Online Courseware Can't Replace a real teacher
For the last three weeks I have been "teaching" summer school. I put teaching in quotes because what I am really doing is proctoring students while they complete courses on Edgenuity Courseware, an online course provider. Edgenuity website states that
For the highly motivated student with above average academic skills, Edgenutiy and other third party course ware providers allow them to move through the curriculum at their own pace, helping them earn credits and master content quickly. In small schools, it allows students to take and earn credit in classes that their traditional school doesn't offer. These are definite benefits. It also appears to be a good platform for test preparation.
For the struggling student, however, I question how much they actually learn while completing these courses. Many of my summer school students are in our special education program or have other learning challenges. While the Edgenuity allows you to customize a course for an individual student, it does not allow for real differentiation. All students, regardless of learning differences, take the same tests, read the same material and watch the same videos. A truly personalized learning experience it is not.
My students, many who struggle to pay attention, have great difficulty focusing on the video lectures. The lectures range from about 8 minutes to 20 minutes in length.The video instructors, while clear, are not very interesting. My students describe their presentation style as flat. They also complain that they can't ask the instructor questions if they don't understand.
While they can re-watch a video to master content, by its very nature, video can't answer individual questions or explain content in a different way to meet the needs of an specific student. This is a real problem in chemistry and math courses. Watching the same explanation over and over again does not lead to clarity because repetition does not equal reteaching. Only a real teacher can adapt the instructional technique and material to fit the student; canned software can't.
Students with reading difficulties struggle in all classes, but they really struggle in English. They are asked to read complicated texts without audio or other support options. I agree with those that argue that students with reading disabilities aren't good candidates for these classes and should take traditional classes. However, when they fail a class and need to take the online version to earn their credit, they don't have a choice.
An number of my resource room students were enrolled in summer school taking a variety of courses. In each course they stumbled through the quizzes and tests mainly due to the wording of the answers and complicated vocabulary (my father would call them five dollar words). While the student might understand the words when they hear the questions are read aloud, they struggle trying to decode those words answering questions independently. As a word around, I often read the questions aloud to students whose IEPs include that accommodation. Frankly, some of the wording is unclear and difficult for me to read aloud.
There has to be a better way. Technology opens worlds to students, but it can't replace a teacher for reteaching, remediation, or differentiation.
Our courses are built using an instructional model grounded in research and are ... state-standards aligned. We combine direct-instruction videos featuring expert, on-screen teachers with rigorous assignments, performances tasks, and assessments to engage students and ensure subject-area mastery.While the concept might be sound and research based, I have a few problems with using this type of program with students who have learning differences.
For the highly motivated student with above average academic skills, Edgenutiy and other third party course ware providers allow them to move through the curriculum at their own pace, helping them earn credits and master content quickly. In small schools, it allows students to take and earn credit in classes that their traditional school doesn't offer. These are definite benefits. It also appears to be a good platform for test preparation.
For the struggling student, however, I question how much they actually learn while completing these courses. Many of my summer school students are in our special education program or have other learning challenges. While the Edgenuity allows you to customize a course for an individual student, it does not allow for real differentiation. All students, regardless of learning differences, take the same tests, read the same material and watch the same videos. A truly personalized learning experience it is not.
My students, many who struggle to pay attention, have great difficulty focusing on the video lectures. The lectures range from about 8 minutes to 20 minutes in length.The video instructors, while clear, are not very interesting. My students describe their presentation style as flat. They also complain that they can't ask the instructor questions if they don't understand.
While they can re-watch a video to master content, by its very nature, video can't answer individual questions or explain content in a different way to meet the needs of an specific student. This is a real problem in chemistry and math courses. Watching the same explanation over and over again does not lead to clarity because repetition does not equal reteaching. Only a real teacher can adapt the instructional technique and material to fit the student; canned software can't.
Students with reading difficulties struggle in all classes, but they really struggle in English. They are asked to read complicated texts without audio or other support options. I agree with those that argue that students with reading disabilities aren't good candidates for these classes and should take traditional classes. However, when they fail a class and need to take the online version to earn their credit, they don't have a choice.
An number of my resource room students were enrolled in summer school taking a variety of courses. In each course they stumbled through the quizzes and tests mainly due to the wording of the answers and complicated vocabulary (my father would call them five dollar words). While the student might understand the words when they hear the questions are read aloud, they struggle trying to decode those words answering questions independently. As a word around, I often read the questions aloud to students whose IEPs include that accommodation. Frankly, some of the wording is unclear and difficult for me to read aloud.
There has to be a better way. Technology opens worlds to students, but it can't replace a teacher for reteaching, remediation, or differentiation.
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