPPY EASTER EVERYONE!

Didn't know if I needed to include this or not...

here is the link to my prezi presentation for School-Community Relations!

Course 5326 Required Posting

 Well Blog Followers, it's been a LONG time since last I checked in, but time has been flying.  I can't believe we're wrapping up March, but here we are!  I hope everyone has been taking care of business.  I think we're all learning quite a bit in these courses.  Just trying to make it to my "online spring break" next week lol!

Action Research Project Title:  How can changing teacher’s roles to “Educational Facilitators” impact student academic achievement by emphasizing content exploration at home while using class time for practice and re-teaching in terms of passing rates, state test scores, and student engagement?

Blog URL:   http://coachhumphrey.blogspot.com/

Number of AR Project Documented Hours: 29

AR Project Summary (at least 250 words):

My Action Research Project is now waiting to begin Step Eight.  We’ve gone through the introduction and instruction phases of the project and both the Science and English teachers have agreed to join in the project.  We are now in the process of final benchmark testing then awaiting the results from this year’s standardized testing.

Step One went easily as I compile research on flipped classrooms and gave a presentation to our school board.  There was some questions regarding the need for such a learning environment, but after some discussion, it was agreed that our students miss a lot classroom time due to school activities and this might be a great way to keep these students current with the rest of the class.  Volunteers came forward and I gave them instruction on how to create their own blog pages.  These blogs were monitored in Step Five.

Data analyzing took place in Step Two.  Students were routinely benchmarked throughout the year and their scores were recorded.  Feedback was obtained from both the students and their teachers regarding the flipped classroom system.  The vast majority of surveys were returned with favorable responses.  The students like being able to work at their own pace throughout the week and felt like it was good preparation for college.  Some of the students commented that they missed having actual lecture time from their instructors.  Students who didn’t have internet access at home were monitored in Step Seven.

Step Three occurred several times throughout the year as data from previous years were recorded.  It turned out that I had to do this for several of my Lamar classes so I became quite proficient at compiling data.  We even had to perform this task for our superintendent.

I’ll be conducting the post-project survey with the students in May, which will complete Step Four.  Those results will be compiled with their pre-project surveys.  Also added to the survey data will be the parental surveys from Step Six.

All that remains for project completion are Step Eight (comparing present score data to past score data) and Step Nine (sharing project findings with colleagues at the school and post results on my action research blog).

One week left...

in my first semester.  Time has become more and more valuable as basketball season has heated up, the holidays are around the corner and our courses have become more demanding.

The advice we received early in our studies was dead on correct.  MAKE TIME FOR YOUR REFLECTIONS!  I have been lapse in creating reflection time and it's very evident on this blog.

My action research plan is underway, but I need to do a better job of knocking out the items on my intern plan.  I'm taking care of SOME business, but not as much as I should be at this point in the year.  But in all honesty, I planned on doing the vast majority of my internship activities in the spring, once basketball is over.

But it's in times like this that perspective is needed.  I've made A's in all of my courses so far, my family is happy and healthy, Christmas break is coming up and my basketball team is 12-6 so far!  Let's be sure to keep our eyes on the prize and don't let ourselves become beat down with everything we have going on.  Stay positive and we'll start everything back up fresh in a couple of weeks!

Heading into Thanksgiving...

Seems like forever since my last blog post lol!

Project status:

My juniors and seniors have started their first week of their flipped classroom.  We had a basketball tournament thursday and friday and it seemed like a great opportunity to kick start this thing.

All of the students checked their gmail accounts and logged into the blog site one last time to test it, then they were on their own.  Right now, I'm refraining from embedding videos and links to the blog page due to some students lacking internet access.  Their homework was simply to read the next chapter, work on their skill packet and have everything ready to go by Monday (today).  Nothing real fancy.

The next step is to get my promethean active expression devices set up and ready to go so we can do short, concise assessments of what they were to study the night before.  They are already having a hard time with the "not doing work at home" thing.  "Coach, I'm already done!".  It will take some time to get them to leave the work at school lol!  It took me almost 18 months to teach them how to "do homework".  Now I'm redefining it.

But, I have faith...

Course status:

Starting 5333 this week.  Doesn't look too difficult, but lots of busy work.  BAD TIMING that this hits on Thanksgiving week (and the Pittsburgh-Baltimore game last night didn't help).  Wish we had just ran straight into it and got this week off instead.  I started a new facebook support/study page for the 5333 students.  You are all welcome to participate.

Going in front of the school board tonight!

Wow!  My superintendent calls my classroom around 1pm and asks me to put together a presentation regarding my Flipped Classroom Research Project for tonight school board meeting.  Very excited.

I've put together a 9-page packet that includes several visual aids, my action research plan template and my goal statement with project explanation.  PLUS, the meeting gets to count towards my intern hours.  What what we're having for dinner tonight?  It was chili last month and it was pretty good lol!

Oh well, off to basketball practice.  Wish me luck!

Open for business!

My flipped classroom blog page has been created and students are starting to "enroll" (follow).

I've talked to the students who don't have computers or internet access and we're planning on printing off hard copies of anything that will be posted on the blog site.

We're targeting our first posted lesson plans for around the middle of November.