Zach Diamond 0:03 Welcome to the Modern Classrooms Project podcast. Each week, we bring you discussions with educators on how they use blended, self paced and mastery based learning to better serve their students. We believe teachers learn best from each other. So this is our way of lifting up the voices of leaders and innovators in our community. This is the Modern Classrooms Project podcast. Zach Diamond 0:28 Hello, and welcome to episode number 174 of the Modern Classrooms Project podcast. My name is Zach Diamond and I'm a middle school digital music teacher in Washington DC in a modern classrooms implementer and mentor. And today I'm joined by a Project Lead the Way biomedical science teacher and modern classrooms implementer Steve Schlarman welcome to the podcast. Steve, I'm really glad to have you. Steve Schlarman 0:53 Hello, thank you for having me today. I'm really excited to talk about stuff today that has been bothering me all year long. Zach Diamond 1:00 Yeah, I'm really excited to get into that too. Because I know, this is sort of foreshadowing I guess. But I know, like half of the story. And I'm excited to hear the other half of the story from you today. So looking forward to this episode, we're gonna be talking about planning for multiple preps. And by multiple preps. I mean, when a teacher teaches more than one course at the same time, so we call them preps, at least here in the US in English, different courses that you teach simultaneously. And Steve, when I said that I knew about half of the story, you actually reached out to us by email to ask us, like you said, basically, we're overwhelmed by the number of preps that you had. And you had you were wondering if we had any advice that you had already been implementing the model, and you just asked us for advice, which I first of all, think is awesome that you just emailed us at the podcast, because I love that. So I guess just a quick reminder to listeners, we do have an email address. If you don't listen all the way to the end podcast at modern classrooms.org. Email us, we'd love to hear from you. And look at this. You never know when your question might wind up getting a whole episode dedicated to it. Anyway, I know that you and Toni Rose actually had a conversation about this, you went back a little bit back and forth a little bit by email, then you actually went up talking is that right? Steve Schlarman 2:11 That's right, Toni and I was and I actually connected about a month ago, really close to Thanksgiving time. And we had a chance to talk about a bunch of different strategies that I could implement I'm going to talk about today. But the moral of story is that it's never as bad as it seems. And there's always something you can do to kind of give yourself some slack. But we'll get to that later on in the chat. Zach Diamond 2:36 Awesome. I love that not burying the lede at all they're good, very positive message at the outset. I love that. Cool. Well, before we get started, why don't you go ahead and then just introduce yourself to our listeners, you know, tell us a little bit more about who you are, what you teach, and how you started your modern classrooms journey, because you said in that email you've been implementing for quite a while, actually. So tell us more about how you got into modern classrooms. Steve Schlarman 2:59 Absolutely. I start with modern classrooms, all the way back in 2019. Before then I was teaching physics, those freshman physics at my old district, I worked at full year course, these kids that are freshmen having had algebra yet, and yet I'm supposed to teach them how to do complex equations and apply to real life problems. And it was challenging to say the least. And I also realized that I had lots of different levels of learners, even in my honors course of who has had what classes for math. So some of my kids needed a whole lot more time to be able to practice those equations and really be able to define what the variables are that they're looking for. And some kids really just needed one or two problems, and were okay. So I needed like a system that could take care of all those kinds of learners because some of those struggled way more than others. I was also teaching one of the classes I still teach now called project leads the way, human body systems. It's a second year course for the biomedical science track, it kind of is like a anatomy course. But it's more focused on clinical skills and career readiness than doing a whole bunch of memorization. Like if you had anatomy back in high school, you learn to every single bone of the body, every single muscle a body, we don't do that. It's not worth our time because I want to make sure that my kids are ready to enter into internships and stuff rather than memorizing a bunch of stuff that they might forget over winter break. And even those kids that wanted to be in human body systems, they just wanted to an extra science class to be able to explore this area of healthcare. So my guidance department often allowed students for weren't quite ready and didn't take the prerequisites for my class. They let them into my class because they knew I would take care of them and really get them involved in what healthcare is really about. But this is a college level class, and these kids are going to have a hard time and it's just the way it is. I just wanted the system that would really help them out. So flash forward 2019, right before the pandemic, I learned about modern classrooms on Facebook, and I was instantly drawn in. Steve Schlarman 5:24 I already had a system in place for students to