Flexible Classroom

How should we put out room together? Should we line up the walls with the desk in the center of the room? Should we set it up so all the computers are facing towards us? Should we use laptops instead?  All these question come up when you plan your room, if you are talking about setting up a engineering classroom or a regular room you have to think of where to place things.

In the past five years I have reworked my room to be in a different setup every year.  I have personally rewired cables just so the set up I have in my head will work.  How does the set up of a room deal with technology, well it has everything to do with tech in the classroom.  We have all heard of "flexible seating" but I like to call my set up "Flexible Classroom."

My flexible classroom mimics a lot of major companies getting out of the old cubicle style of an office and making it more open and fun.  Keeping an office place interesting keeps your mid from becoming stale and makes you more creative.  That is my theory that I tell my students and I think most of them buy into it.  Before becoming a teacher I worked for an engineering firm in Kansas City, MO and we work in row of four but our desk connected with out neighbors.  We did this so we could work on project easier and be able to look at plans with out having to drag it to a conference table, it made it more efficient.  So I decided to do this in my room with a few more bits of inspiration.

Looking at Google, Facebook, IDEO and even Nike  I created a sort of design for my room that looks like something that would fit in one of their offices.  I joined all the desk to make a large table so groups can work together easier and collaboration with other team essential.  Communication became easier and the larger tables with cabinets are all on wheels.  I put white boards on multiple locations so students can work on them to draw out ideas.  All the big technology like 3-D printers, plotters,  and engravers are all in my room but they are in closet with a window so students can see what is going on when something is being used.

I have arranged my room so the tech is there but not necessarily be the center of the room.  I keep the center of my room open so I can roll in tables and have a hand on demo of what ever we are doing that day.  I want my student to be able to focus but still know that everything in the room can be used in time when they learn how to use it correctly.  Having all the cool "toys" is great but unless your students want to use the technology and know why we would use it than it is useless.  Sometimes a simple setup of how the room is use can be just as important.  So next time you think you want to get a new equipment or technology in your room or school, step back and figure out where are we going to put this so it can be utilized the most efficiently.

How to use social media in your classroom

Social media like it or not it is here and well we might as well utilize it for good as much as possible.  Why should you have a social media account?  Well for one everyone has one, your students and their parents will more than likely have some sort of social media presence.  If you do have one make sure you keep your personal and school accounts separate at all times.  I am on the big three as I call them, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.  I do have Linked IN account by I use that mainly for my professional contact.  So how do I use it in my class?

First make sure you tell your students you have these accounts and tell their parents as well.  Be clear that you will only post school related material on these platforms to show what they are doing in class or the community.  I urge my parent to follow me so they can see all the cool stuff we do in class and I get more follower to help with my retirement if this teaching thing does not work for me. A sense of humor always helps.  I have also found that current students tend not to follow me unless they are featured in something or they graduate.  It also helps hook them to what we are doing by getting them so "presence" online.   

Use social media to record your growth as a teacher, it becomes an artifact of things you are doing in and out of the classroom.  It can help show some of work you are doing for the future and can help get your name out there for people to want to help reach your goals.  That being said don't be naive to think that everyone wanting to help you is looking out for you or your students.  Do you research if you have any doubts and always follow your district protocols when it comes to volunteers.  

I am also going to be honest to say that my social media "game" has not gained me a lot of help form out side my district, but I have gotten several industry leads and help from individual from other high schools.  That is one of the best thing being active in this space is that I am not alone and there other teachers out there doing what I am doing and growing your network with other teachers from around the area or nationwide is never a bad thing.  

I also want it to be  clear by saying that I am no expert and I really have no idea if I am doing any of this right but I do know that I am getting my self out there and showing my community what we are doing and what their sons and daughters are able to archive.  Sometimes it nice to do a little bragging about the good things we are doing in our class.  

