Flipped Mastery: My Blueprint

As the school year draws near it has come time to finalize some decisions and layout my game plan for running my Algebra 1 course as a "flipped mastery" course.  Here is that blueprint, which includes the following:

• Background
• General Policies
• Assessments
• Class Structure
• Student Work Flow
• Students Who Do Not Finish Curriculum
• Physical Set-Up of Classroom

Background
I will have ninth graders all year as part of a new Freshman Academy initiative in our building.  The benefit for my flipped-mastery approach is that I won't have to get new students used to the routine and new approach each trimester.  Last year I flipped the entire year of Algebra 1.  Although I have many videos and guided notes to reuse this year, the first three units will need major revamping.  I changed things quite a bit during the first trimester last year as I found what worked (and didn't) for myself and my students.  I am also changing our practice assignments quite a bit from last year.  They are now tiered with a points systems that allows students to have a choice in the problems they do and the difficulty.  It allows for greater differentiation.

I also have the following resources in my classroom:

• 1 cadet teacher (an upperclassman)
• 15 netbooks in the classroom with Wifi
• 24 mp3 players (for students who don't have internet access at home)

General Policies

• Students can move at their own pace.  A “minimum pace” will be established and documented in a class calendar available to parents and students through class website.  
• Benchmark of 70% for assessments (quizzes and unit assessments).  Students must meet this in order to move to next concept/unit.
• Assignments that are not completed on pace will be marked “missing”.  If assignments are not completed by the Unit Assessment date they will become a zero until students complete them.  Note: I have decided to do it this way because I feel that my students will need the "incentive" and parents will need the grade to reflect that a student is behind. I know there is debate about putting in zeros for work that is not complete and I am not sure I will always do it this way, but I need to make some decisions for a starting point and this is it. 
• Parent contact: Contact home will be made if students fall a few days behind pace. Note: This very well will be done by the student themselves during class.
• Students behind pace: Students will have a 1 week window to complete what is “on pace”.  If they become 1 week behind I will call home and require after school tutoring to catch up. If students do not attend after school tutoring they will be required to attend academic lunch detention.  Note: We have free after school tutoring with transportation home. The academic lunch detention will be run by our Link Crew (some of whom are also Cadet Teachers).

Assessments

• Concept quizzes and retakes will be done in class in a "testing area". There is a "Today's Quiz" folder that contains multiple class copies of a "unit" quiz; broken down into sections by concept. Students do not write on these. Each concept has 4-5 questions. I have 12 versions of "Today's Quiz" and put out a new version each day. Students use the version for that day for their initial quiz or retake, whichever they are doing that day. Students have a quiz answer tpacket (SEE EXAMPLE) that they write down their work and answers to make grading easier. Note: I got this idea from @crystalkirch. It is how she has found to be the most efficient way to run paper-pencil quizzes and keep your sanity while grading them!
• Unit assessments will be taken in class during the on pace assessment date. Students who are behind will still take the unit assessment. If they do not score 70% or better they will retake it after completing the outstanding material. Note: I have struggled with what to do with this aspect of my flipped-mastery approach. I feel without the pressing assessments students will fall desperately behind. I may be selling them short and will revisit this if it seems necessary to do so. By having students take the assessments (even if not "ready") I can at least better ascertain how they are doing on the material they have learned.
• Unit assessments retakes will be done before or after school according to a set schedule. Students will need to fill out a "Retake Request Form" (I still need to develop this). This will require students to explain what they didn't understand on the prior assessment (with corrections to their mistakes attached), what they did to prepare, what their original score was, and what they anticipate scoring on the retake.

Class Structure

• Whole-class activity (see BLOG POST of these ideas)
• Check-In during which students get into groups, testing area, netbooks, etc.
• Flex-time during which students have their individual or small group work time (see Student Work Flow)
• Check-Out during which students fill out check out slips to help them reflect on and plan their time (SEE EXAMPLE)

Student Work Flow

From the students perspective, here is the work flow:

• Watch video and complete all guided notes & summary questions (via Google Form)

When they submit answers they are given link to responses. They can check their answers against mine and see how I have coded their answers (GREEN=good, YELLOW=almost, RED=wrong). They will record the date of their submission and the color score on the front of their guided notes packet (I call them VIP Packet - SEE EXAMPLE)

• Complete practice assignment: Students grade their own at the "grading station" and record their score on the front of their VIP Packet. They may work individually or in a group.
• Teacher Conference: Students must get their VIP Packet signed off by me under the "Info & Notes" column. We have a brief discussion about their practice problems and I look over their notes.
• Take concept quiz: The student then takes that day's version of the quiz and turns it in. I will return them, graded, the next day. Students keep track of their scores on the front of their Quiz Packet
• Passed - student moves onto next concept
• Did not pass - student reviews mistakes, gets reteaching in small group or individually with me then reassesses.

Students Who Do Not Finish

Although we are on trimester I will have students all year.  At the end of the trimester any assignments/assessments that students have not completed will be given a zero and that grade (failing if they have not completed curriculum) will be "finalize".  When the next trimester starts any student behind will pick up from where they left off.  Therefore, their "failing" grade is not "final".  At the end of the year if any student is still behind they will come in for summer school and finish what they have not yet completed.   If they do not come in for summer school they will take the last trimester of Algebra 1 at the beginning of their sophomore year.  I do not anticipate anyone being more than 1 trimester behind by the end of the year.  Note: In years prior if a student failed a trimester they had to repeat that trimester until they passed.  We had some students take a trimester over and over again.  My hope is that this will prevent that from happening.

Physical Set-up of Classroom

I have my classroom organized similar to "centers" as follows:

• Groups of desks for students to work together/helping each other or by themselves

• Small table for small group work with me or the cadet teacher

• Testing area for assessments

• Digital Work Station where netbooks will be set up and students can watch videos and do online submissions

• Grading Station where students can check their practice assignments against the answer key. (This used to be my desk. I've decided to give it up!)

I would greatly appreciate your thoughts. If there is something I've forgotten, let me know and I'll do my best to address it. This is just the beginning of what I'm sure will be an interesting journey!

~Lisa