retake tests for mastery, and have the ability to pace themselves. But I wasn't really consistent with it, I didn't have a way for me to check their progress throughout the course. And other than looking over the shoulder and pestering them, I didn't have a way to really motivate them to not only engage in the activities, but engage with each other and become more collaborative, and then reflect on their learning each and every day. It wasn't, it wasn't my best teaching for sure. So the training for modern classrooms project helped me become much more intentional with my teaching, I was able to implement mastery checks as checkpoints, set accountability with soft deadlines and parent contact for my students, and increase repetition with videos rather than stopping the whole class and hoping that they were paying attention to one single lecture that just wasted their time and mine. So it fit my teaching style like a glove. And all I had to do was become a guide for my students rather than being sage on the stage. And I continue to love it the way it is. Zach Diamond 6:28 Yeah, that's awesome. It's awesome. You know, the thing that interests me the most about what you just said, besides the fact that you're obviously speaking the language of modern classrooms. And we'd love to hear that. If I understood this, right, you were sort of teaching algebra within a physics class. And that's, like, almost a proto type of having two preps Yeah, really do that like that? Yeah. So it's interestingly, related to this topic, actually, because that's stressful. I mean, like, that's a lot of work on your, that you have to do to get those kids to remediate that to get those kids caught up and have them ready to succeed in your physics class. So it's interesting that like, there's that thru line to the whole story. I think that's really interesting. So that's awesome. Tell us now about like, I guess, because we're talking about teaching multiple preps. I'd like you to set the scene a little bit for us about like, now, what are your multiple preps? What do you teach? Now? I know you mentioned Project Lead the Way and I'd actually like to hear a little bit more about what that is. I'm gonna link it in the show notes. But I'm curious about what that is. But it sounds like there's different classes within Project Lead The Way Is that Is that about right? I guess, just to sort of narrow this down, what are the classes you teach now. And if you could give me a little bit more context on what Project Lead the Way is, that's what I'm kind of looking for here. Zach Diamond 7:47 Happy Steve Schlarman 7:47 Happy to. I am not a spokesperson for project lead the way, but I'm a very happy teacher and I have a curriculum, so I'll be happy to talk about projects as much as I can. The four classes that I teach right now are all project leads with biomedical science classes. It starts off with a freshman course called Principles of biomedical science. And this class kind of acts more like a side project for biology classes, it goes over the same material, but it has the, again, emphasis I mentioned on clinical skills on lab techniques on career readiness and career exploration. Because some of these kids don't even know what they can do once they get out of high school. In healthcare. It's a freshman class, right? So yeah, and they don't even know that it doesn't have to be a medical school or nothing. There's options for them out there. So the freshman class is called Principles biomedical science. The sophomore class, as I mentioned, is the anatomy class of human body systems. The third year classes where it starts getting really intense is called medical interventions. This is where students are learning not only the advanced lab techniques that I used when I was a researcher, but they also learned diagnostic skills and exactly what kind of tests we do to figure out what patients have and what diseases they could contract and how infections spread from person to person. And if they stick with me all the way to the fourth year, students will be taking a class called biomedical innovation. And it's an amazing class where they complete a series of open ended projects. Some of them are aligned with creating a emergency room. Some of them are making your own experiments, some of them are inventing something, and they end up actually being able to go through this course and present it to a local university. Steve Schlarman 9:38 And that's something I'm so proud of. So those are the four courses in Biomedical Science Project Lead the Way is actually offering curriculum not only for high school biomedical science, but they offer curriculum for engineering. I think they have seven courses for that. And computer science, I think they have five courses for that including a course called sigh Cybersecurity, which is way more than I'll ever know about computer science, that's for sure. They also have some middle school curriculum. If you're interested in something that is more project based and really hands on for the students, I invite listeners to go and take a look at Project Lead the Way for those STEM opportunities that you might be missing out on for your students. Zach Diamond 10:22 Yeah, very cool. I'm gonna link whatever I can find in the show notes. And I'm gonna go and look into it. I teach middle school, as I mentioned, and so I don't exactly teach STEM, I teach music. But I'm curious to see this because we'll talk about this more, I think, but I love project based learning. And it's just sounds like a very cool curriculum. You You mentioned that some students if they