Barrington 220 Expands Blended Learning Opportunities

As a result of feedback from staff and students, as well as the district priorities that emerged from the strategic planning process, Barrington 220 is exploring avenues to expand the blended learning program.

Blended learning is an instructional strategy in which instruction takes place partly in-person and partly online while giving students some control over the time, pace, path, and/or place of their learning. Barrington 220 has had a formal blended learning program since 2015. At Barrington High School, over 70 teachers have completed training in blended strategies and about 1,800 students experience blended learning daily. Blended strategies used in Barrington 220 generally include the station rotation, flipped, and flex models. Blended learning is a program that touches high school, middle school, and elementary school.

When students returned from remote learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic, administrators interviewed staff and students to find out what strategies they would like to continue. One theme that emerged was the positive experience many students had with increased personalization and agency. In addition, the strategic planning process identified Personalized Learning and Future-Ready Learning as two of the six strategic priorities to guide the district as we move forward.

It has always been the mission of the One to World program to provide real-world learning experiences and facilitate personalized learning. To support these goals, Barrington 220 is expanding blended learning in the following ways:

High School

Starting in the 2022–23 school year, Barrington High School teachers who have completed blended learning certification will be able to use station rotation, flipped, and flex models in their classes with or without a blended designation. Teachers who have completed the training will decide when and if each strategy is appropriate for any given lesson. Teachers who completed the training more than three years ago will be "re-certified" in the use of blended strategies at one of the many inservice sessions available. We consider this type of blended learning as an instructional strategy.

Some courses lend themselves to a more holistic blended experience. A new cohort will examine potential course offerings that would prominently feature blended strategies and expanded student agency. These courses might feature options such as online curricula and self-paced learning. These courses will consider blended learning not just as an instructional strategy, but embedded into the design of the course.

A flexible learning cohort of administrators, teachers, and students has begun exploring potential programmatic offerings to increase student agency and blended experiences further. One step beyond courses designed around blended, this program could benefit students seeking even greater voice and choice in their learning. While this cohort is in its infancy, the ideas beginning to emerge are promising.

Middle School

With the recently completed flexible learning spaces, middle school teachers are expanding opportunities for flexible grouping and personalized learning. In both middle schools, teachers are teaming up to deliver more targeted instruction to students as needed. For example, in Grade 6 English, three teachers might decide to regroup students on a given day. Groups would be determined by evidence from formative feedback rather than who your scheduled teacher happens to be. Teacher A might exchange some students with Teacher B for the day, while each teacher plans more personalized activities based on student readiness.

Elementary School

Elementary teachers continue to refine and perfect their use of station rotation and flipped models. Throughout remote learning, many elementary teachers created and shared online curriculum for their students to access when and where they most needed it. Now that we are back in person, many of these resources are being used to further refine differentiated learning opportunities for all students. Teachers are using stations to work with small groups of students while other students access online curriculum tailored to their current ability and understanding.