Toys in the classroom

I love my "toys" that I use in my classroom! Sure I get to make just about anything I want and so can my students, but can they actually learn anything from using this and having fun?

They sure can, all my equipment is nice but unless you know how to use them, they are just big paper weights.  3-D Printers, laser engravers, even computer are useless unless we can actually use them.  All of the equipment in my rooms are used in my lessons in me engineering and wood shop classes.  They have to know how the machine works and its limitations. They have to know how to properly operate each thing and know if how to fix it when something is wrong (if I am not around).

Let take my 3-D printer, my students learn a CAD software in class, from making a simple shape to something as complex as a toy car.  They have to know how that object looks on all six sides and know all the measurements to properly complete it. They also have to know how to calibrate their object with the some errors built in since the 3-D printer is not perfect and they will need to adjust to compensate for that.  They see it as a way to make something cool, something they thought was a challenge, hard or easy.  In reality what I just thought them was, how to use an industry level software, pictorial views, spacial recognition, measurements, basic statistics, and material testing.  The way I see it, if they kids thinks its fun to do they will try to learn it through what I teach them or they will find other ways to understand it. 

 The CNC machine or plasma cutter can be used with many different software but is not to technical.  Some students find that 3-D modeling software to be intimidating and tend to shut down and don't want to try it.  These machines are a little different.  Both machines you are able to imagine and be creative on what you want to do but with these machines you just have to see it in one view, which is a whole lot easier than six.  Students learn that certain materials have different strengths and special bits or temperature to be able to cut through it.  They can create there pattern by drawing a regular "flat drawing" and have the program handle the math.  So what did they learn, well they still learn about measurements, they learn about density and strengths of materials, and they learn to have confidence with using something so complex.  Thought the machine is simple to use there are a lot of small little details the student has to consider prior to turning it on. 

All the equipment in my rooms are used by my students but only after they have learned how to use it, from start to finish.  Using technology in your room is fun by being able to say that you know how to use it with out anyone telling you what to do is a lesson on its own.  STEM principle are great but using them in practical applications like this is just as important. 

Old school vs New School

 

What is wrong with the way we use to learn?  It worked for me and my generation it should work for you?  You just need to pay attention more?  

Do those sound familiar to anyone, I may have said that in the past but we all know, that school today is different from when we were in school.  Sure some of the main dynamics of how school or classroom operates is the same but a lot has changed since I graduated high school.  

"Back in my day we use to ...", stop! We all know we are no longer in those times and some of our old techniques are dated.  Take for instance when we use to need to do research, we would have to go to the library and look up card catalog numbers and then have to find the books.  Or use the dictionary to find the correct spelling or definition of a word.  I know some of you reading this are thinking, this guy is old, and well I am 43 so if you think that I am old so be it, but what if my age didn't matter and technology was the issue.  

I graduated high school in 1996, the 90's was a strange time, that is 23 years ago.  In that 23 years we have seen the internet born, we have seen chat rooms, social media platforms rise and fall,we have seen cell phone shrink from a suitcase to something that fits in your pocket.  We have seen the rise of Google from a small search engine to a global corporation, we have witness Amazon and Apple make a leap from selling books and niche computers to becoming the two most profitable platforms in the world.  So I does my age really matter or did technology change who we have become in a short 23 years.  I say it has changed our society so in turn the way we think and see everything.  The ones that will experience this the most and will be noticeable by us is our students.  

In their life time they will never have to use a card catalog or know about the Dewey Decimal System, they will not have to leave the house to go to the library to do research, the will never know the sound of a dial up.  Our students can learn everything they need by just "Googling it."  So if these kids are different from us what make us think that the old ways will work on them?

I am still think there is a place for good old methods of the past but I also think that we have so much technology and information about who we are teaching that we can do a better job.  Using technology in the classroom is important and leaning the basics the old fashion way is also important.  We have to find that common ground for us to change with our students or we will be doing them a great disservice and not preparing them to function in today crazy world.