Change is Hard!

Change is hard!  When one spends years practicing a skill, to unlearn that skill and perform in a different way is difficult at best!  Let's take riding a bike, for example.  See what happens when you make one small change - turning the handlebar left makes the bike go right, and turning the handlebar right makes the bike go left...

Through training and support, funded by Raise Your Hand Texas, Birdville ISD is asking teachers to rethink the way they plan for and implement learning experiences for students.  We believe that one-size-fits-all actually fits no one, and are therefore working to personalize learning for all students through Blended Learning.

This year English Language Arts teachers at Richland and Haltom High Schools are working to personalize learning through station rotations and flipped learning models.  A demonstration classroom has been identified at each campus and we will soon welcome visitors to these campuses to see first hand the transformation that is taking place.  These two campuses will be in their second year of implementation.

At Shannon High School, we will launch year one of flex blended learning in all content areas.  A personalized student experience will be realized with online learning experiences, a mentoring program, and a revised campus schedule to facilitate the anticipated transformation.

To learn more about Birdville's implementation, view our blended pillars here.

For questions or comments, please contact cheryl.mcknight@birdvilleschools.net, Blended Learning Project Manager.

Blended Learning Hits a Homerun!

Yesterday I met Payge Scoggins, freshman at Richland High School.  Payge and the freshman class at the three Birdville ISD High Schools are the first group of students to experience blended learning in their English Language Arts classrooms.  Blended is being implemented in Birdville ISD as a result of being awarded the Raising Blended Learners grant in April 2016.

This spring rather than completing a traditional research paper project, teachers Kate Chambers and Heather Palmer instead engaged their students in a research based Passion Project.  A focus of blended learning is to personalize learning for students and engage them in relevant learning experiences.  Kudos to all Birdville teachers striving to do exactly that each day!

Payge says, "I decided to put together this softball game event at first for a school project but soon it became even more special and meaningful to me.  My dream for my future career is to work with kids and adults who are disabled or have special needs.  My passion is to play softball so I thought I could put the two together and create this charity softball game.  All the donations we receive will go to the Special Olympics foundation."

Each member of the girls' softball team partnered with a special needs student and all enjoyed a fun game of softball - batting, running the bases, and playing the field.  One of the special needs students sang the National Anthem just before Laura Holt, Director of Special Education, threw out the first pitch.  NBC-5 covered the event and you can see the story here: http://www.nbcdfw.com/news/sports/Richland-Softball-Game-Raises-Money-for-Special-Olympics_Dallas-Fort-Worth-425404194.html

Payge saw an opportunity and hit a homerun by planning and coordinating the first Richland Charity Softball Game, raising $448 for Special Olympics.

See the Richland High Facebook story here:

From Consumption to Creation

Today we complete week two of the 2016-17 school year!  I was asked to share advice for a new teacher last night.  The excitement and adrenaline of starting a new career is quickly dwindling.  With the exception of maybe one, all of the teachers in our blended implementation are not first year teachers.  In fact, may of them would be considered seasoned veterans.  These teachers have been seen as masters of their trade.  They've earned that title and respect!  However, right now, some of them are feeling the anxiety of a new new teacher because they have accepted the challenge of changing the way instruction looks in the classroom and focusing on student-center, personalized, blended learning.  This transformation will not happen overnight, or in just a few weeks.  It will take months of practice, trying new strategies, failing, and trying something new.

My advice for any new teachers, and blended teachers is this:

1. Take care of yourself!  Develop a consistent routine of eating, sleeping, and exercising.
2. Remember why you chose to be a teacher - kids need adults who are passionate about them - socially, emotionally, and academically.
3. Take one day at a time and celebrate successes along the way.
4. Share the responsibility of designing learning experiences with your team.  No one should work in isolation.
5. And finally, shift your mindset to begin thinking of learning as creation, not consumption.  Provide opportunities for students to discover and learn.  Shift the responsibility of learning from the teacher to the student.  Ultimately, the students should be working harder that the teacher.

#BirdvilleBlended Station Rotations

As the 2016-17 school year began, so did Birdville Blended Learning (#BirdvilleBlended.)  One of the biggest changes in implementing blended learning involves a new model of teaching and learning that includes station rotations.  Stations in and of themselves are not new, however, applying this structure to a high school English class is a new concept for Birdville ISD teachers.  Admittedly, this is a challenge in some classrooms yet not one that won't be overcome!   As Mike Wilson, Haltom High School English 1 teacher stated early in the first week of school, "The kids are much more adaptable than we give them credit for."

So if this model is such a challenge, one may wonder, why bother?  I went back to the work of our blended academies this past summer and am reminded of the reasons Birdville ISD English teachers stated as to why stations:

1. Individualized learning (and pacing)
2. Focused, small group instruction
3. Differentiated lessons to meet students needs
4. Student choice and control (agency)
5. Engaging, novelty, and peer interaction
6. Build life skills such as communication, kindness, and supporting others

If we step back and take a look at the real purpose of blended learning we find that this model is about designing a student experience that focuses on preparing students for their future: college ready, workplace ready, and future ready, the BISD Portrait of a Graduate.  To achieve this goal students need to engage in rigorous learning that causes them to collaborate, think critically, create, and innovate.  Students need to be involved in goal setting and taking ownership and responsibility of their learning.  Every BISD student is a unique individual, with unique learning needs.  It is our responsibility to end average and provide the learning experience that our students deserve.

Cheryl McKnight

Raising Blended Learners Project Manager