Inspired by the teaching cutbacks threads...

[ChrisFL]

First, a brief theme park related thought. At the T2:3D attraction at Universal, there's an introduction by Cyberdyne systems, the diabolical computer driven corporation.

Anyway, one of Cyberdyne's displays refers to a classroom where students watch a video from the same teacher, teaching the same class to everyone, all over the world.

Now obviously there are some things that can be an issue with that kind of setup, but after hearing about all of these budget cuts everywhere, is it time to start thinking of classes which could use some remote teaching of certain subjects?

I don't know what to make of this idea, so wanted to hear your opinions

 

[Hannathy]

sure why not?

I do think High Schools should begin having lecture classes like colleges with a lot of students say 100-200. There are many subjects that could be taught this way and it would drastically cut the number of teachers needed. this would be a very easy and economical way to move in this direction.

 

[horseshowmom]

First, a brief theme park related thought. At the T2:3D attraction at Universal, there's an introduction by Cyberdyne systems, the diabolical computer driven corporation.

Anyway, one of Cyberdyne's displays refers to a classroom where students watch a video from the same teacher, teaching the same class to everyone, all over the world.

Now obviously there are some things that can be an issue with that kind of setup, but after hearing about all of these budget cuts everywhere, is it time to start thinking of classes which could use some remote teaching of certain subjects?

I don't know what to make of this idea, so wanted to hear your opinions

sure why not?

I do think High Schools should begin having lecture classes like colleges with a lot of students say 100-200. There are many subjects that could be taught this way and it would drastically cut the number of teachers needed. this would be a very easy and economical way to move in this direction.

We already do this to some extent with subjects that it's hard to find someone who is certified for (we're very rural).

As far as classes that are 100-200 in size, I can assure you that students are not self-controlled enough for this.

 

[Hannathy]

We already do this to some extent with subjects that it's hard to find someone who is certified for (we're very rural).

As far as classes that are 100-200 in size, I can assure you that students are not self-controlled enough for this.

why not? they are certainly old enough. If there is a discipline problem then deal with it appropriately. there is no reason they can't be.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

No, I don't think this is feasible. If you have one teacher for 5 or 6 cyber classrooms of 30+ students, and that teacher does this 4 or 5 times a day, that's close to 1000 kids. How is that teacher going to be able to grade assessments, let alone have time to answer questions from students?

And how is disciplinary issues going to be handled? There will need to be SOMEONE with authority in the room. Might as well pay that person to teach.

 

[KiminChicago]

why not? they are certainly old enough. If there is a discipline problem then deal with it appropriately. there is no reason they can't be.

It really all depends on the students. I've subbed at our high schools for General Freshman English, Juniors Honor English and a Senior AP English class. I can't even begin to tell you what a difference there was, both in behavioral and maturity issues. With the general level class, there were two of us co-teaching 20 students, most of whom couldn't have cared less. We were both subs that day, which probably made the situation worse than it would have been with only one sub. We had issues with someone throwing a rubber bouncy ball, and two students almost escalated a name-calling incident into a fistfight. With the two of us, she was able to take the worst offender out into the hallway, while I supervised the rest of the class. And of course, while I had my back turned, helping one student, another student on the other side of the classroom was blowing up a balloon and releasing it to fly around the classroom.

The Honors students, since they were juniors, were more mature, but you still have the occasional class clown who will disrupt the class if given a chance.

The AP students were my favorite. You could hear a pin drop in that classroom. They came in, pulled out their books and knew what they needed to be doing, even before I did. You could have put 100 of them in a classroom with a video teacher or a single lecturer and they would have been just fine. The other classes, not so much.

 

[horseshowmom]

why not? they are certainly old enough. If there is a discipline problem then deal with it appropriately. there is no reason they can't be.

I'm sorry, but this is not the reality of today's schools. Maybe it should be, but it's not.

Quite honestly, based on some of the complaints I hear about employees, I'm not too sure how well it would work with some adults (sadly).

It really all depends on the students. I've subbed at our high schools for General Freshman English, Juniors Honor English and a Senior AP English class. I can't even begin to tell you what a difference there was, both in behavioral and maturity issues. With the general level class, there were two of us co-teaching 20 students, most of whom couldn't have cared less. We were both subs that day, which probably made the situation worse than it would have been with only one sub. We had issues with someone throwing a rubber bouncy ball, and two students almost escalated a name-calling incident into a fistfight. With the two of us, she was able to take the worst offender out into the hallway, while I supervised the rest of the class. And of course, while I had my back turned, helping one student, another student on the other side of the classroom was blowing up a balloon and releasing it to fly around the classroom.

The Honors students, since they were juniors, were more mature, but you still have the occasional class clown who will disrupt the class if given a chance.

The AP students were my favorite. You could hear a pin drop in that classroom. They came in, pulled out their books and knew what they needed to be doing, even before I did. You could have put 100 of them in a classroom with a video teacher or a single lecturer and they would have been just fine. The other classes, not so much.

I agree. While I don't mean to say that no students would be capable of this, the majority would not. The number of people you would need to supervise the large classes would negate their benefit.

 

[snarlingcoyote]

Teaching, especially at that age, isn't just a present-the-data-you-regurgitate-it or a I-expect-you-to-be-able-to-think-on-your-own. You're not just teaching them subject matter but how to think about the subject matter.

With more than 25 kids in an advanced class, I wouldn't want any of mine going into it. The teacher would be unable to take time with each student and work with them and teach them how to to investigate and explore and think through things. Also, a lot of the really good, advanced classes are discussion. This is why your Frosh survey classes can have 200, but the advanced classes can't, because there's actual learning going on, not just memorization.

If all you want is that a child be able to spit a fact back at you, then 200 in a class is fine. If you want a child to be able to explain things and figure things out and be able to think independently, you have to work with each child.