ALOE Blended Math ProjectBerkeley Adult School

February 22nd, 2013

Presenter: Wendy Hoben, ABE teacherwendyhoben@berkeley.net

Increase learners’ math & computer skills and confidence through instruction that is:◦ Differentiated◦ Personalized◦ Self-Paced◦ Measurable◦ Manageable

Our goal was a small “tune-able” pilot rather than trying to maximize # of learners & staff

Our goal

Feb 1 2012 (A)

• Schedule lab time - DONE

Feb 28 2012 (B)

• Complete initial recruitment - DONE

Mar 31 2012 (C, D)

• Complete assessment of recruits - DONE

• Complete IXL training for instructors/tutors DONE

June 30 2012 (H)

• 1st semi-annual report - DONE

Nov 30 2012 (E)

• Complete eval of OTAN ABE-approriate math offerings - Pilot of NROC Developmental Math DONE

Jan 31 2013 (H)

• 2nd semi-annual report DONE

Mar 31 2013 (I)

• Complete final "share out" for other instructors –Participate in TDL Symposium and present to dept.

May 30 2013(H)

• Final report

Our Project Plan

Students liked math more than in previous years:

They also learned more:

Successes

Math Computers -

0.05

0.10

0.15

0.20

0.25

0.30

0.35

SeptDec

Academic year

# of students w/pretests

# w/paired scores

# of students w/pretests

% w/paired scores

Average gain**

2010/2011* 38 10 38 26% 1.42

2011/2012 28 18 28 64% 4.06

Fall 2012 27 9 27 33% 5.0

Use of “appropriate” technology for these learners led to new computer skills and confidence, & minimized technical issues

Blended model supports “each one/teach one” & use of great classroom volunteers—sense of community is enhanced, not lost

Active learning: less time “correcting” work = more time to learn and analyze mistakes

Successes cont.

Making time for monitoring—& how to continue after ALOE ends…

Orienting learners and volunteers

Acknowledging and managing student frustration

Aligning online (and paper) resources with students’ needs and with each other

Working without adequate IT support

Challenges

Stopped differentiating between “distance” and “in-class” only learners

Other changes were student-initiated:◦ Un“flipping” instruction/change in lab time◦ Better alignment of online practice assignments to in-

class lessons

Some were enabled by new technology:◦ Use of smart board/pens for group practice◦ Development of Hippocampus playlists of best video

resources from NROC, Khan, YouTube, etc.

Changes

Usable reports are key for effective blended environments: www.ixl.com

Hippocampus playlist—capturing what worked for my students for future use: www.hippocampus.org/?user=whoben

Show and Tell

Benefits accrued to all students

In-class lab time facilitated dispersion of knowledge throughout class

Most incoming ABE math learners did not have all the skills to succeed in a pure distance learning setting, but became enthusiastic about learning in a blended setting

What We Learned