Blended Learning Proposal

OLTD 511
By: Stefanie Crema

Inquiry Question: How do you create the ideal blended learning program?

This proposal addresses the needs at Simon Cunningham Elementary School, in the
Surrey School District #36. I have chosen to propose a blended program be
implemented here as there are a number of issues needing attention, and I feel it would
benefit from this style of change. The information here reflects the current status and
population at this school.

Background Information
Simon Cunningham Elementary is a large culturally diverse school within the Surrey
School District. Students at Simon Cunningham come to school with varying levels of English
and knowledge of Canadian culture. Our students enter school at very different academic levels
from one another, which can pose problems when in age categorized classes as we are now.
Many students in our school come from disadvantaged homes and others are in the care of the
Ministry. There is a large immigrant population included in our schools population. We have a
breakfast and lunch program for our students as well as a full time childcare worker to support
those who need extra attention during their school days. Simon Cunningham is also a dual track
school offering a French Immersion program, which adds another layer of diversity to our school
community. In addition, we also have a low incidence program which currently hosts
approximately 8-10 students. These students are provided individual EAs as well as nurses in
the classroom. The diverse population at Simon Cunningham creates a beautiful relationship
amongst many different students and families and demonstrates the value in diversity.

Despite the benefits of such a diverse population, Simon Cunningham seems be lacking
in academic achievement levels. As with many classes across the province, it is not unusual to
have a single grade classroom with student achievement levels spanning over 5 different
grades. Students seem to display a lack of engagement and motivation during our school days.
Parent involvement in our community is also quite minimal. This could be attributed to busy
working families, lack of English language or even cultural differences.

Plan
My proposed plan is to create a blended learning program at Simon Cunningham
Elementary School that utilizes a station rotation classroom model. I am also proposing that
rather than students report to assigned age level grade classes, that they report to a multi-age
family class. Students will be grouped according to 4 different levels (Kindergarten, Primary,
Intermediate & Senior) and will move through the levels based on progress rather than age.
Students will be in larger classrooms that have 2-3 teachers in the room at all times.
Problems to Address
By creating a blended learning program at Simon Cunningham Elementary school, my
hope is to address a number of core problems relating to mainstream students that currently
require greater focus and a more in depth plan of action.

1) This first issue to look at is our achievement levels across the board, but most
specifically in the areas of Math and Language Arts. Our students are not where they
should be and continue to fall behind their peers in other parts of the province. Part of
this issue stems from the fact that a large proportion of our school population is ELL and
therefore entering school with varying abilities in English. By using blended learning as a
tool, my hope is that a personalized program can be developed for our students that
allow them to begin and progress at appropriate educational levels. By working through
a personalized program suited to their individualized needs, students will be less likely to
have gaps in their learning and more likely to experience success.

2) The second issue to address is the lack of engagement and motivation displayed by our
students on a regular basis. It is my belief that by introducing an online component into
the core of our studies, it will increase the engagement levels of our students and
therefore motivate them to put effort and time into their education.

3) Simon Cunningham has a diverse population, but one that is not overly involved. I would
like to address the issue of parental involvement through blended learning at our school.
I think that by creating programs that are easily accessible from home and include a
parent component, parents will be more inclined to take interest in what their children are
doing at school. According to Ontarios Ministry of Education, it is recognized that parent
engagement is a key factor in the enhancement of student achievement and well-being
(2016).

The Student Experience

The definition of blended learning as stated by the Christensen Institute, is a formal
education program in which a student learns at least in part through online learning, with some
element of student control over time, place, path, and/or pace (n.d.).

For the purposes of my proposed blended learning program I would like to focus on
having students control the pace of the their learning. If we are to address the issue of gaps in
learning achievement and engagement for our students, allowing them to work at their own
pace with their personalized programs is optimal for success.

Outside of the academic goals that I have for students at Simon Cunningham, I would
like my students to experience a family like atmosphere in their multi-aged classes. Students
and teachers will have the opportunity to build more meaningful relationships that build trust and
respect over time. I want students to feel accepted and gain confidence in their ability to
socialize and advocate for themselves.
Role of the Teachers
The way the blended learning program at Simon Cunningham will be set up will allow for
two teacher experts per family group class. One of the teachers primary focus will be on
Math/Science and the others will be on Language Arts/Social Studies. The teachers will work
together to provide support and intervention to students as assistant teachers during subjects
they are not leading. The lead teacher in each subject will be responsible for direct instruction
as well as the assessment and planning of lessons and programs for each student in those
areas. Teachers will have opportunities to debrief, collaborate and reflect together on their
instruction, student learning and changes that need to be made. When teachers are acting as
assistant teacher, they will provide intervention and support during collaborative and inquiry time
or anywhere that the lead teacher deems it necessary. It will be increasingly important for
teachers to keep open lines of communication and work together towards a common goal.

