I just finished reading an inspiring idea for teaching: reversing the process of a traditional classroom. In the article, The Backward Class, a teacher has reversed the sessions for lectures and homework.
Before class, Stacey Roshan asks students to watch videos she created for the upcoming lesson. Students take notes on a PowerPoint handout.
During class, students ask questions and work through problem sets. Roshan provides guidance and assistance.
The Air Force Academy Preparatory School also applied a similar idea. Each Prep School class had a detailed syllabus. It listed our homework problems and their deadlines. We typically completed the problems before the lecture. In reality, the instructor guided us through more problems during the in-class time. We learned how to solve the problems the night before class. Then, we used class time to ask informed questions. At least, we hope they were informed.
I believe this process helped shape me into a self-directed, lifelong learner.
Great blog, I will definitely be following! I certainly hope that this method is helping prepare my students to be “self-directed, lifelong learners.” I wrote a guest post recently: http://dailyriff.com/547 if you’re interested in reading more.
-Stacey