Category: Remote Learning

Week four of lockdown has now finished. We currently run a four week timetable so I have covered all of my timetable now remotely.

I my a Geography Subject leader in a Secondary school and one of my roles involves the responsibility to mentor geography ITT students. I find this a really rewarding part of my job, but as I was observing and hopefully supporting my current ITT student as she delieved her Year 7 and Year 8 lessons, it got me thinking how odd a year it is for ITT students.

Lets face it, so far they have had to cope with a global pandemic the scale of which has never really been seen before. As a result our whole way of teaching has been transformed this year. I guess you could say that our ITT students are developing some skills that hopefully will need be needed again – unless we have a snow day – which due to global warming is less likely in the South where I teach and of course perhaps now it will be just a remote learning day…

“Snow day – that wonderful moment in the past when you wake up and see a blanket of snow and then wait to hear your school name on the radio / get that email or text message to say the school is shut – bringing joy that you have a day to play in the snow with your children or just chill”

Using the remote lesson to your advantage.

The fully remote lesson – what a different way to teach! However as I have watched and listened to my ITT deliver her online lessons it has struck me that yes, it is different and difficult but it can also be really really usefull too.

Research-informed teaching.

The EEF’s Rapid Evidence Assessment of Remote Learning  highlights several key points which we should all take into account:

1. Teaching quality is more important than how lessons are
   delivered.
2. Peer interactions can provide motivation and improve learning outcomes.
3. Supporting pupils to work independently can improve learning outcomes
4. Different approaches to remote learning suit different types of content and pupils

Teaching quality is more important than how lessons are
delivered.

Point 1 reminds us all that there is more to teaching than the environment or platform that you use. The key to successful teaching remains the same whether in the classroom on online – clear explanations, scaffolding when required and meaningful feedback. The EEF suggest that there is little different between synchronous and asynchronous teaching where these three elements are concerned. If they are clear then it will not matter whether the lesson or part of the lesson is live or recorded.

For the ITT students, the current lockdown provides flexibility in developing their practice – For example, they could pre-record an explanation of a key concept and then listen back and refine until happy with it. This could then be inserted into a live lesson. The key thing to remember – does the explanation build on prior learning – or link in to how the students will be assessed in the future.

As a mentor, I can focus on the discussion and the quality of explanation that the trainee is delivering, when using MS TEAMS. There are no distractions of others talking so I can focus solely on what the trainee is saying. This really highlights the quality instruction that is taking place.

Peer interactions can provide motivation and improve
learning outcomes

One area that I think I need to develop in the online environment is peer interactions. I have started with my Year 13 students as they started to produce a peer revision document via Google slides.

I have noticed that students to listen to the feedback you give other students and then they will often go back and change answers based on the feedback just given. For example, when I have used nearpod and then comment on a piece of work that a student has done, I can see other students editing their answers. When I share a good piece of work, students will be encouraged and through the message chat, ask if I can review their work, and share it with others too.

My next development will be to try and encourage some peer work in groups using google docs – as our students are used to using this in the ICT room.

Supporting pupils to work independently can improve learning outcomes

Currently I am thinking of ways to improve the opportunities for students to work independently online. As most students will be working from home this will generally see students working independently as they perhaps sit in front of their computer/tablet/phone and complete work, so how can we maximise this time?

The research from the EEF suggests that one way would be to encourage students to reflect on their work. One way that I have tried to encourage this is by using Nearpod or FORMS, while colleagues have used google docs – we then comment on the students as they write and offer feedback. We then encourage them to think about how they could improve their work by using questions such as,

“You have mentioned x but do not provide an example. Which example would help make your argument stronger A or B? Think about why that might be the case.”

Another consideration is how students can seek support if they are having difficulties. Perhaps a sheet the students can refer to if having issues with technical issues such as uploading work – or where to get help if needed – Hand up, Group chat, email teacher perhaps? I think colourful icon based help sheets really do help and as students are spending alot of time of the screen at the moment, something that can be printed out / posted home that is short and clear like a checklist will really help.

Different approaches to remote learning suit different types of content and pupils

In this new world of remote learning, there are so many different approaches, all of which have their different strengths and weaknesses. As a teacher we need to consider the best approaches to match our classes and the students learning needs, just as we would when considering different approaches in the classroom.

In geography I use card sort activities and while this works well in the classroom, I have had to adapt the approach for online learning. So I now use Nearpod and the draw it slide. I create a photo of my card sort and then ask students to colour code the cards using the drawing tools – Thanks to Mrs Rush for sharing that approach with me!

