EdUCATION

CASE STUDY: Kendra Rickerby

School Director: Expeditionary School of Black River

Kendra's Goal: Better asynchronous engagement and collaboration for student and the community within a virtual learning experience

ABSTRACT

Enhancing Engagement and Collaboration in a Virtual Classroom

This case study examines how Huddle Up was used to address the challenges facing a 7th-12th grade school that is almost entirely remote. The Director, Kendra Rickerby,  wanted to create more interactive learning experiences and help to foster a greater sense of community. Using Huddle Up's collaborative structure, Kendra created experiences allowing students to co-create their learning with a focus on applying their learning and proposing solutions to community-based problems.

BACKGROUND

Connecting learners virtually

Introduction: 

Kendra Rickerby knew that engaging her students - and learning in general - had to evolve. As the Head of School at the Expeditionary School of Black River (ESBR) in Vermont, Rickerby was all too familiar with how students struggle to learn meaningfully in today's world where information exists instantly - and learn collaboratively. It's an even bigger challenge for ESBR which serves students in grades 7-12 in rural Vermont. The school is a hybrid model, with some students meeting in-person for special events and others attending in-person instruction each day.  Huddle Up helped ESBR leverage technology so that

the skills students acquire anytime, anywhere are 

Kendra Rickerby, Head of School ESBR

recognized  on a student's learning tracker.  By implementing Huddle Up Learning, Rickerby aimed to create a more active learning environment, foster collaboration around projects - and include parents and the community in the process - while ensuring that learning remained relevant and interactive.

"Before using Huddle Up, we talked a lot about building community, connecting people with a shared purpose. My experience with Huddle Up put all that talk into action."

Challenges and Goals: 

Rickerby knew the connecting learners is even more important - and more difficult - within her virtual classrooms.  Without greater interaction, she recognized that it would be an even bigger challenge to keep students engaged and provide a program that is relevant within the expeditionary model of learning.  In her words, "Typically, when I work with LMSs, I struggled to utilize the technology in a manner that made collaboration authentic and communication... seamless." 

To address these challenges she turned to Huddle Up Learning. Her goals were as follows:

Active Learning:

- Encourage students to construct knowledge together through collaborative problem-solving.

- Enable students to share solutions, receive feedback, and learn from one another.

Relevance and Interactivity:

- Utilize collaborative Problem-Based Learning to enhance engagement.

- Use Huddle Up to provide dynamic experiences, updated on the fly, which promote Active Learning.

Community Building:

- Involve parents and mentors in the learning process to foster a sense of community and support.

- Encourage their active participation in the students' education.

"[Huddle Up] maximized practice in a way that we couldn't fit into the schedule" 

“In terms of how it changed learning, it changed their interaction with each other and the teacher. 

Fundamentally, that is critical." 

IMPLEMENTATION

Put the Talk into Action

Active Learning: 

Rickerby wanted more than content recall. Using Huddle Up, students shared their own solutions and collaborated while learning and providing feedback to one another.  This was evident when students were working on a collaborative playwriting exercise and were able to share videos of specific scenes, give star-ratings and comments on script ideas, and use both the direct messaging and group chat features to communicate.

Relevance and Interactivity: 

Student driven-learning is the starting point for relevance. Rickerby set up experiences that asked students to apply their thinking to issues affecting the local community. By asking for solutions - instead of 'correct answers', Rickerby created a natural environment for interaction and peer and community feedback.

Feedback provided data - to each student and the group - about strengths and weaknesses.

Community Building: 

Huddle Up provided an avenue for parents and mentors to participate in the learning process. They were invited to provide feedback (both qualitative and quantitative) and support students in a student-created and performed play and local museum field trips. This opened up  diverse perspectives and real-world experiences for students.

Moving beyond Top-Down learning

"Huddle Up is the nexus for moving schools out of the fragmented, compartmentalized approach that I've experienced most of my career."

RESULTS

“(Students) were more talkative and collaborative, absolutely, they were more engaged."

The implementation of Huddle Up Learning had a profound impact on ESBR:

- Students embraced the platform by actively participating in discussions, collaborating on projects, and sharing their solutions. 

- Collaborative knowledge construction fostered a deeper understanding of the subject matter and enhanced critical thinking skills.

- Parental and mentor involvement created a supportive learning environment, connecting classroom education to the real world.

- The interactive nature of Huddle Up increased student engagement and motivation.

Easy to implement. Powerful learning.

It's obvious that Huddle Up has been designed by educators who understand how to put learning theory into daily routines."

conclusion & NEXT STEPS

Positive Change and Critical Steps towards a Better Future 

Kendra Rickerby's implementation of Huddle Up Learning transformed learning experiences at ESBR. The platform facilitated active learning, collaboration, and engagement among students. Supported by parents and mentors, Rickerby fostered a sense of community and provided valuable real-world perspectives. 

the power of peer and community feedback in the learning process

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