I started my journey with teaching in 2008 at Mapleton Junior High School. I specialized in English/Language Arts, but for me, teaching was about helping students uncover their unique talents and abilities. That’s where my real passion lies.
Along the road, I bumped into the realities of large class sizes, diverse student needs and the myriad of other classroom challenges. I knew there were ways I wanted to make a greater impact on the teaching community. Now, as Head of Operations for Lucid for Education, I’m able to support teachers across the world with resources and technology that amplify their impact on students.
Over the past year, as Lucid has partnered closely with local schools and leaders nationally, we’ve noticed a growing concern and need for flexibility with the issues students and teachers are managing outside of school as economic pressures mount. Throughout my career, I’ve learned what can help teachers free up time and rejuvenate their practices to create a more dynamic and effective learning environment for every type of learner.
Here’s what I’ve learned can make the biggest impact:
Use visuals. While no two learners are the same, using visuals in learning has been proven to capture the attention of different learning styles, simplify complex information and enhance memory retention. Whether slow thinkers, fast talkers or contemplators, every student can find a comfortable way to participate. From middle school social studies to biology majors and medical students, I’ve seen classrooms nationwide where students struggled to comprehend the dense material in their textbooks before their instructors began using Lucid to create easier-to-digest concept maps. I’ve witnessed how the students “got it” when they mapped out the content they were reading, and I saw higher test scores and student retention.
Save time with templates. When I was teaching, no matter how many strategies I tested, inevitably, some students had an easier time participating than others. Despite hurdles like nerves and distractions, encouraging collaboration in classrooms is a cornerstone of learning. The versatility of visual collaboration empowers students of varying learning styles and backgrounds to actively contribute to classroom discussions. Templates for various discussions and activities can save teachers time and supercharge collaboration in classrooms. Educators can use templates to cultivate an encouraging and collaborative environment and alleviate some of the preparation burdens.
Create a digital classroom. Collaborative digital tools allow students to feel connected to the classroom environment no matter where they are. Tools like Canvas and Flip can help reduce the need for teachers to spend significant time with students outside of class hours, re-teaching lessons or re-explaining tasks and assignments. Whether they’re at home doing homework or at a friend’s house working together on a project, students have access to the same instruction and context to support their work through collaborative digital tools. It helps teachers, too. One teacher I worked with recently told me that rather than having students lined up in her classroom during her lunch and prep periods after school, she could quickly review their work and respond from anywhere, which allowed for much more immediate feedback.
Assess grades in real time. By leveraging online assessment tools, students can feel at ease with a more gamified and less scary approach to exams. Teachers, by adopting these digital methods, can trade in the lengthy, laborious process of grading and immediately understand students’ learning and adapt instruction to those needs, rather than finally analyzing the data several days later, after the window of instruction has passed.
Collaborate with other teachers. While there may be one teacher per classroom, teaching is not a one-person job. It’s important to feel supported by colleagues. When teachers work together to create innovative lesson plans, determine student progress and challenges and offer collegial support and encouragement to one another, they increase student success and decrease burnout. Through collaboration and features like team hubs from Lucid, teachers can create a more streamlined and effective way to share resources, lesson plans and activities so they don’t have to reinvent the wheel.
Teachers face complex challenges every day in the classroom. I hope that working to incorporate even one of these tips will offer a hand of support to teachers balancing so many priorities.
(Britney Davis) Britney Davis was awarded “Teacher of the Year” by Utah’s Granite School District in 2013 and now serves as the Head of Operations for Lucid for Education.
Britney Davis was awarded “Teacher of the Year” by Utah’s Granite School District in 2013 and now serves as the Head of Operations for Lucid for Education.
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