Innovation proposal

Blended learning model and parental engagement in learning activities

Dear Mrs. West,

It has come to my attention that in today's classrooms students continue to struggle with grasping academic content. This is true in many classrooms through the United States who have experienced the COVID slide. Students are falling behind from not only grasping the current grade level TEKS, but also the TEKS lost from last year. Many students chose remote learning as part of their school experience last year. This has its advantages and disadvantages, but for the most part this led to hastily organized online learning platforms, by districts who were ill prepared. This, in addition to the lack of training for teachers on technology platforms and implementing these online platforms remotely, led to a chaotic implementation. In my current special education behavior classroom at Routh Roach Elementary, I have students from different grades with most of them performing academically at a lower grade level. Currently, teachers are struggling to provide direct instruction to students on current academic content and fill in previous year academic gaps as well.

To solve this issue our school district should consider implementing an integrated approach: take into consideration an innovative learning model-blended learning and involve parents in the educational process actively.

We are part of the Special Education department, and the students we serve have failed in a traditional classroom setting. Therefore, our approach should be more flexible, engaging, and innovative. According to The ECAR Study of Undergraduate Students and Information Technology, most students prefer a blended learning environment, because it combines online educational materials and possibility for interaction online with traditional place-based classroom methods.

The blended learning model provides the ability to form a proper instructional learning environment, for each grade level. It allows students to prepare new knowledge, fill the missing gaps, and direct their own learning path independently at school and in the home environment. This will benefit students to acquire ownership over their learning. While students work independently teachers will have the opportunity to work in small groups. It is also providing opportunities to

collect additional students' progress data from online activities and monitor their progress.

The second aspect of my proposal deals with needing to encourage parental engagement in learning activities. Students spend a great deal of time at home where they can review some instructional material under the parents' supervision. It can be done by using technology-based intervention programs, which can provide reminders and instructions inspiring and guiding parents towards a more productive engagement of their children.

I am proposing a pilot program to develop a curriculum for my special education behavior classroom at Routh Roach Elementary. This pilot program will focus entirely on a blended learning model environment. Our district currently promotes and has access to digital educational program components (such as Imagine Learning, Education Galaxy, myOn, Discovery Education, Canvas, and others) to produce a quality blended learning model and environment. To launch a technology-based intervention program, I suggest using a well-proven program named Ready4K. It is developed by educational researchers, Ready4K is an evidence-based family engagement curriculum delivered via text messages. The program works via a downloaded application, which sends parents three text messages per week with tips and encouragement ideas in order to engage their child with educational activities.

I suggest a one-year deadline in order to implement the blended learning model with parental engagement via Ready4K and to monitor and compare students’ progress data.

In conclusion, all the indvidual's involved with the learning process agree that a flexible learning approach is needed. Garland ISD will be in great standing, by modifying the way students achieve learning, and I believe that this is an opportunity that we should not lose.

Sincerely,
Andrei Dobrodumov
SPED Teacher Assistant Behavior Unit

Routh Roach Elementary