This article appeared in May on the International Baccalaureate Teachers Hub (Turkey) under the title: My Mantra: "Leave No One Behind."
My mobile is running hot. Messages stating “I am here” are lined up in my inbox. Most of my students have by now ‘checked in’ to class by SMS or email. It’s the equivalent of them walking through the door with a smile and respectful greeting for their teacher.
My students know that I have expectations of them, that our classes have not been suspended. We are working differently but learning goes on. I’ve responded to the SMSs and emails and have allocated the students time for a ‘mini-lesson’ by phone. I’m doing the rounds.
They all seem to have downloaded the first Workbook and found ways to print (“I took a print out at Officeworks”, says N.) ...I have also talked to one of my student’s daughters helping her Mum set up a laptop and newly acquired printer. “It’s my first printer. Just for me. It was $39 from the Post Office,” my student proudly tells me about her new ink jet. I’m moved by the fact she sees the purchase as a valuable investment in her own education.
They all seem to have downloaded the first Workbook and found ways to print (“I took a print out at Officeworks”, says N.) ...I have also talked to one of my student’s daughters helping her Mum set up a laptop and newly acquired printer. “It’s my first printer. Just for me. It was $39 from the Post Office,” my student proudly tells me about her new ink jet. I’m moved by the fact she sees the purchase as a valuable investment in her own education.
I have also discovered the valuable resource of children and grandchildren who are assisting their parents and grandparents to download, print or save files to devices and to follow the model of delivery I’ve devised. It has been one of my best days teaching in almost 40 years
It took a pandemic to drag many Community Based providers - as well as most others across Education - back to online delivery. I have been following up on the unexpected success of the first week anticipating the shock of the lock down and fear of the virus would drive my adult learners away to more pressing issues. That appears not to be the case. I’m now dealing with an avalanche of homework being sent to me by email - something half the class has done without prompting.
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It’s now the end of Week 1 and I’ve created the Workbook Review and Correction Video for Friday. Having completed most of the exercises in the first half of the week this follow up stage provides an opportunity for my learners to compare and review their work. It also gives those who take longer the opportunity to go back and look at their work at a later stage.
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It’s another 2 weeks on now and happily for me, student attendance and enthusiasm has remained high - 11 of 13 checking in everyday. I’ve finally made contact with the two who were “lost in space” for a week and got them back on track. I don’t blame them - on the phone I can hear kids rampaging around, TVs blaring and they tell me they are scared, not well and have not had their minds on study.
The delivery model is bedded down and most of the students feel confident about the simple weekly cycle - workbook, mini lessons by phone in the first part of the week, email activities and communication half way through, the review video to watch and Quiz to complete at the end of the week. There is nothing they cannot do beyond the digital skills drilled in the 8 weeks of Term 1 before the closure.
The wheels of the machine are underpinned by lots of telephone communication and responsiveness through email. The students are applying the skills of locating files, downloading, saving, retrieving and printing. Email basics in using gmail - receive, reply, attach are vital as is using their accounts to ‘sign in’ to secure Quizzes and docs for their eyes only. I am now thinking about how to formally assess - a tricky, but not impossible, layer to incorporate. (A separate posting coming soon).
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My three day week consists of back to back individual ‘mini lessons’ with each student on a Monday. I make sure the workbook and audio has been downloaded and that the exercises are understood. During the mini lesson by phone, we discuss issues of language, engage in a role play, discuss a story or homework submitted and any difficulties being experienced.
I guide them to the Weekly Workbook Review and Correction video I’ve created embedded within my blog. I provide a commentary with visuals ranging across any difficult language points or parts of speech and will soon include actual samples of student work for shared analysis.
The third layer in the delivery strategy is a Workbook Video Quiz. Students use their google logins to gain access and submit directly to me. I think embedding the Quiz is useful for giving the students a direct channel through which they can send work and get immediate feedback. It also allows me to capture "evidence of participation” for each of the units I am teaching.
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I guide them to the Weekly Workbook Review and Correction video I’ve created embedded within my blog. I provide a commentary with visuals ranging across any difficult language points or parts of speech and will soon include actual samples of student work for shared analysis.
The third layer in the delivery strategy is a Workbook Video Quiz. Students use their google logins to gain access and submit directly to me. I think embedding the Quiz is useful for giving the students a direct channel through which they can send work and get immediate feedback. It also allows me to capture "evidence of participation” for each of the units I am teaching.
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On the surface it is a simple model - but the work involved in servicing it is considerable. In terms of production there is: a 20+ page workbook of relevant materials, audio, video and quiz to create on a weekly basis. Add to this managing student communication - phoning, texting, responding to emails, receiving, correcting and returning homework. Then there is the required administrative and compliance level of work. I’m tired just thinking about it - for how long can I sustain this effort I wonder?
I will get better at this as time goes on and learn to be more economical, but like any teacher you find yourself working around the clock - much more than you would if you were normally preparing and turning up for work. There is no way of “winging it” online - every mistake is glaringly obvious.
My mantra has always been "leave no one behind". It is easy to teach to the top of the class but a good teacher ensures everyone is included and achieves . So after three weeks only one student (out of 13) seems to be struggling. I am making extra efforts to get him the workbooks by mail, I'm ringing and texting frequently (though he often doesn't answer) and sending emails that I am unsure are being read. If it were not for COVID-19 and the restrictions, I'd be crying out at his gate.
We will return to the classroom and I am sure that one student currently lost in cyberspace will be there too. I'm trying my hardest. Leave no one behind.
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My delivery model can be viewed at https://dalepobega.blogspot.com/
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