The Flipped Classroom
Teacher Profiles
Select at least one fictionalized teacher to analyze. Identify the teacher's potential for implementing flipped learning, by categorizing the advantages and limitations within his or her classroom and school environments. Use the Flipped Learning/Four Pillars of F-L-I-P
document as a guide. This activity is open-ended. Feel free to modify as needed.
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How to Edit
Once you enter the document, sign in to to your Google account. Click "File" and "Make a Copy".
If you do not have a Google account, click "File", "Download As", and "Microsoft PowerPoint (.pptx)".
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Now it is time to create your own profile. Click the link above to access a blank template.
Add any advantages and limitations you can brainstorm for a new fictionalized teacher, then categorize.
Share and discuss your creation.
Mr. Dewey
Mr. Dewey is new to teaching. In his free time, he enjoys rock climbing, white water rafting and other team activities. While he is young and adventurous, Mr. Dewey is not an expert with implementing technology in the classroom and is still learning the curricula and standards. He’s open to trying new ideas, especially ones that allow for minimal structure in his first grade classroom.
His first graders are free to choose their own seating, use whatever supplies are available, present lots of questions and be creative. There are many teachable moments addressed during class. However, these tangents make it challenging for the class to meet learning goals.
Mr. Dewey enjoys exchanging ideas with innovative teachers in his building during meetings, at lunchtime, and, sometimes, after hours. Although the school and parents are supportive of student-driven approaches to learning, there are limited resources, both at school and at home. In order for each student to have a laptop, Mr. Dewey would have to sign up to use the carts shared among the teachers on his floor.
Click Mr. Dewey's profile picture to begin.
Mr. Washington
Ms. Sullivan
Ms. Sullivan
Ms. Sullivan is new to teaching. This is her second career. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her family, cooking and reading. he manages to juggle her teaching responsibilities, her own children’s busy schedules, and helping to care for her sickly in-laws. Ms. Sullivan is partial to traditional teaching methods and feels most comfortable following her teacher’s guides very closely, as she acclimates to her seventh grade English curriculum and to the school’s climate, which is mainly teacher-driven with little parental involvement.
Her middle school math students are well-managed and know the class routines. Still, many students fall behind in their work while others are not challenged enough. Ms. Sullivan is very caring and offers extra help after school. Unfortunately, the students who need it the most do not attend.
Ms. Sullivan has identified a couple of good teacher role models in the school; she is just not ready to make drastic changes in the way she teaches. Also, she has very little experience with technology integration. The only computers available for student use are three outdated ones in the back of the classroom and one school computer lab of newer models, which gets booked very quickly.
Click Ms. Sullivan's profile picture to begin.
Mr. Washington
Mr. Washington
Mr. Washington is a veteran high school English teacher. He is well-respected by the school community and has even taught the parents of some of his current students. In his free time, Mr. Washington coaches high school sports and is an avid photographer. He enjoys traveling alone with his wife, as they are now empty-nesters. Mr. Washington is very flexible with due dates and believes that students should have the opportunity to demonstrate proficiency in their own time. Therefore, everyone is not always working on the same assignment at the same time. He has considered flipping his classroom, but is not finding many resources for flipping ELA classes.
Mr. Washington enjoys blogging about how he successfully integrates technology. However, he does not follow the blogs of other educators. His school has implemented a one-to-one program with Chromebooks, so Mr. Washington is very excited to have students working online. Now he doesn’t have to make so many copies of worksheets, since he creates Google Forms for students to individually answer questions recommended by the curriculum. Unfortunately, the Chromebooks must stay at school. A large population of students do not have Internet access at home.
Mr. Washington usually eats lunch in his room and has limited interaction with his colleagues.
Click Mr. Washington's profile picture to begin.
Miss Wells
Miss Wells
Miss Wells is a seasoned teacher. She has taught several different grade levels and subjects and is currently leveraging many unique tools of the trade, gained through her years of varied experience. Miss Wells is midway through completing her master’s degree at the local university. She hopes to one day become a supervisor. Miss Wells also regularly spends time volunteering at a local community center and enjoys serving as a Sunday School teacher.
Her fourth graders are diverse, cultured and live in a middle class community. These families are very busy with extracurricular activities which, in some cases, cause students to miss days of school. So, Miss Wells must often modify assignments and due dates to accommodate parent requests for work that can be completed “on the road” or made up, upon a student’s return to school. Having a one-to-one program, where students are allowed to take home their laptops, is unfortunately not as fruitful as can be--due to lack of training and negativity among the faculty--many of whom are resistant to implementing technology.
Miss Wells is actually interested in using the laptops productively and possibly embracing flipped learning. However, she is concerned about going against the grain and standing out. She is also unsure of how the students and parents, who are accustomed to traditional teaching methods, will react to a more student-driven approach.
Click Miss Well's profile picture to begin.