By having teachers act as experts or specialists in certain core subjects, it frees up time
for them to create more comprehensive programs that will enable students to dig deeper into
the subject areas at levels that work for them.

What Model of Blended Learning Will I Adapt?

For my proposed plan, I will adapt a rotation model of blended learning. According to
Horn & Staker, a rotational model is any course or subject in which students rotate - either on a
fixed schedule or at the teachers discretion - among learning modalities, at least one of which is
online learning (2015). Within the Rotation Model category, there are four sub categories. I am
choosing to implement the station rotation model for our core subjects which will allow students
to rotate in groups between online learning, direct instruction, targeted intervention and small
group inquiry projects. The station rotation model is generally accepted as a sustaining model of
blended learning (Horn & Staker, 2015). Because we are targeting a core problem within our
school rather than one of non-consumption, I believe this to be a good choice for our new
school model. Horn & Staker state, in general today, sustaining models of blended learning are
better matches for core problems (2015).

What will this model look like at Simon Cunningham?

I am proposing that the whole school from K-7 implement a new blended learning model,
however I will focus in greater detail at the K-3 level. To begin with, I think that this is a large
scale change and it would be beneficial to phase in the change. Im recommending that we
implement the changes first at the Kindergarten and Primary Family Levels. I believe that with
early intervention we will have fewer gaps in academic achievements at the intermediate levels.

Students within the school will be placed into one of four family groups. These groups
will be as follows:

1. Kindergarten
2. Grades 1-3: Primary Family
 3. Grades 3-5: Intermediate Family
4. Grades 5-7: Senior Family

Justification: I have chosen to keep Kindergarten classes separate from the family groupings for
a couple of reasons. Depending on the school, district and neighbourhood, all students enter
Kindergarten at varying levels of readiness. At Simon Cunningham, many of our students enter
with no English and never having been in preschool or even separated from family for a portion
of their day. My thought is that a year to adjust to our school would benefit them in a social
emotional way. To begin Kindergarten with students 2 years their senior, might be somewhat
overwhelming for them. Additionally, I think it would benefit them to spend their year in
Kindergarten practicing the basic skills needed to work in our blended primary classrooms.
Many of these skills are brand new to them. Once theyve completed Kindergarten, the hope
would be that they would have the basic skills and confidence to enter into a family group in
Grade 1 with minimal need for extra instruction surrounding the technology as theyve just spent
a year working at a very basic beginner level.

For the family groups I have chosen to overlap grades. For example grade 3 students
would be placed in either the primary or the intermediate family group. This is to allow students
to work at their own pace and move up based on competency rather than age. If a grade 3
student is working at below grade level then they would continue in their primary family, but
would still have students of the same age with them. If a student in grade 3 is working
competently at a grade 3 level or above, they would have the opportunity to be placed in the
intermediate family. This transition allows students to continue work and progress at their just
right levels while maintaining the relationships with students at their own age levels. Grade 5
students transition in the same manner.

Why Multi-Age?: Some might not see the advantages of a multi age classroom, but in the case
of Simon Cunningham I feel that this type of model would be far more beneficial than the current
model. Students in my current grade 3 classroom are anywhere from a pre-k level to a grade 5
level, which makes the learning for each student less effective as it does not target their
individual needs as effectively. Sure they are the same age, but there are many benefits outside
of academics that multi-aged classrooms can offer

University of Wyoming Early Care & Education Centre outline a number of benefits for
both students and teachers participating in multi-aged classrooms that are worth taking the time
to read. The extensive list can be accessed at
http://www.uwyo.edu/ecec/_files/documents/multi-age-benefits.pdf. Children developing a sense
of family, older children acting as mentors, teachers developing a deeper understanding of
student needs and children taking charge of their learning are just a few notable benefits to this
type of educational organization (University of Wyoming, n.d.). Reed of Acton Academy states
that:
 Achildmightbedoingmaththatismoretypicalofstudentsthreeyearsolderthan
him,butreadingbookssimilartostudentsayearyoungerthanhim,andwritinglike
atypicalstudenthisage.Withagradespanofthreetofouryears,heisnotalonein
anyofhisworkandcanfindpeersdoingsimilarwork.Additionally,beingwithmany
ofthesamepeersandteachersforseveralyearsallowsforacohesivecommunity
toformwhereeachstudentisknownandcelebratedasanindividual.(2014)

