Creating my Innovation Plan

One of the early assignments in the DLL program at Lamar University was the creation of an innovation plan.  After doing some research, I decided that I wanted to establish an in-class blended learning environment in my traditional classroom.  While the high school where I teach offers some blended, or hybrid, learning opportunities within our course of studies, we have never had enough students register for the online language options for the courses to run.  Additionally, I believe that frequent face-to-face instruction is important in world language learning.  There are incidental speaking and listening situations and cultural learning opportunities that arise in the traditional classroom that are not recreated as effectively in a completely remote learning environment.  Through my research, I came to understand that a blended learning environment has potential benefits for world language learners.  It allows for personalized learning in a way that whole group instruction does not.  

When I first learned about differentiated instruction as an undergraduate student, I saw its value, but I had difficulty implementing it.  I could not imagine a way to differentiate instruction for each of the one hundred students I teach everyday, so I opted to provide a wide variety of activities for the entire class.  While I may have reached more learners, I was not individualizing learning for them.  Fast forward twenty years, and technology and accessibility have made differentiated, personalized learning a more attainable goal. By using new technology and incorporating elements of blended learning into our traditional bell schedule, I find that I can provide opportunities fort students to focus on the skills where they are the weakest, thus making learning more individualized.  This environment also gives students more responsibility for their own learning.

Implementing my Innovation Plan

I began to pilot my innovation plan at the beginning of the 2019-2020 school year with my French II Honors and French II College Preparatory students.  I wanted to see if the in-class blended learning environment could be as effective for my reluctant learners as it was for self-motivated, or perhaps I should say grade-motivated, students.  Although my French II Honors students were hesitant to try something new, they eventually came to see the value of having more freedom to develop their skills at their own pace.  As for the French II College Preparatory students, while they required more monitoring, most of them enjoyed and benefited from the in-class blended learning environment.  When students are not intrinsically motivated, I think that there is a temptation for teachers to try to control the learning environment for these students.  What I found, however, was that these students responded positively to taking responsibility for their learning.  At first, it was worrisome to relinquish that control, but many students rose to the occasion when they were relieved of the yoke of some traditional class structures.

Unfortunately, the pilot of my innovation plan was cut short by COVID-19, but we did complete several units of instruction before this occurred.  Through the process, I learned that many students are reluctant to try new ways of learning if the traditional way is working for their GPAs.  Because of this, I know that I need to be more clear with future students about how a new way of learning can benefit them, even if it feels uncomfortable at first.  Additionally, I know that I do not have all of the answers.  No one does.  It is important that I listen to my students.  They have some excellent ideas.  This summer I am working to incorporate their feedback into creating an even more significant learning environment for future students.  I look forward to establishing in-class blended learning in the other courses that I teach as well.

Learning from Experience

There are several changes that I will be making as I move forward with my innovation plan.  First, I want the blended learning environment to be a part of almost each class period.  During the pilot, I  provided traditional learning for about two weeks, and then students worked on their skill development activities for three or four consecutive days.  I plan to break vocabulary and grammar instruction into smaller lessons that will last about ten to fifteen minutes each day.  The remainder of each class meeting, students will have the opportunity to work independently, in small groups, or with me to meet their individual learning needs.  

I will also include more project-based learning that incorporates vocabulary, grammar topics, and culture, while allowing students to have more choice, ownership, and voice in their learning.  My goal is to eliminate traditional testing in the next few years in favor of performance-based assessments.  As I work toward that goal, I will continue to seek feedback from students and to reflect on how students are doing as quizzes and tests begin to disappear from their learning environment.  It will also be important to look at scores on the Advanced Placement French Language and Culture examination to be sure that in-class blended learning and project-based learning is effective.

Influencing Others

One of the most surprising realizations as I have implemented my innovation plan is how open many of my world language colleagues are to incorporating some of what I am doing into their courses.  I have been offering some professional development opportunities with one of my colleagues, and they have been well-received.  Perhaps we will offer sessions beyond our department at some point, but we are not there…yet.  For now, it is good to know that world language students beyond my classroom are benefiting from my innovation plan.  The journey continues.

As I approach the conclusion of my Digital Learning and Leading (DLL) experience at Lamar University, I find myself returning to the first item I ever posted on my ePortfolio, which is a quote attributed to Lau Tzu:  “The journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step.”  Little did I know then how true that statement would be for this learning adventure.

My educational experience prior to beginning the DLL program was very much a grade-focused absorption and regurgitation of information presented by my “sage on the stage” teachers and professors.  Having grown up in an era before information became ubiquitous with the Internet, I learned in an environment where my classmates and I depended upon our instructors to disseminate their knowledge to us.  After some time, we would use our lecture notes to prepare and take a test to show that we had “mastered” the content.  This system worked for me as a learner, although I now wonder exactly how much more I could have learned in a different environment.

