Thursday, July 7, 2016

An Alternative to the Practice Minute Log

Ah, the practice minute log. Few topics will bring up as heated a discussion among instrumental teachers as grading students for minutes practiced outside of school.

On one side you'll get the arguments about how they've been used for years, recommended numbers of minutes per age/grade, and a general belief that even if some kids are lying about their numbers, it's still encouraging more kids to practice than if there were no logs assigned at all.

On the other side you'll find people frustrated with the dishonesty students (and sometimes parents) display in regards to numbers of minutes, people equating them to reading logs which are also under fire, and the frustrations of a one size fits all approach to assigning practice.

Both sides mean well and want to find ways to help students establish solid practice routines.

I'd like to offer an alternative to the minute log.

Practice reflection videos.

Without the technology available today, these would not have been feasible before. However, with the multitude of available online learning management systems, including my choice, Google Classroom, it's a highly doable option.

I'll be the first to admit that practice reflections were a work in progress over the course of the year, but the information gained from them was worth their use and continual revising.

How:
  • To start off, students were allowed to choose any goal they wanted. For the beginners, many used their first one to do things like show how to put their instrument together or make a sound on the mouthpiece.
  • In each reflection they had to demonstrate their improvement from the week before and set a new goal.
  • It was a requirement to play in each reflection (a few kids got into a habit of showing how to disassemble/reassemble their valves for weeks on end...).
  • Occasionally, a specific section of music was assigned in preparation for a concert. They had to demonstrate their skill at it one week, then show their improvement the next.
  • Reflections were credit/no credit. They could be turned in late, but no more than two weeks past their original due date OR had to be in prior to the concert they may have been directly related to. Students who did not earn credit (likely due to not demonstrating by playing something) had the opportunity to redo it as long as they stayed within the final deadlines.
Why:
  • If they have to take home their instrument, get it out, and play something related to what you're working on, you've won half the battle! They're playing their instrument at home!
  • Practice reflections gave insights into student learning, thinking, and overall trends. Individual feedback could be given through Google Classroom, but if there was an overall theme to a week's reflections, it was addressed in class.
  • Treating them as musicians and not just students puts them in charge of their own learning. Rather than just meeting a minute quota, they were told they needed to practice as much as was necessary to meet their goal. Some weeks this meant more or less time, which is how a musician would determine their practice time.
  • Students could set their own pace. While some students were still figuring out the difference between a whole and half note, other kids had been taking music lessons for years before starting band and were trying to figure out much more difficult music.
  • Classes this past year were anywhere from 30-55 students. Watching these videos offered a chance to check in on individuals which is difficult in a large class. Additionally, when taken out of the class setting, it was a nice opportunity to get to know the student a little better. Many kids really enjoyed talking to the camera and often introduced siblings, family members, and even pets who may have popped through their video.
A few challenges:
  • These take a lot more time to go through than checking off minute logs if you view them all. As the year went on and students figured out their process, practice reflections became more efficient and were assigned less often though. Since their videos were all in Google Classroom, they could be checked from the comfort of my couch, but they can be time consuming. At this point, I just spot check them, but rarely watch every student's video every time. 
  • This was a big cultural shift. For students who had older siblings go through the program and do minute logs, this was a change in the expected routine. Even those who had no specific expectations for class requirements were stumped for a bit. The freedom of choosing and working on their own goals was a new concept for many.
  • While we're fortunate to be in a district where most students have a phone or tablet to use, not all students have access to a device to do their recordings. Those students would upload them to Google Classroom at home, so some students did them in school with one of our devices.
Feedback? Ideas? Ways to make this system better? Other alternatives to minute logs? Please share in the comments!




23 comments:

  1. I do something very similar (structured slightly differently, but still making videos showing progress in Google Classroom)! I've loved how it's transformed my students' practicing. I told my principal that I think that they actually practice less, but are improving more (due to the focus on a specific skill or area). I love the way I get to see students individually, how free they feel to share their thoughts in their own home, and the fact that I can give them meaningful, individual feedback based on what I see. It also helps me plan my lessons in class as I see common themes or listen to the questions they ask on the videos!

    Any ideas for quick grading? That's where I struggle the most...it takes a long time to get through all of my videos (100+ students, I'd be lying if I said they all turned them in, but it's still a lot)!

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    1. Unfortunately, I struggle with the time it takes to check these as well. Some weeks I might not give as much individual feedback unless it's really necessary or they ask a specific question. Otherwise, I just need to set aside the time to go through them.

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    2. I was thinking about doing something like this before reading this article, and now I am sold. An option is to watch 50% of the videos each time (after the first few to make sure all students understand). They won't know which half you are checking, and it doesn't have to be the same half each time, just as long as ever kid gets theirs checked the same number of times all year. As long as a video is submitted, give the other half credit. If you figure out a kid is gaming the system, watch theirs every time. Just because something is assigned doesn't mean we have to grade it. THe learning is in the process.