Relationships:Themulti-agedclassenablesteacherstounderstandstudentstrengthsand
weaknessesmorefullyandasaresultbettercatertheireducationtowardsthesespecific
needssotheyareabletoenjoysuccess.Bystayingwiththesameteacheroveranumber
ofyears,studentsareabletodevelopatrustingrelationshipthatcanpositivelyaffecttheir
schoolperformance.InmanycasesatSimonCunningham,studentsdonthaveatrusted
adultintheirlife,socreatinggreaterstabilityforthematschoolcanpotentiallybelife
changingforsomeofthem.

As it Stands Now: Classes are sorted by age level and contain one grade or two in the case of a
split class. Ranges of abilities are wide and pose great difficulty for teachers teaching to the
curriculum. This does not favour the development of our students.

Our future model: Will allow students to be grouped according to competency within a varied but
reasonable multi-aged group setting that would enable the students to work on personalized
programs using a student centered approach and have access to intervention when necessary
as well as direct instruction targeted to their level within the group.

Teacher/Student Ratio: Class sizes will be slightly larger than the typical primary classroom cap
of 24, but there will be two teacher experts in each classroom bringing the teacher - student
ratio down. The teachers will either be the Math/Science specialist or the Language Arts/Social
Studies specialist. Within their specialized area each teacher will be in control of creating the
program and assessment for the students and the other teacher will take on a supporting role as
guidance teacher and interventionist. In addition, classes will be sorted such that each class has
access to at least one EA who will be able to act as an online troubleshooter for our students
working at their online stations. The composition at Simon Cunningham will ensure that many
family group classes will have multiple EAs, however many of them will be very student specific
and unable to assist the larger group. Our Learner Support Team will be divided amongst the
family groups and will be available to provide in class support on a rotational basis where the
needs are highest and support is most required.

Fine Arts/PE and Health Education: Student will rotate for PE and Fine Arts based on age level.
Primary groups will be divided into lower and upper group and combined with other groups
within the primary family. While the lower groups are participating in PE/Health Education, the
upper groups stay in their classroom and work on Fine Arts and vice versa. Because Physical
Education can be dependent on physical development, I find it more appropriate to play and
learn with others that are of similar physical developmental levels.

Here is what a typical Primary Family classroom setup might look like with our new
Station Rotation Blended Model of Learning
Our classrooms will now include table and chairs rather than desks. The tables will have wheels
that allow them to be moved as needed for whole or small group instruction. Each room will
have a carpet area in the primary family group that can be utilized for a variety of different
activities; Morning welcome, sharing, whole group instruction, discovery, independent and
buddy reading, a social gathering area during choice times in class.

Scheduling: This is an example of how a Primary Family Group schedule might look.
 Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

8:35 -8:50 Morning Welcome Morning Welcome Morning Welcome Morning Welcome Morning Welcome
and work and work and work and work and work

8:50 - 10:00 Math Rotation Language Arts Math Rotations Language Arts Math Rotations
Rotation Rotation

10:00 - 10:15 Recess Recess Recess Recess Recess

10:20 - 10:30 Mindful Breathing Mindful Breathing Mindful Breathing Mindful Breathing Mindful Breathing

10:30 - 11:45 Science Social Studies Inquiry Project Science Social Studies

11:45- 12:30 Lunch Lunch Lunch Lunch Lunch

12:30 - 1:15 Fine Arts or Fine Arts or Fine Arts or Fine Arts or Fine Arts or
PE/Health Ed PE/Health Ed PE/Health Ed PE/Health Ed PE/Health Ed

1:15 -1:25 Mindful Breathing Mindful Breathing Mindful Breathing Mindful Breathing Mindful Breathing

1:15 - 2:25 Language Arts Math Rotations Language Arts Math Rotations Language Arts
Rotation Rotation Rotation
*Colours indicate the change in lead teachers for various subjects
*It would be up to individual groups as to how they divide the teaching load for PE/Fine Arts (one might choose to teach all the Fine
Arts, or teachers might decided to keep one group for both Fine Arts and PE).