choose to stick with you, and I wonder, is it all opt in? Or do they are they like, is it a requirement at the freshman level for them to try out different versions of this or something like that? Or do they is it totally elective? Steve Schlarman 10:51 It is completely elective. So the series of classes are 1234. If they choose to stick with me all four years, they're getting an experience that will prepare them for college, like nothing else I've ever seen in high school. Yeah, Zach Diamond 11:07 yeah. Sounds like an awesome curriculum. So is this what you've been teaching? You mentioned you started off teaching physics. But is this how long? Have you been teaching that curriculum? And in terms of like your modern classrooms progression? Like when did that happen in terms of modern classrooms? And did you do like, MC PFI these classes one by one? Or did you start from scratch with any of them using the model? Like how did that all work out? Steve Schlarman 11:31 So I ended up transferring to a new school district this last year, and they decided that I would run the Project Lead the Way department here essentially, was really pulling me and one other teacher, we share the four courses. Last year, I actually had to teach some biology courses because the numbers were down. But this year, my numbers are way up. So I now teach all four courses I didn't use to do that. Gotcha. This year is the first year I'm teaching the freshman course. And the sophomore course has a new curriculum. So it's two brand new preps for me, and two that I've been used to for only a year. Zach Diamond 12:09 Okay, but so you were already a seasoned modern classrooms teacher, when you started with Project Lead the Way so basically, like you came into this curriculum, thinking I'm gonna teach this MCP. Steve Schlarman 12:18 That's right. I couldn't imagine not teaching MCP style, because I wanted to make sure that my students were supported on a one on one basis from I didn't want them to feel like they were going through the motions and feeling that they were being left behind. I wanted them to experience as much of this curriculum as possible, is very intense and difficult curriculum without feeling like they didn't have that support. And so monitor classroom was really the only way I felt like I can do that. Like I said, it fits me like a glove. I have to make every assignment tailored to my classroom, from the curriculum that I get it from, but it's not a bad thing to really look at that curriculum and try to make it something that feels like yours instead. Zach Diamond 13:06 Yeah. And I think, you know, you mentioned that It's project based, and my class is also project based. And I think that modern classrooms, well, I first of all, I think project based learning is great. I'm like fully in the bag for for PBL, which I'll also link some resources in the show notes for that as well. But I think modern classrooms works great for project based learning, because you can really focus on like, specific skills, and then the kids kind of do what they want to do within their projects within the parameters that we set for them. And that's where you have mastery, mastery checks that like, like you said, are more like checkpoints. Like I'm, I just get more touch points to see how you're doing within your project. And, you know, check in with you, but not like say it has to be like this. This is wrong. This is right, things like that. I don't know, I think but modern classrooms and PBL just go really, really well together. So I was I was interested when I read that. I guess now I want to start talking about, you know, what, what led you to write that email to us, like what the challenges were that you were facing? You said you were feeling overwhelmed because you had all these classes. And it was only at the beginning of the year. And again, there's that project based and lab based aspect of things, which does require a lot of planning. And, you know, I guess I feel like I should say the topic of the episode is planning for multiple preps. But I think that a lot of teachers, even with very few preps could still feel overwhelmed by the amount of planning that it takes to get a modern classroom off the ground or just frankly, to be a teacher. Because teaching is hard. But talk to me about some of the challenges specifically that you faced that sort of led you to write us and ask about how to manage specifically planning for multiple preps? Steve Schlarman 14:47 Absolutely. Because it is definitely very different from your normal science teacher. Most standard biology teachers at the high school level might have one or two labs a unit whereas I have one or two labs a week per Are class. So I am constantly staying after school and figuring out a way to set up labs, I'll have to be pouring bacterial ag our plates one night, so we can use them in a Transformation Lab. And the next night, I might be doing stations for different assessments that my students will learn how to do a physical exam and, and even the kids in my junior level classes, they're doing things that I was doing as a researcher in genetics with the USDA. So those labs are very advanced, which means the prep is very advanced and advanced, it just takes lots and lots of time, that's all there is to that. There was even days where I would pack a lunch and a dinner, because I knew I was going to be at school for that long time. And just tell my wife, hey, I'll come home mentally. And so don't get me wrong. It's like my dream job. But I know that if I continue to do it at this pace, and I continue to have these