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    3. 50% is a sounds like a great way to approach this! It would be a huge time saver and I especially love your last line: The learning is in the process. Thank you. I'll definitely be doing this once they get the process figured out!

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    4. I like this idea as well! It certainly helps the management of it without taking away student learning!

      Another thing my principal told me is that she would love for students to be able to comment on each other's videos (peer feedback). I struggled with figuring out how to structure & moderate this...have you tried anything like this?

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    5. Hmmm...I was thinking of ways to have students do more self assessing on their videos but haven't thought to much about students watching each other's. Maybe have them upload videos to a shared Drive folder that all students can access? Doing this could be discouraging for those kids who really thrive on the comfort of knowing that I'm the only one seeing their videos. I know they have to get used to the idea of playing for others, but doing it on their own, even in a video can be very intimidating especially for those who are struggling. I'd have to think this one over more.

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  2. As a techy teacher, this really intrigues me. Vlogging is becoming the next big thing and I think this is another way to teach students to vlog productively and responsibly. I need to keep mauling this over!

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  3. This is fantastic! I'm going to introduce it to my high school stuDents as we all get chrome books in August!

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    1. I'm so glad it was helpful! It's been a while since I've worked with Chromebooks, but you likely need your students to use an extension app like ClipChamp to create their videos. The process is the same, they just need the extra app to record. :)

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  4. This is brilliant. I will be attempting to implement GC into my middle school band classes this fall, and I LOVE this idea. What program do the students use to make their videos?

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    1. The students just use the video recorders on their phones/tablets. Depending on the device, they can record straight into GC when they select "create" on their assignment or they can select "add" then pull the video from the gallery on their phone or tablet. To my knowledge, the only time a separate app is needed is if they are recording on Chromebooks. Most people have their kids use Clip Champ, though I think some use Screencastify as well.

      I'm so glad you like this. Thank you for reading!

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    2. I have students use all kinds of devices, or even YouTube (if they have access) - but every now and then, they have trouble uploading videos to Google Classroom. Anyone else have this issue? I have sat there and tried it with them, with constant error messages (if this happens, I just tell them to share it with me on Drive instead).

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    3. Occasionally there are just some students whose videos won't cooperate. Sometimes trying them from a different device will help or uploading it using the school wifi vs their home wifi. If all else fails, I usually resort to having them share it through email or Drive as well. I always send feedback to GC when there's a problem too so that it can continue to be worked on.

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  5. Other than Google Classroom, is there another method to the madness to accomplish the same outcome? Our school doesn't use Google Classroom yet. I've been doing some research and talked with our IT person. I could easily set up the account myself but I don't feel comfortable signing my school up for something that might jeopardize another account. During the sign-up process, it asks for the school';s domain, which is fine but how will Google affect it in the aftermath? Yeah, questions I don't want ot be responsible for in the end.

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    1. If you're not already a Google Apps for Education District (GAFE), I'd talk with admin and IT before signing up. In the mean time, you could try another learning management system. While I haven't used it personally, I've been hearing a lot of great things about SeeSaw and Schoology. You could even try something like Dropbox for students to share their videos with you. Best of luck and please let me know if I can help!

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  6. I am using the app/website Flipgrid for this!!!!

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    1. I am a math teacher and a parent of a future music education major trumpet playing senior, and a 6th grade beginning percussionist. The reflection videos instead of the practice logs are a great idea. Flipgrid, which I use for math sometimes, is superior to google classroom (I also use it for math sometimes) because it will allow the students and parents to watch other videos. If you have a flipgrid app on your smartphone, it puts the upload process, which is the sometime the step in the student's assignment where you lose the student (file is too big, or did not upload, or put it in the wrong place etc etc), in the background and automatic. I suggest having the students watch other reflections. This will reduce your grading, and the students will enjoy watching other students give advice or explain what was hard. Parents might also like watching their own and other student's videos.

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  7. I love this idea and want to incorporate this for the upcoming school year. In the beginning did you have to help students set their own goals? If so how did you do this?

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    1. We talked about what appropriate goals would look like (what are we doing in class? what are they struggling with? what would help them improve? etc) and students who needed some guidance after their first post received some specific feedback to help them choose better ones in the future.

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  8. How do you address students who refuse to turn in the videos? I have quite a few students that refuse to even take their instruments home, let alone ACTUALLY practice. Some of my students are progressing rapidly due to these videos and are leaving the other half of the class in the dust. With a concert coming up, I am getting worried. What do you do to combat this?

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    1. At that point, I often will hand a student a device during class and send them into a room to record SOMETHING. Even better are days when we're doing something different (small groups, different seating set up, etc) that they'd be bummed to miss out on. I'm glad to hear that this is helpful for you and many of your students though! It takes some time to shift the culture, but hopefully it will come in time. Good luck!

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  9. What does the assignment look like on GC? Do you have a specific form attached with instructions or is it just instructions on an assignment? Thanks!

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  10. I'm curious about Dennis' comment as well. This looks like an excellent idea and one I'll be trying out during social isolation.

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