GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — In a reversal of the classroom lecture approach to teaching history, a Michigan educator is requiring students to watch her lectures on video and then spend class time on homework, according to The Grand Rapids Press.
Judy Walton, a teacher at Forest Hills Northern High School, told The Press that the new arrangement frees up class time for small group discussions, one-on-one mentoring and question-and-answer sessions.
“I haven’t changed the content of the class; I’ve changed how I deliver it so that it benefits students more,” Walton told The Press. Her lectures are available on video for the students to view at any time on their computers or smartphones, The Press reported.
She opens each class period with an in-depth question that tells her whether students watched the latest video and read the assigned pages, according to The Press.
Clintondale High School, near Detroit, uses a similar approach schoolwide, according to The Press.
SOURCE:
The Grand Rapids Press, “How high school teacher ‘flips’ classroom: Students watch lectures at home, do homework in class,” Oct. 4, 2011
FURTHER READING:
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, “Online Learning Can Improve Michigan Public Education,” April 13, 2010
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