At the beginning my DLL journey, I was a reluctant learner when it came to choice, ownership, and voice through authentic learning experiences (COVA).  I had enrolled in this program because I wanted to reach the Master’s Degree +60 column of our payscale before our contract expired, and I wanted to do it for reasonable tuition.  Consequently, I wanted to know what I had to do to earn an “A”, and I was frustrated that there was no preset formula for success.  I have never been afraid of hard work, but the idea of having to chart my own path was uncomfortable and intimidating.

When I submitted my very first assignment in the DLL program, I had no idea whether I had done good work, as the professor would define that term.  In the past I had always had a sense of whether I had submitted a quality product for the coursework I had to complete.  This time, however, I felt as though I were throwing a dart in the dark; I had no idea if I was on target.  My sense of success had always been based upon external validation or the degree to which my instructor thought I had done well.  With my first DLL assignment, I had no idea what the professor wanted, but I now see that was the point.

Although our DLL courses are not long in duration, I quickly found that I was no longer pleased with the quality of the work that I had done for my first project.  I asked for and was granted the opportunity to rework my Growth Mindset Plan, which I did. That is the moment that I began to realize that learning was not always about the grade.  To quote Dr. Dwayne Harapnuik, “It’s about the learning.”  Although my mindset was beginning to change, I was still not completely converted… yet.

When we were first given the assignment of developing an innovation plan, I confess to seeing it more as an assignment than a way to change my students’ learning experiences.  However, as I became more invested in the DLL program and a greater believer in the COVA approach, I began to see how my innovation plan of developing an in-class blended learning environment could become a reality in my classroom.  As a world language teacher, I am fortunate to have relative autonomy with the learning environment that I establish.  That has given me the opportunity to experiment with new teaching and learning strategies.  At the beginning of the 2019-2020 school year, I began to pilot the in-class blended learning environment in my French II Honors classes.  What had been an assignment became a reality.

An additional challenge presented to learners in the DLL program is creating significant learning environments (CSLE).  The world language content area lends itself to authentic experiences, making connections, and project-based learning.  As I implemented my innovation plan, I began to look at ways that I could move away from traditional testing.  While traditional tests and quizzes are certainly the easiest way of assessing student learning, they rarely, if ever, are a reflection of students’ ability to communicate effectively in an authentic context.  I began to provide assessment opportunities where students show their skills development in a manner that mirrors the ways that they may use their language skills in their careers or when traveling.  

As I introduced in-class blended learning and more authentic assessments in my courses, I received pushback from my students.  Like me, they understand the way “traditional” school works:  listen to the teacher’s lecture, take some notes, study, take the test, move on to the next thing.  I was asking them to do activities that required them to think and to take more responsibility for their own learning.  It took some time and negotiation, but most students eventually came to see the value of this new environment and to appreciate the opportunity to have choice, ownership, and voice in their own learning.

While EDLD 5320 brings me to the end of my Lamar experience, my journey to improve students’ learning experiences through the use of COVA+CSLE will continue through the rest of my career.  Although I was a reluctant learner at first, I am a COVA convert now.  Because I believe in what I have learned in the DLL program, I am eager to share what I know with others and become a digital leader.  Another French teacher at my school is also a Lamar DLL graduate, and for the last two years we have teamed up to provide professional development opportunities to our World Language Department colleagues as Tech Academy presenters. The topic of our recent session was project-based learning.  We began with an introduction of project-based learning, offered some examples, and discussed the ways in which technology tools may be useful. We also provided one-on-one assistance with technology tools that were new to some teachers. We did all of this using Google Meet to respect recent social distancing guidelines. By the end of the day, we asked teachers to submit the project they created for their students, thus bringing COVA into the experience. We have received positive feedback, and we are encouraged that so many teachers are willing to try new approaches to teaching and learning. I would never have had the knowledge or confidence to take on this leadership role without the DLL program.

Despite the many challenges that I encountered in my first few DLL courses, the only way for me to truly understand the value of the COVA-based learning approach was to be thrown into the deep end.  I would never have walked there on my own.  I would have run once I found myself in over my head.  However, because I had to sink or swim from the beginning, I found the strokes that work for me.

I am far beyond the first step of my journey in providing innovative learning experiences for my students, but my journey continues.  I look forward to seeing where I will go and who will accompany me.

As a high school teacher, I have witnessed firsthand the power of social media among my students.  Social media itself is neither good nor evil. As with many things in modern society, it is how we choose to use it that counts.  It can be a tool employed to educate and to organize positive action, and it can be a weapon wielded to hurt others.

