WPP PART C

It has been a while since I last blogged about my Wicked Problem.  About a month ago we were asked to think of a wicked problem of practice that we encounter at our school/work place.  Well, most of you already know but I do not have a job as of now. However, I do have an interview soon with Sylvan Learning Center! YAY! Keep your fingers crossed.  When I came up with my Wicked Problem I was thinking of my students I left back in Michigan at my last school I taught at. I taught high school Algebra. The subject of mathematics is like a building block. Everything feeds off of each other and essential to learn and understand before moving on to the next level.  My students coming into their freshman Algebra class where missing the fundamental skills of math.  They seemed to not know their time tables, basic fractions, order of operation, how to add and subtract integers, etc.   It’s not that they weren’t taught the material.  They may have forgotten, may have not understand what was being taught because they were missing those previous skills that build off of each other.  When I was teaching, my co-teacher and I came up with using some technology-integrated lessons because our students each had 1:1 technology with the iPad.  This was my schools first year with the 1:1 iPad rollout.  We started using Study Island (our school paid for this and we were trying it out for a year) & Khan Academy (free).  We also attempted a few flip lessons.   Sadly, I didn’t get to have this experience too long, just shy of 3 months.  But I am more than happy to finally be with my husband.  He got back from Afghanistan at the end of November and that is when I left my school.  Now we are finally able to start our lives with each other.  

WPP PART C

My wicked problem of practice begins by implementing Khan Academy and Study Island into the classroom.  The beneficiary of using these resources is that students can go at their own pace and start at all different levels, start at the level that is necessary for them. This can help my students who are way behind and help those who are at the average level excel.  If you are unfamiliar with Khan Academy or Study Island, please read my WPP Part A & WPP Part B blog(s) to give yourself a better understanding of what these tools can provide to your student(s) and classroom.

For WPP Part C, we were to implement our project and report on surprises, unexpected bumps we had along the road, things that went well and pictures.   Unfortunately, you all recognize that I cannot implement my tech-based strategy with a class right now because I am not employed. However,  I did email my co-teacher to see how things were going back at the school I was teaching at and had explained my project and asked if he could possibly help me out.  I thought he could maybe give me some information of their progress, if they are still using these programs, etc.  Sadly, I never received an email back. He probably did read it but forgot to respond, we all know how many emails we get teaching. Ugh!  That is one thing I don’t miss.  I had informed my professor of this situation and she suggested a few alternatives. 

What I ended up doing was lots of research online. The past couple of weeks I have been researching to see if other schools/teachers have implemented either Study Island or Khan Academy. This was very difficult for me to find. However, I did run across some information of the different ways you could implement Study Island and increase its effectiveness as well as incorporating Khan Academy with Study Island.  So my main focus is on Study Island.

The first thing that needs to be done if you are to implement Study Island into your classroom and get the most of your time is set up lab time.  I would do a test run too.  Maybe only start with using Study Island in one of your class hours and eventually add two, then three… etc.  You can setup your classes through what Study Island refers to as “Class Manager.”  This isn’t necessary but I recommend it because it allows you to run reports and look at data, create assignments, assign certain topics, etc.  You can monitor the progress by looking at the statistics.  This is of great value because as the teacher you can easily see the topics that need reinforcement.  Furthermore, if you were to have a sub, this would be an effective tool for communication so they know what the students should be working on.

An incentive when working on Study Island is to provide some sort of in-class or contest ideas, some type of incentive.  We all seem to work harder when we know there is a prize, right?  This is teaching our students real life skills too, in the work force we strive to get that promotion and that is what our students are going to do but in the classroom. I think that each student should have a goal before they start, or maybe have some classroom goals.  Study Island is not just having students sit and work on practice problems but having that incentive to “want” to get better and put forth the effort.  As educators, we have to push their motivation switch.

Study Island has a lot to take it, it can be a bit overwhelming.  There are so many different ways to approach it/implement it.   You can assess what is learned in your lesson/topic in class and correlate it to what they do in Study Island.  Or for those that are really far behind, they can start from the top to bottom as a general review and having the “Class Manger” set up, you can see where that particular student is struggling. Another great way in implementing this amazing tool is focusing on the standards that have been points of struggle in previous assessments.   It’s not just implementing it into your classroom, but enhancing your lesson with Study Island into your classroom.  You can introduce or conclude your lesson with Study Island.  It even provides a Game Mode which is fun and engaging to the students.

What I love about Study Island is that it provides that feedback, automatic and instant feedback!  Students know right away if they got an answer right or wrong if they passed/didn't pass due to the icons the program provides (see above image).   The students as well as the teacher can check their score and progress.  If you don’t want to always have students using the technology, you can print worksheets and do in-class activities. Study Island provides all of this!   

Study Island has embedded Khan Academy videos within its site to help reinforce those middle school/high school math lessons. IF those aren't videos you are looking for, you can also just go to khanacademy.org. The videos give a brief, step by step lesson on a specific math concept and provide examples. If you look at the image below it gives a great implementation idea.

The main thing that I want all of you to know is that Study Island is available and is a great resource. Like all things though, it take time to learn. I still don’t know all the amazing things it can do. I recommend all of you go to the site,  www.StudyIsland.com and just explore.  See what it has to offer you in your classroom and if it is of great use to you, please create a class in the class manager and have fun with it!