| Picture from MLive.com |
Andrew Vanden Heuvel teaches AP physics and astronomy at Michigan Virtual School in Michigan, where he also serves as a course developer and project manager. He uses Jing, Camtasia Studio, Snagit, Stellarium, Gizmos, BrainPOP, and Wolfram Alpha to help his students learn.
An Interview with Andrew
How would you say teaching online is different than being in the physical classroom?
A lot of time is wasted in the physical classroom, and not just in the ways one might expect. In a physical classroom, all students are presumed to be at the same place in the class, but one student may still be unsure about the previous lesson (or unit), while another student learned this material before and is ready for the next unit. The power of the online classroom is that every student can proceed at their own pace. This changes my role as a teacher to one who supports each student individually as they progress.
How do your students interact with the media that you upload?
Students routinely say that the most helpful items in the course are the Camtasia videos that I upload. I use these videos to show how to solve a challenging problem, to demonstrate the use of an online simulation, or to introduce a new concept in an engaging way.
You create STEM projects for NASA in addition to teaching. How has your teaching style affected your other projects?
I create classroom projects, activities, and lessons for students across the country. Through all the work I do, in my teaching or in development, I always try to provide authentic opportunities for students. Solving a problem is one thing, but solving a meaningful problem where the solution can actually be useful is way more engaging. I believe that working on one real problem with a valuable solution is worth 100 textbook problems with the answer in the back of the book. Working with NASA and USA Today allows me to put this into practice and create authentic opportunities for students to engage in math and science.
Have you found a lot of additional opportunities as the Michigan Online Teacher of the Year?
It was quite a surprise to be selected as Michigan Online Teacher of the Year, but since my selection, I have had the opportunity to testify at the state legislature, present at several conferences, and publish a few articles related to online instruction. I was also selected as one of five finalists for the National Online Teacher of the Year award. Attending the national SREB conference in Atlanta last spring was a wonderful opportunity to meet online instructors from around the country and learn about the exciting directions that K-12 education is headed in the future.
What recommendations do you have to other teachers interested in screencasting?
I would encourage them to consider a few questions:
- What would you be doing in class if you weren't lecturing?
- Would your students enjoy that more?
- Would you enjoy that more?
Are there any examples of your projects that you'd like to share?
USA Today Universe: This series of classroom activities prepares students to create their own astronomical color photos using original images from the Hubble Space Telescope. An unusual blend of art and science, the final activity of this project guides students through free software for opening, displaying, and modifying the astrophotos that are typically only available to professional astronomers.
NASA Real World: This innovative programs pairs high school teams with college engineering students as they seek to solve real-world problems currently facing NASA engineers. This project starts in the classroom and then transitions to a 3D virtual environment where students congregate, collaborate, and create their design before sharing it with a panel of judges from across the country. This project is truly ahead of its time.
Connect with Andrew
Visit Andrew's Website
Read about Andrew's Award on MLive
View his physics concept lesson plan
Ali White is the Social Media Intern for TechSmith. She studies Professional Writing at MSU and will be attending the final shuttle launch in Orlando. Follow her live tweets at @DesignLightning or follow her on Tumblr.
Online teaching is better than physical teaching,it helps the students to learned according to his capacity.Fast learners can learned a lot.....I hope it can be introduced worldwide so that the students can make a choice.
Online teacher is much better, i had a wonderful experience when i was into this.
Camtasia is a really great tool to use to educate people. You wouldn't think that online education would be more beneficiary than in-person application, but it seems to be.