I admit to sometimes feeling powerless in the face of the societal pressures that confront my students daily.  Although I am not a significant consumer of social media myself, I admit to checking in on Facebook a few times each day.  While I log on to see what my family and friends are doing and to see the latest pictures of their children and pets, I also find myself confronted with angry posts, not directed at myself – I will not tolerate that toxicity in my life – but at public figures including actors, politicians, and reality personalities.  I cannot help but think: If this is what responsible adults are posting, what do my students see when they check their feeds on Instagram and other social networking sites?

Educators have a professional and ethical responsibility to instruct students in the appropriate use of technology and its pitfalls, including social media.  It sometimes seems like a losing battle, however. I talk to my students about developing a positive digital footprint, but their social media feeds communicate that it is socially acceptable to tear people down online.  As Monica Lewinsky discussed in her TEDTalk, there are entire industries that have developed whose purpose is to earn money through the humiliation of others – especially celebrities – by posting their dirty laundry online (TED, 2015).  We, as a society, excuse it, and thereby condone it. It is not surprising, therefore, that our children consider us hypocrites when we tell them that cyberbullying is not acceptable.

Going back to Lewinsky’s TEDTalk again, I was inspired by her suggestion that a societal movement is necessary to change the way that American society views the use of social media (TED, 2015).  As mentioned in the book Bullying: Beyond the Schoolyard, the vast majority of school-aged adolescents are using social media appropriately (Hinduja and Patchin, 2015).  What we hear about in the media, however, are those who make hurtful choices when it comes to their Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook posts.  The sensational is more newsworthy than the sensible. Our children see this, and because they want to be “liked,” quite a few leave a negative digital footprint in their wake with cruel posts and comments.

Perhaps it is time for the silent majority of the public to become the vocal majority.  We need to spread the word that technology should be used to inspire instead of intimidate.  We need to silence those who choose to spread hate and hurt online by making it socially unacceptable to do so. Personally, given the choice, I would rather live in a world that focuses on the positive as opposed to one that trades in the negative.

References

Hinduja, S., & Patchin, J. W. (2015). Bullying beyond the schoolyard: Preventing and responding to cyberbullying (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.

TED. (2015, March 20). The price of shame: Monica Lewinsky [Video file].  Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_8y0WLm78U

The Internet has made the exchange of information easier and more efficient.  When encountering a cultural or historical question that I cannot answer, I have frequently asked my students to look it up on their phones.  For the most part, there is no longer a need to go to the library to find information in a reference book. The most up-to-date information is available online.

The ease with which students can find information online and the facility with which they can copy and paste that information into research papers and presentations has reinforced the importance of teaching them about proper use and documentation of what they find online.  Each time I assign a research project of any sort, there will inevitably be several students who copy and paste information or images from the internet, either from lack of knowledge or laziness. Do they not realize that it is just as easy for me to copy and paste their text into a Google search as it is for them to copy and paste it from an internet site?

The reality is that today’s high school students have grown up with an exchange of information that was unknown to previous generations of students.  When you have to open a book and take notes from it, most students recognize that they need to attribute that information to the author. However, many of my students seem to believe that information found on the internet is either common knowledge or free to use and present as one’s own.

As educators, it is our duty to help our students learn the skills that they need to avoid the legal and ethical pitfalls of failing to use and cite their sources appropriately.  We need to introduce them to Creative Commons sites like pixabay.com, where they can use images without concern for licensing. We should provide examples of paraphrasing and opportunities to practice this skill.  I have encountered many students who believe that merely changing a few words is adequate to make the language their own. They do not realize that they are still culpable of plagiarizing, even if they cite the source appropriately.  We should be offering ongoing chances to put paraphrasing to work across content areas.

Citing sources must also be an important part of all curricular areas.  Students today have the benefit of online applications such as EasyBib and Noodle Tools that will create the citations for them if they enter the information correctly.  Students need to be reminded to keep an ongoing list of the resources that they are using as they do their research. I have encountered many students who try to create their “Works Cited” after they have completed their project.  They have no idea which sites they have used, and their list of sources is essentially fiction.

Finally, students need to be able to evaluate the quality of the sources that they are using.  It is tempting to choose the first websites that result from a Google search, but often they are not the best that students could choose.  They may have erroneous information or express opinions instead of facts. Students should be taught how to determine the value of a site for themselves.

If students do not cite their sources or use their research with proper attribution, there could be very real consequences for them as they continue through their education and professional lives.  Schools need to ensure that students have the information that they need and the skill set necessary to navigate the legal and ethical issues related to copyright infringement and plagiarism. 

As a high school teacher, I am acutely aware that social media is an important part of my students’ lives.  Having grown up in the 1980s and 1990s, I have always used a variety of methods to communicate with my family and friends – telephone calls, email, letters, etc.  However, for most of my students, these means of communications are as archaic as the eight-track cassette was for me. They have had access to various forms of social media almost from the time they were able to type with two thumbs, so the idea of making an actual phone call seems pointless when they could just message the other person. We need not even mention the possibility of sending a letter in the mail!

