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Wow, that's impressive.  Can we really make it work for Alpha Public Schools?

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Wow, that's impressive.  Can we really make it work for Alpha Public Schools?

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Yes, we can, but it will take a commitment across the board to seeing the plan through.  Dropping the ball on any one part could mean that the plan will fail.  On the other hand, that's why I spent a lot of time on the research, so we can avoid most problems and build a blended learning system that send our test scores into orbit -- and help our students become self-motivated learners and leaders!

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COVA stands for Choice, Ownership, Voice, and Authenticity.  COVA is the "secret sauce" that makes this plan perfect for all learners. This model was created by Dr. Dwayne Harapnuik and provides the best framework for building meaningful blended learning courses.  You can learn more at:
http://www.harapnuik.org/?page_id=6991

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This isn't a huge overhaul to our system. It's more like leveraging the tools we already have and the system we're already using to create blended learning courses that make our students accountable for their own learning. It will require changing the way we think about learning, but the payoff in student success will be worth it. This school was started by parents who wanted something different for their students.  Let's make our school truly different by individualizing instruction for EVERY student.

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Yeah, but not all learning should happen online.

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Yeah, but not all learning should happen online.

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Of course it shouldn't!  A lot of the best learning happens offline!  Blended Learning allows students to do most of the passive learning (like watching an instructional video or reading a passage) online, while spending most of the in-class time in active learning, where most of the educational payoff is.  For example, this mural was planned and created using a smaller-scale version of my blended learning plan. Most of the planning of this project happened before I moved to California. I collaborated with teachers I hadn't met yet to plan this mural using collaborative tools that we already have. We shared resources online, and planned activities for students so that, by the time I met them during Summer Jam, the other teachers and student leaders had already worked with students to ensure that they understood the mural project and their part in it, and had already completed their prep-work before even touching a paintbrush.  The flexibility of this system allowed for everyone to adapt the project to suit their needs, and to access project materials from anywhere -- even from a U-Haul traveling across the country!

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This mural was painted by incoming freshmen at Cindy Avitia High School, San José, CA

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How do we apply the research to our own system?

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How do we apply the research to our own system?

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1. Our teachers will need professional development before, during, and after the rollout of the system

2. Ample teacher support while implementing and using the system, so that they can teach while learning.

3. Design flexible learning activities so students with special needs can access available supports and/or self-differentiate their learning as needed.

4. Students and teachers must be trained in Digital Citizenship, and strong DigCit norms must be modeled and enforced consistently throughout the Alpha system.

5. Plan the rollout in stages so it's not a lot to adjust to at once.

6. Ensure that all end-users receive adequate tech resources and tech support to ensure that the system runs smoothly and all problems are anticipated.

7. Create all courses with COVA (choice, ownership, voice, and authenticity.)

8. Integrate specialists (SpEd, counselors, ELL specialists, learning coaches, etc...) into the learning environment so that they may support teachers and students within the blended learning system as well as in-person.

9. Provide teachers with adequate planning and collaborative work time to create quality online resources and learning activities.

10. Assess the system routinely and apply insight to constant improvement of the system.

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Most blended learning systems that failed to produce the necessary goals failed because:
*     improper balance of online/ in-person teaching
*     the system was designed for devices, not students
*     inadequate teacher professional development/ support
*     system was a poor fit for some or all students
*     system had too many technical errors/ inadequate tech support
*     improper follow-through over time to address growth issues and changing needs of an organization

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*  The combination of in-class teaching and online resources.
*  Using technology to automate administrative tasks.
*  Using data from online learning to track student progress and change instruction to suit student needs.
*  Creating an online learning environment filled with resources students can return to as many times as they need to to understand a concept.
*  Allowing students to have choices throughout the learning process.
* Promoting creation over consumption of learning materials.
*  Giving students ownership of their learning process and the products they create to share what they've learned.
*  Student and teacher collaboration through both online and in-person learning experiences.
*  Using online resources to assist students with special educational needs, language assistance, and emotional considerations.
*  Making learning mobile so students have access to course materials at any time.
*  Learning in a blended environment helps students learn skills that help them to be more successful in higher education and the workplace, where they will likely collaborate and learn online.

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Here's my literature review.  There are a lot of good resources here that show how blended learning will help our students succeed, and also how we can avoid some common problems associated with blended learning.  I'm going to break it down for you into what worked, what could be done better, and how to apply what was learned to our own school blended learning system.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OOHgAw8Ot0EqE9WfH1zx4m1xouNC3Drsvno2pW-pthg/edit?usp=sharing

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Looking at the most current research to support my innovation plan.

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How do we keep our promise to our students?

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How do we keep our promise to our students?

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We do:
*  use student data to monitor student growth
*  use technology to present lessons to students
*  use technology to collaborate as a staff
*  provide students with Chromebooks and access to Google Apps for Education

We have room for growth in:
*  using technology to differentiate learning for all students
*  providing students with choice and voice
*  maximizing active, authentic learning experiences in class
*  increasing student engagement
* increasing student ownership of their learning process

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Are we delivering on this promise?