Language Arts
Students will rotate between small group instruction and online learning during language arts
time. Groups will be leveled and subject to change based on performance. Students will also
have a chance during language arts time to move to the reading areas throughout the
classroom to read a book independently either online or paperback. All small group instruction
will be guided by a teacher.

Math
During Math students will rotate between direct instruction from the lead teacher, personalized
online learning programs and targeted intervention and tutoring with the teacher in support as
well as the EA. The continuous rotation allows students to have their programs adapted and
misconceptions addressed quickly and effectively.

Science/Social Studies
Science and Social Studies will be formatted slightly different than the other core subjects. I feel
there will be increased flexibility within these subject areas. The lead teacher for each of these
subjects will often start with whole group instruction as much of these subjects will be content
related. Once whole group instruction is complete, students will move into their station rotation
between online learning, collaborative activities and inquiry work. Teachers will support the
collaborative and inquiry groups while the EA will support students working online. LIkely whole
group instruction will not occur every lesson as it will take some time to circulate through the
stations before moving forward.

Hardware, Software and Physical Space

The physical space will be a combination of adapting the current classroom spaces that
currently exist in the school as well as creating some more open spaces in rooms that are
smaller. Given that it is an older school, many of the classrooms are large already. In some
wings of the school this does not hold true and it would be ideal to knock walls down between
those rooms to create larger more open spaces that invite an open learning environment. This
would be ideal for the intermediate and senior family groups as students are larger and would
benefit from greater space. Because we are eliminating the overall number of classes in the
school, the number of closed and separate classrooms will not be necessary.

In each classroom, I would like to keep with the idea of one wall containing white boards.
Classes with chalkboards would need to have these replaced. Each class would also require a
whiteboard on wheels to accommodate small group learning that is easily accessible. Each
class would require 3 small round tables on wheels, 1 large round table on wheels, and two
large rectangular table to house the chromebooks. Each class would require a digital projector.
This would come at no additional cost as the school currently has one per classroom. Enough
Chromebooks for at least half the students in a given family group class(approx. 15). 6-8 iPads
per class for collaboration and inquiry. The school currently has enough iPads to split amongst
all family groups.

In terms of choosing the software needs for our program, this I believe would come at a
later stage and decisions would be made by the lightweight teams for each family group.
Programs change as levels progress and some programs are better suited for particular levels.
For the primary family groups I am proposing the following software as a place to start. After
trials, we must be open to reflection and change as the reality of these programs effectiveness
might prove different than first imagined. Freshgrade is and will continue to be used for
assessment and reflection purposes. By allowing scheduled time for parents to use the
computers, I hope that FreshGrade can help to begin building greater relationships between
students, parents and teachers thus increasing family involvement.

Mathseeds - Ideal for Kindergarten through Grade 3, with Grade 3+ materials being
added soon
Prodigy - game based personalized learning program (Free)
Raz Kids - a great reading program for primary students
MobyMax - Science and Social Studies (Free)
KidBlog - writing and social tool (Free)

Team Organization
Often implementing sustaining innovations such as the station rotation model that Im
proposing requires only functional or lightweight teams, but in this case- we are implementing a
blended learning program that requires cooperation from the district for resources and funding
as well as architectural changes in our school. As stated by Horn & Staker (2015), Some
problems go beyond how classrooms or departments work together. They require changing the
architecture of the school or district itself. In these cases a heavyweight blended learning team
would be the most ideal team to get the job done. In a heavyweight team, experts from each
department will work together to design a plan for a common goal. This type of team is generally
well suited for designing new processes and breakthrough changes for schools (Horn &
Staker, 2015).

In the case of Simon Cunningham, I am proposing a change with regards to architectural

layout, classroom and staff organization as well as technology distribution. A heavyweight team
will need to be assembled. These types of changes will require someone in a formal leadership
role who is able to assist in making large school wide changes. In this case I am suggesting that
the principal as well as the vice principal be involved with this heavy weight team. Our VP is
currently also the integration teacher at the school, so she would serve as a voice for students
and families on her caseload in addition to being an advocate for change in the school. I would
like to place a representative from each family group on the team in both French and English so
that each academic and age level is being represented fairly within the decision making
process. A representative from the district would likely be involved with this heavyweight team.

I believe that I will need two lightweight teams to be formed once the bulk of the change
has begun to take shape. These lightweight teams would represent the French program and the
English program. Each team would be comprised of teachers from each level working together
with a representative from the Learner Support Team as well as a representative from the
Educational Assistants team. These groups will work together to determine which software
programs best suit their groups needs and how they will work together to ensure they are
working towards achieving a common goal.