long nights where I'm either planning for the next day or planning for the next lab, I won't last very long, it's, it's just going to be a matter of time before I lose that passion. And even if I stay in teaching with that kind of loss, then my students have lost something really special that makes this program so unique, me, they've lost that connection from the researcher at the USDA and the former pre med students to be able to learn from to be able to acknowledge from Zach Diamond 16:36 Yeah, and the labs are valuable, too. I mean, I, I actually minored in chemistry, I was really into chemistry in late high school, and then college and like, the labs were where it all happens. And you don't want to you don't want to like if you're trying to balance out your time and your livelihood, right, like make this sustainable. You don't want to take away from that either. Because that's where they see the things that you're teaching them. You know, and that's definitely challenging. I was doing the math, right, if you have four preps, and you're doing one to two labs a week, that's four to eight labs a week. I mean, like that's, that's a lot of labs. And yeah, that sounds overwhelming, Steve Schlarman 17:15 it's about to get a lot more intense, because my second semester seniors actually do a independent research project. So there's about to be 16 different labs going on in the same classroom for an entire semester. Zach Diamond 17:29 Wow. A conversation of back and forth, is needed here. For, for figuring out how to approach this because, you know, like, my next question for you is how you address the challenges. So I'm sure we'll spend some time talking about this, the strategies and things that you came up with, but like, when I read the email, I didn't exactly know how to respond. Because, first of all, I only teach two preps. So I'm in no, nothing like that kind of a situation, I don't really have any experience that would give me an answer to that kind of a question. But what I kept thinking, as I read, it was like, the model is the solution. You know, for me, making the videos and having the videos made saves me a lot of planning time, right, like, you know, making videos that are super focused on signal skills, so that I can use the class time to really do the actual teaching. Because I know the course well enough, I don't have to plan that much, right? Having a pacing tracker, that helps me keep track of where all my students are, it helps me keep track of who I need to be sort of following up with to make sure they're getting their work done, what parents need to be contacting things like that. So my response was like the model is the solution. But I don't think that the model is the solution. When you're talking about staying at school until after dinner, just to plan stuff that isn't even like conceptual planning. It's like physical planning, like getting ready for a lab the next day. So I have to say, like I am, this is what I said, I only know half of the story. This is the half I don't know, because I wasn't a part of those conversations that you have with Toni Rose. So I'm curious to hear like what worked you know, what's the can you did you solve the problems is still a work in progress. What's Where are you at now? Like what what are the strategies that have that have worked? What are you trying what's, you know, how's it going? What's working? Steve Schlarman 19:17 I'd like to first say that you are absolutely right, that the modern classroom model is the solution here. It's the only way I could do this, not just to do it the right way. But the way that keeps me focused and organized. I mean, I have every Progress Tracker for all four courses on my whiteboard and is literally the same thing my students see. So I walk into the room I pick those up and I write my learning targets over there and my agenda over there just based on the Progress Tracker because I could never keep that straight without those pieces of excellent guidance from myself. Zach Diamond 19:53 I mean, especially with multiple preps, I bet I feel that way and I have one prep. I mean I have like one and a half because Is the other classes very similar but different? Just, I just want to hammer that point home. You're absolutely right. Like the Progress Tracker is everything. When you're when you're trying to stay on top of all the things that are happening, especially in a project based class, like, what an incredibly useful resource I'm so um, so I completely agree with you like modern classrooms is the solution in that sense having that makes it possible to know where your students are at. So yeah, I fully agree. Steve Schlarman 20:27 It's gotten to the point where I actually make my Progress Tracker before I make my unit plan. And I literally take a copy of the Progress Tracker and add in the standards and the assessments that I want to do so that I have something for administrators that walk in to be able to show them, this is what the kids are doing this day, so on and so forth. Yeah, yeah. So it is nice that the good news is the model really does help you presently, if you're one of those listeners out there talking to you that are scared about putting this together for multiple preps, you shouldn't be it doesn't allow you to be disorganized that this system makes you become organized. And believe me, I'm one of the most disorganized people out there. If I was doing this, without modern classrooms, my lab would be a disaster. That's just the way it is. And so I can focus on the day to day routine of running the classroom, because I have this