Among my high school students, social media is also the way that they express their opinions and seek approval by their peers.  I teach many intelligent, creative students who use social media in a positive, appropriate way to share their work, talents, and ideas with the community. Unfortunately, however, there are also many students who use social media in a way that is hurtful toward others.  They post opinions that they would never say to someone in person, but because they are behind a screen, they feel somehow protected. The reality is that rude comments are just as hurtful when posted on the internet as they are when spoken. In fact, they may be more so.  If a student makes a snide remark to another student in the hallway, perhaps only a handful of students overhear the comment. When one student posts a cruel rumor about another student online, however, that comment may be shared multiple times until a large portion of the school population is aware of it.

When I look at the teenagers in my high school, I see so much potential and promise for our world.  Unfortunately, I also see many young people who are either unaware or do not care about the potential harm they are doing when they post rude comments or rumors about others on social media.  They may think that what they post is funny and they may celebrate the number of likes that they receive, but they may also be unaware of the digital footprint that they are leaving behind. There are things that I said and did as a teenager that I would never want my employers or my students to know about today.  Fortunately for me, there is no lasting record of my teenage years! For today’s students, however, the posts that they make will never truly disappear, even after they have deleted them.

If we want today’s teenagers to grow into responsible contributing members of society whose past does not follow them forever, it is essential that they learn about the effects that their digital footprints have on their future opportunities.  I believe that this education needs to begin in early elementary school. If students begin to reflect upon the consequences of their actions when they are young, perhaps we can help to build a kinder society.

The reality of education today is that teachers are frequently called upon to teach students more than content. Teachers are asked to help students become contributing members of the community.  As technology resources proliferate, especially among young people, there is a need for teachers to help students understand the value of the digital resources at their disposal as well as the appropriate way to conduct themselves when using these resources.  Consequently, teachers often find themselves weaving the lessons of digital citizenship into the subject matter that they are teaching.

In his book Digital Citizenship in Schools: Nine Elements all Students Should Know, Mike Ribble (2015) states, “The concept of digital citizenship, then, reinforces the positive aspects of technology so that everyone can work and play in this digital world” (location 331).  Ribble (2015) breaks the concept of digital citizenship into nine elements:

• Digital access
• Digital commerce
• Digital communication
• Digital literacy
• Digital etiquette
• Digital law
• Digital rights and responsibilities
• Digital health and wellness
• Digital security

He categorizes these elements into three groups:  respect, educate, and protect (Ribble, 2015). While Ribble’s ideas of digital citizenship are broad enough for today and to take us into the future, he was not the first to bring this concept to light.  Moor’s (1985) definition of computer ethics is “the analysis of the nature and social impact of computer technology and the corresponding formulation and justification of policies for the ethical use of such technology” (p. 7).  Although he did not use the term “digital citizenship,” Moor’s definition encompasses the same overarching themes of personal and societal responsibility. Finally, the CHARACTER COUNTS! program developed by the Josephson Institute of Ethics outlines six pillars of digital citizenship – trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring, and citizenship – that allow individuals to participate in various aspects of society in a positive manner (Ribble, 2015).

Reflecting upon what I have read and learned about digital citizenship, I have developed my own definition of this concept:

Being a good digital citizen means choosing to use technology in a responsible manner to be a positive change agent in one’s own life and the larger community while recognizing and actively combating misuse of technology.  Furthermore, a good digital citizen seeks opportunities to minimize the digital divide to allow for more equitable access to technology in society.

As teachers, we are all digital citizens to some extent.  Some of us may only use technology to enter grades and respond to emails while others are proficient users of social media both in and beyond the classroom.  As Ribble (2015) explains, “Good digital citizens work to help create a society of users who help others learn how to use technology appropriately” (location 487-493).  We have both an opportunity and a responsibility as educators to help our students develop a better understanding of what is appropriate and what is not with regard to their use of digital resources both in and beyond the classroom.

As I have watched cell phones, tablets, and laptop computers inundate our classrooms, I have seen the advantages that they offer for affording new and more engaging learning experiences.  However, these tools can only accomplish these goals if students are using them in a positive manner. Students need to think about the short term and long term consequences of how they use technology.  While we, as adults, may think that this should be self-evident, the reality is that this is not the case. Our students need our ongoing guidance and modeling to become good digital citizens.

References

Moor, J. H. (1985). What is computer ethics? Metaphilosophy, 16(4), 266-275.

Ribble, M. (2015). Digital citizenship in schools: Nine elements all students should know (3rd ed.) [Kindle Book].