Some students like to have a sense of competition and online games like Kahoot can really help to consolidate knowledge – but it needs to be the right knowledge – and other forms of assessment need to also be used to create a snap shoot of the students understanding of the topic. Using Kahoot, or FORMS to generate MCQ are an excellent way to help students retain key ideas and knowledge but don’t forget assessment is more than just quizes…

So when planning online lessons, consider how you might try to develop different activities and assessment opportunities so students have a varied online diet…

Week three of lockdown has now finished and I am 50 live lessons in. We currently run a four week timetable so one more week to finish off my full teaching load. So what developments to my practice have I been working on this week? Using MS Forms for student assessments.

Using MS Forms to assess students work.

Over the last week I have been experimenting with the best way to assess students in the online environment, particularly as we have exams coming up that need to be delivered online. I started by using just a simple Word document with the exam question written at the top and shared this with students via Teams as an assignment. However, this method seemed to bring about lots of issues for students doing the work on their phones, or on Ipads.

When I posted a Year 9 exam in Word and asked students to edit the document with their answers, again there were issues – and I think with was part down to my expectation that students are comfortable with editing Word documents – this is not always the case – is it something we teach in school?

So to focus the students on the answers rather than the formating – I moved to Forms. This gives students a directed place to input their answers without the need to worry about formatting which can be a distraction.

Setting up the form – reducing marking load.

My first effort was a simple 6 mark question for my GCSE group. There was space to write and that was about it.

I set up the number of points for the question in the Form and then sent it to the students via the Assignment option – I just clicked on Assignment, from existing and then found the form in my list. I could also post the share link in the meeting chat if needed.

Students have said that they found this easier to fill in on their Ipads and phones, so that is good news.

Feedback time.

Time to feedback and I found this a quick process. I can bring up a student’s answer at a time and then see how long the student has taken to complete the answer. This is helpful – and perhaps might highlight the copy and paste students 🙂

To provide feedback, just click on the points box next to the question and type in the number and then for this question I provided feedback by clicking on the “?” box at the top and then wrote my feedback here. This box is designed for an overall comment of all of the work, and each question itself has a “?” box for feedback on each question if there is more than one. Once done, you just click on the > next to the student name (I have blanked the name out) to move onto the next student.

This is a teacher marked question so I then started to explore auto marked questions as well.

Moving forward – using different types of question

I started to think about using multiple-choice questions to assess students, and clearly, the key here is the quality of the question and the range of answers – too obvious and it makes the question meaningless really.

I then started to think about saving time by providing feedback to the students for each question, so that if they get the auto marked question wrong, they will know why…. This is just a case of clicking on the “question bubble” next to the answer choice and then adding your feedback.

Whole class diagnostics

When a test that has multiple types of questions has been completed you can get a class diagnostic page which is really helpful for future planning. An example is shown below. Clicking on more details gives you a breakdown telling you which students got it right or wrong.

Week four of lockdown coming up, and the second online parents evening. I miss the buzz of the classroom!

Week 3 of lockdown 3 and I am continuing to develop my TEAMS lessons. Over the last few days I have been developing and exploring the use of nearpod for my remote “live” lessons for KS4 and KS3.

So what have I learnt so far, and where am I going next…

Integrating with Powerpoint.

Most of my lessons are delivered via Powerpoint – I have tried Google slides, but I have been using Powerpoint for so long that I guess I have stuck with it because I am familiar with it.

I started using nearpod as I wanted to increase the number of interactive elements that would support AfL when delivering “live lessons”, and wanted to reduce the number of “shared screens” I had to go through using Teams.

I started with my Powerpoint that I had already created. This one is based on the Progress in Geography KS3 series by Hodder I adapted the Powerpoint that was available on the dynamic learning website (subscription required)

A PDF version of the Powerpoint is available here.

I then uploaded the Powerpoint to nearpod – there are loads of Youtube videos that show you how to do that, so I won’t go into details here. I then started to think about the activities that I would like the students to complete which would allow me to assess their understanding, and also activities that would add an element of interaction for the students.

I started with some starter activities to recall place knowledge – Where different continents are, and also where key UK capital cities and cities are. I used the Draw it tool, and placed a base map of the world, and then posed a suitable question. I did the same for the UK cities.

This would allow me to see whether place knowledge I consider to be “known” by the students actual is or not. If not, then next lesson it would be time to go over these points. I can watch the students work live and then give feedback there and then – really powerful.

My next assessment opportunity is a Collaborate board – a chance for students to virtually stick post it notes on a board – again I wanted to see whether the students could recall the 7 continents of the world.

