Image credit: http://www.indiancreekschool.org/creek-news/all-school/2014/11/new-blended-learning-opportunities-motivated-students
really enjoyed the lesson planning process with both Finks 3 Column Table and the UbD Template! I found that there were advantages to actually using both for me. The Finks 3 Column Table and other worksheets helped me to see the big picture in light of the learning goals. It also helped me to think of what kind of assessment activities would match the goal type (i.e. Foundational, Integration, etc.) This was great for someone like me who doesn't always see the details. It helped me to take steps to arrive at a more granular design like the Understanding by Design template (UbD).
When I began working on the UbD Template, it was much easier to flesh out the details having the 3 Column Table as a reference and guide. UbD helped me to be more specific and make sure I was aligning the learning goals with the states' standards for the course, the course standards even helped me with the verbiage for crafting the essential questions, understandings, and the knowledge and skills statements. I also appreciated how UbD helped me to see the value in the other kinds of evidence that still are an integral to every course: quizzes, tests, etc. After all, students do want to be measured I think it's just important that how they are measured is connected to meaningful, authentic tasks and activities. Listing the learning activities also helped me to sequence the activities in such a way that would help me place them in an order that would set students up for success. It also helped me identify which activities were going to be offered online and which would be a part of the instructional class time. By the time I was halfway through the learning activities, I found that it even stirred more excitement for facilitating this lesson that it made me want to get back into a classroom to use this design! I will be using part of this lesson for a project I will be doing with AVID students at my middle school. So that was also my motivation to be clear so when I'm ready to implement this lesson, I am one step ahead.
Ultimately, I wanted to test both of these models to see which would be the best model for teachers to use when designing units for their blended learning environments. As stated, I found that both helped me to get to where I could design a solid process that helped me feel confident with facilitating the lesson. So, I think I would like to present the teachers in the blended professional learning course with a blend of the two. I would like to create a 3 Column Table to outline the professional learning course. I will probably use the Significant Factors worksheets and Questions to Consider with the BHAG and the UbD template for them to design their blended learning courses for their learning environments.
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