The traditional classroom and homework model is getting flipped at one class at Vincent Middle/High School.  Flipping, where things are turned upside down, is a new approach to teaching that is taking hold across the country. In a new pilot, Vincent Middle High, teacher Rhonda Mack and her Geometry students are in the early stages of the implementing the format.

In a flipped classroom, students watch recorded lectures at home each night and do their ‘homework’ at school the next day. In Mrs. Mack’s classroom, she is recording all of the lectures herself so that students are taught in the same they would be if they were listening to her in class. She is also making her recorded videos interactive, so students do more than just watch them.

“For some lessons, I might add some videos that are out on the web that help explain or animate a concept particularly well, but for the most part it’s still me teaching my students,” said Ms. Mack who has taught using the flipped approach before.

In school the next day, students work problems and work on hands-on projects where students apply the concepts they learned about. The classroom side of the flip is the one that has the biggest effect on student learning. The teacher does not sit idly by while students ‘do’ their homework. She works with them, demonstrating and explaining things when they get stuck, getting them involved in hands-on activities that help students make real-world connections to the material.

“For a lot of parents, geometry class was a long time ago and it can be frustrating for them to try to help their child with their homework,” said Susan Poling, Shelby County Schools’ technology coordinator. “The flipped model enables parents to watch the nightly videos with the children so they can see and appreciate what their children are learning in school, and, at the same time, relieve them from having to be their child’s geometry tutor.”

Vincent parents were invited to an orientation during the first week of school to learn about the new approach and get a look at the Chromebook laptops their students would be bringing home. The students used them in class for several days before they took them home last week to start viewing the lessons and taking notes from home.

“I wanted my students to be familiar with using the equipment so that everything goes smoothly for them at home,” said Mack. “

The Chromebooks cost just over $300 each and have management software installed on them so that if they are connected to the Internet from off campus they will still go through the district’s content filter. In addition, they can only be logged into with a Shelby County Schools login and can be remotely disabled if they are lost or stolen,” said Lauren Woolley, who is overseeing the pilot for the district’s technology project.

“It doesn’t matter if students do not have Internet at home because the students will download Mrs. Mack’s videos each day 7^th period before they leave school. That way they can watch them from the laptop’s hard drive no matter where they are,” she added.

But the Chromebooks will not just be used as video players, the students can also use them to take notes, use apps, email their teacher, create presentations, and take quizzes.