My next interactive page is a youtube video, but in nearpod, you can also add questions to various points on the video. You can either control the pace of the video or let the students work through the video themself. As a teacher, you can see the comments or answers to MCQs in real-time, which again is useful AfL which I can either address there and then – I normally do using the mic on Teams or next lesson.

After a few of my PowerPoint slides, I then decided to add a virtual field trip – to the glacier we were studying. Easy to do as I just selected Fieldtrip and then searched for the right location. Although not AfL related, it does add that interactive element for students.

I’ll add more elements as I become more familiar with nearpod in the future such as quizzes and matching exercises, but for now below is a preview of my first effort and also a preview of my first video that I have added questions to.

https://share.nearpod.com/nB5yWq0O9cb

https://share.nearpod.com/FtS9bE3F9cb

Does it take a long time?

If you are starting by using a PowerPoint and then adding activities then it does not take too long, as you just add activity slides in between your own. Like everything, the more you add the longer it takes, but also the more useful it will be in the long run.

I shall see how this develops over the week and report back.

Week two of remote learning via teams.

Has it only been two weeks! I feel like I have been back about four weeks. Remote learning now feels like the norm and I am getting used to teaching in front of a black screen and lots of colourful circles!

I have tried to focus this week on making lessons a little more dynamic – prompted by a Humanities Twilight session we had on Tuesday where the team shared some really excellent practice.

So how have my Teams lessons changed in the last week…

Using the tools with Teams itself.

I started the week by exploring how I could give feedback to students in real time, as they worked on a written answer. I began to use the Assignment tool in Teams and uploaded a blank Word document for students to write down their class notes and answers to questions. So what have I learnt….

Organisation is the key.

The first couple of times I set assignments I started with a blank Word document and then after adding that to the assignment, I went in and edited the document adding questions. I discovered that by doing it that way round, some of my students did not seem to pick up on the changes I had made, even though the changes were made before I pressed the assign button.

My new method is to set the word document up before and to save to the one drive. I can then find the document in Teams and attached to the assignment with the edits made. This seems to work well and all of the students can see the work as I intend it to look.

What makes this really powerful is the ability to look at the students work while they are typing and providing live feedback orally. I organise myself by having two tabs open in my web browser – one has the TEams meeting running and the other has the Teams Assignment open. That way, I can have my Mic on, and then using the assignment tab to scroll through work and offer feedback. The feedback relates to the student concerned but all can hear. This is useful as all the students will learn from any misconceptions I have highlighted. It is interesting to see how when scrolling through work, students will be editing their answers based on the feedback I have just provided.

This all takes time though, as students get used to working on the new platform. I have seen a greater uptake as the week as progressed as the use of a word document within Teams becomes more routine for students.

Using the rubric

I have also started to experiment with placing a rubric on the assignments, to add with marking. I have started with my A Level group and have used the mark scheme to produce a suitable rubric. benefits are that the students can see what I am looking for, and it also allows me to quickly assess work as well.

Using Forms within Teams

In order to gauge the impact that my teaching is having on the students, and as a form of assessment, I have been setting mini MCQ for the students using Forms. I have found these to be quick and easy to compile and as they are self marked it helps to cut down on teacher workload. I can then spend more time addressing any misconceptions.

I have a depaertmental subscription to Internet Geography and there are some wonderful resources to use here – and their MCQ are brilliant. Not only are they linked to the spec, but they also come in different formats ready to use, MS Teams included. So a few clicks and I have a MQC ready to fly.

The great thing about MS Forms is that you can also get a break down of student performance – so I can spend time focusing on the areas or the students where I need to.

Using Nearpod

I have also started to explore using nearpod to have more interactive sections to my lesson, and I think I will write a piece on this in more detail next time. However, the feedback I am getting from the students is that they enjoy the interactives elements. So far I have tried the draw it, collaborate board, fuieldtrip and poll features with my Yr 11 class and it seemed to go down well. I just uploaded my orginal powerpoint and then added the interactive elements.

A final tip….

For the first week, I have been using youtube vidoes as part of my lesson, puting links in my Powerpoint, and then switching to the tab in my internet browser to share with the kids. I found the constant sharing and unsharing annoying as I then had to scroll through my powerpoint again to get to the right section. I discovered this week however that if I insert the youtube video (or GCSE Pod for that matter) into my Powerpoint then when I present the PowerPoint via Teams the video will play within Powerpoint, so no more switching what I am sharing! Happy days!

Until next time….