Flip Your Classroom
CHAPTER 4 How to Implement the Flipped Classroom
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what should be recorded and what should not. We simply
recorded everything we had lectured on in the past. As we
have matured in our process, we have begun to eliminate
certain videos from our curriculum that are redundant,
unnecessary, or ineffective. As you continue making more
and more videos, start to alter your existing material to be
better suited for a screencast. After a while you will become
comfortable with the features of the screencasting software
you are using, so plan for those features. For example, if
you would like to add video clips, leave blank slides as a
mental note and placeholder for clips to be inserted after
the fact. If you know you will be working out problems
using a digital pen, leave blank slides for writing. If you
would like to use a calculator emulator, leave space on
slides for the calculator to be displayed. Want to use a
webcam? Be sure to have a place on your screen where
it will reside. Thus, the more complex your final video
product will be, the more you need to plan.
2. Recording the video. Recording the lesson entails sitting
at your computer or interactive white board with a micro-
phone, webcam, writing device, or document camera.
You simply “teach” the lesson to your absent audience,
pausing occasionally to plan what will be said next, or to
correct a mistake. We have found that some teachers are
more comfortable working from a script or outline, and
that’s fine. However, we do not write a script. This is for
two main reasons: (1) our slide show serves as enough of
an outline that we, as veteran teachers, can simply impro-
vise adequate conversation to teach the material, and (2) a
script would simply hinder our spontaneity and creativity.
We prefer our lessons to be more conversational and less
formal. Our students have told us that they prefer conver-
sational videos featuring both of us; thus, we make time
to create these together to include this dynamic. However,
our videos tend to run long, and a script or more focused
instruction would lead to a shorter video. As always, know
what your students need and give it to them.