Balancing the Act of Learning... and Teaching

Have you heard the term "blended learning" yet?  If you haven't then I'd love to introduce it to you with a publication titled The Rise of Blended Learning.  Once you get a better understanding of the idea, the rest of this post might be easier to digest.  For those that will not read the link--blended learning is essentially a learning environment in which teachers and students use both computer based (typically online) instruction blended with traditional teaching methods and classroom experiences.  The teacher reverts from an all-knowing talking-head to a guide that helps when someone is struggling to understand or needs some help.

There is a weathering storm of educators across our nation that has been working diligently to transform traditional classrooms into more student-centered learning environments.  A recent article in the New York Times spotlighted an entire school community that has been forever changed by the ambitious adoption of 1:1 computing and a blended learning philosophy.  There was a seemingly endless stream of similar success (and failure) stories making news a couple weeks ago during the first annual Digital Learning Day.  It seems almost daily that more school communities are making the jump toward a technology infused, digitally enhanced teaching and learning structure.

So what prevents everyone from doing it? There are many logistical nightmares facing educators interested in making the transformation from analog to digital, so-to-speak, with cost, infrastructure and teacher training at tops on many lists.  However, many schools are finding incredible achievement gains, increases in student motivation and greater utility of resources as major benefits to the transformation.  But this concern is a whole other conversation.

I'd like to consider my classroom a crudely constructed blended learning experiment.  I'm very fortunate to have great colleagues that are open to change and have a willingness to learn.  And why, I ask myself, are these teachers and administrators open to change?  I believe it is rooted in the impact it's having on students.  They see the increased levels of student engagement when learning is driven by a modern tool (netbook, iPad) and controlled by the child.  They see the impact on a teacher's ability to collect real-time data with programs like Ten Marks Math and Lexia Reading.  Blended learning also includes the use of devices as tools for collaboration and creation for both teachers and students, alike.  It's a completely different model of learning that puts the world's most powerful learning tools in the hands of the learner.  When educators have an opportunity to experience first-hand how a transformed learning environment empowers children to learn differently than years ago, it's hard to dispute the need for all children to having similar learning opportunities.    

Evolving Education

Last week Apple made a major announcement about digital text books and authoring tools that will undoubtedly have an impact on the education market and community.  One part of the announcement included the release of the iTunes U app that puts an enormous collection of educational courses at the fingertips of anyone with the app.  The content covers a vast spectrum of study topics and has great materials for teaching and learning.  iTunes U will connect people all over the world with access to educational content like never before.  How can this not change the future of textbooks and learning? At the time of this post there were already 3 million iTunes U downloads.
 
This means there is a reliable, scholarly repository of information for anyone to access.  What does it mean for your children and their school work?  Will it have an immediate impact in your child's classroom, home or anywhere else they have an enabled learning device?  Like many-a-thing in education it must be played with, learned, and applied in appropriate contexts.  I can tell you that I downloaded the app and did a quick search for ecosystems because that is what our current research topic is for fourth grade.  I was surprised to find an entire course on ecosystems.  The course was not created for 9 and 10 year olds but some of the videos and other materials are definitely relevant for students investigating Earth's biomes.  So what did I do with what I found?  I shared it.  I shared it with students, teachers, parents, and you!  Some of the students understood the language and vocabulary while it was over the heads of others.  But that's what education has become.  What works for one, might not work for another and that's okay.  Right now, this is another tool to add to the belt for the battle of innovation in education.

Looking ahead, imagine what access to this kind of information will do for learners.  Think of the possibilities for accessing reliable content when researching and learning at any age.  And I haven't mentioned iBooks 2 or iBooks Author because I am still investigating and looking for an opportunity to toggle with them.  From what I have seen, this is a new, intuitive kind of textbook "experience".  The interactivity has set a new president for what digital textbooks will look like and how functional they should be.  Of course there are practical concerns to address, such as the need to have Apple products to use some of the apps.  Instead I choose to focus on the progress that has been made when three major American textbook publishers partner with one of the most influential and successful technology companies in the world.  Until access to this content is available in every public school classroom across our country, I'll continue to learn about new educational tools and find ways to incorporate them into the hands of the students I teach everyday.