Culture in the Blended Learning Program

Culture in any learning institution or any work place for that matter can influence and
determine the success of individual students. In the case of our proposed blended learning
model, it is important that we deliberately and creatively create a culture that works to benefit
and enhance both the staff and student experiences at Simon Cunningham Elementary School.
Kim makes the point that, blended learning accelerates a good culture and makes it great, but it
will also accelerate a bad culture and make it terrible (as stated in Horn & Staker, 2015).

At Simon Cunningham we will introduce the following initiatives that are meant to create
a positive culture in our blended learning environment.

Students
1. Celebrating success -daily after lunch (each student should celebrate his/her own
success each week- these successes can be academic or social in nature. They can be
unrelated to school altogether. As long as everyone is recognized for doing something
good they are able to feel a sense of worth. These celebrations should be posted and
visible to all students.
2. Morning Work - Students have two minutes to put away bags/coats and start on morning
work once they have entered the classroom to set a tone for their school day.
3. Following the day plan as outlined on the projector - each day students are expected to
check the whiteboard for which station they will begin the day at, as groups can and will
spontaneously change. When the teacher rings the bell, students know to promptly go to
their respective stations and get started.
4. Leadership - being in family groups students are expected to show leadership to their
younger companions. Students are encouraged to ask other/older students for help
when needed. Only when both are unable to solve a problem together are they to seek
the assistance of the teacher. This allows the elder student to gain a sense of
accomplishment, responsibility and leadership. It can give the younger students a sense
of accomplishment and confidence as well.
5. Students understand and demonstrate a respect for their belongings, the tools they work
with and the learning being done throughout their class and school
Teachers
1. Staff Celebrations - During meetings each family group should share a success with the
staff
2. Collaboration - working in a team teaching situation encourages all teacher experts to
collaborate, reflect and learn from one another.
3. Sharing of school duties - creating a rotating schedule for cleaning, extra curriculars and
shared space time
4. Shared expectations for behaviour throughout the school
5. Parent communication - teacher will rotate and supervise twice per week for 15 minutes
after school when parents will have access to the computers to access FreshGrade and
other personalized student programs.

Budget and Cost Management

Because this proposal for a blended learning program is my ideal blended program,
cost might not necessarily prove to be on my side. This is why in a more realistic sense Ive
suggested rolling out the program in phases. This will allow for kinks to be smoothed out and
changes made prior to investing greater money in larger scale changes such as construction.
By proposing to focus on the Kindergarten and Primary Family, it eliminates the immediate need
for any architectural changes within the school. It does however still require additional teaching
and support staff, many added pieces of technology and furniture. The costs are based on the
current population of Simon Cunningham Elementary School in both the French and English
programs.

Item Needed Cost Number Required Total

Laptops $399 100 $39900

iPads 0

Round Tables Small $939 18 $16,902

Round Tables Large $1142 6 $6852

Rectangular Tables $250 12 $3000

Whiteboard on $308 6 $1848

Wheels

Additional Teachers $50,000 - $80, 000 4 $200,000 - $270,000

Software Licenses $5300 $5300

Conclusion
 I feel that the proposed blended learning program will enhance the education of students
at Simon Cunningham Elementary school. The blended components will allow for a more
personalized student centred program. Teachers will be able to delve deeper into their subjects
as they are becoming so called specialists. The carefully chosen software programs and
assessment programs encourage parent engagement and involvement. I believe that all of the
factors will lead to increases in student academic performance, student engagement as well as
parental involvement.

References
Christensen Institute. Blended learning definitions. (n.d.) Retrieved from
http://www.christenseninstitute.org/blended-learning-definitions-and-models/

Early Care and Education Centre: University of Wyoming. (n.d.). Some benefits of multi-age
grouping. Retrieved from
http://www.uwyo.edu/ecec/_files/documents/multi-age-benefits.pdf

Horn, M.B., & Staker, H. (2015). Blended: Using disruptive innovation to improve schools
[Kindle]. Retrieved from Amazon.com

Ontario Ministry of Education. (2016). Parent Engagement. Retrieved

from http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/parents/involvement/

Reed, K. (2014, May 17). Student centered learning: How to implement a blended learning
program. [Web Log Comment]. Retrieved from
https://www.knewton.com/resources/blog/ed-tech/blended-learning/