organizational support for myself. And that makes monitor class or that makes classroom management easier. That makes building relationships easier. That makes me less anxious, when I see that I have an interruption like a fire drill, or a class meeting coming up, I can, I can manage those things because of the modern classroom project. But the bad news is that it's a lot of upfront work, even with the courses that I'm familiar with. It'll take me several days to assemble everything for that one unit, and at the assignments to my liking, and check that all the statements are addressed, then make copies, then make mastery checks, then making unit assessment, then create virtual versions of the assignments in Canvas for anyone who does end up missing a bunch of school. And oh, by the way, you're probably doing all of this while your students are preparing for a unit exam already. So they need extra support in the classroom at exactly the same time, you need to give yourself extra support, just to get things planned. So for the classes that are even new curriculum to me, I mean, it's gonna take me at least a week, even through a weekend to be able to get a unit close to acceptable and presentable and ready to roll out. So I'm even thinking heading into winter break, we're getting ready to go through our holiday. I'm looking at the calendar thinking, Okay, I'm looking at time between Christmas, and New Year's. And I'm going to have four days. So I have exactly one day for my freshman one day for my sophomores, one day for my juniors and one day for my seniors. And it's it's a lot of work. Zach Diamond 22:59 Yeah. I mean, first of all, that sucks. Like I, I'm sorry that you have to work over the break. And I guess I should say this episode is going to be coming out in late January. We're recording it right before winter break. So we're in that mindset as we as we have this conversation, but man like it is a lot. I guess the question that occurred to me while you were describing that is is, you know, next year, when you've put in all that hard work when you've done all the front loaded planning, do you think you'll have more time to maybe plan those labs during your your planning periods? Or maybe not be working quite so late? Let you know that putting in the work at upfront is going to make it possible for you to teach this class in a more sustainable way after this year? Steve Schlarman 23:48 Oh, absolutely. I think that's the biggest hurdle that people need to realize is that once you go through modern classrooms, one year, you won't want to go back is a it's wonderful. And B you already put in all the hard work, why would you go back? So it's kind of a double edged sword. Yes, you're going to have more time for yourself later on. But it's going to be hard work in the in the front. Zach Diamond 24:16 Yep. And of course, you can like tweak them later on. I had to say me personally, I this is my I also started mining classrooms in 2019. So this is what our fourth or fifth year using this model, right? And I don't have a new curriculum. So I've actually had the time now to basically plan the units. I was already teaching these units and I sort of converted them to modern classrooms. So I've been able to plan them and now tweak them, and really fine tune them so that they work really well with the model. And what I'm finding is that the delivery of instruction isn't the main teaching. There's not the body of the teaching that I do. That happens in the classroom when I can talk with the students And so like, I've, I've actually taken my foot off the gas a little bit with regard to tweaking my units because they don't really even notice like, unless I get something actually wrong, or or there's something in EdPuzzle, that just doesn't make any sense. And I, you know that I messed up when I was planning and shooting the video. I don't I haven't been changing that much. And it just frees up my time, my planning time to follow up with kids where I need to or to reach out to parents and guardians. And so, yeah, I would I would also fully endorse that. The front loading is tough, especially if you have four different preps. I mean, I never had that. But it is hopefully worth it. Because after the front loading the years after, the teaching just becomes so much more substantive. Because well, first of all the materials are there, you're teaching with the kids, you're there in the classroom, and you're planning time becomes more productive, because you're doing other things that aren't planning that unit that's already planned. So yeah, fully agree, fully agree. Steve Schlarman 26:03 And this was What's so nice was that you are the goal you are what I was striving to do. And that's why I was going to contact you all in order to be able to talk about this topic. And so when I wrote to you all I didn't actually expect you guys to write back I just expected I mentioned in the in the podcast, let alone me coming on through it. But I actually got to meet with Toni Rose, and they were so sweet and kind and uplifting and gave me resources to meet with two other teachers and Modern Classroom mentors. So shout out to the two that I met with Wesley McCammon teach his Project Lead the Way biomedical science like I do. Well, yeah, it was uncanny connection and we had a blast talking to each other. Zach Diamond 26:47 Wesley actually is a is another modern classrooms OG Wesley has been on this podcast, I'll link his episodes. So I didn't realize that it was the same curriculum. How cool is that? Steve Schlarman 26:55 Absolutely. And we had a blast talking to each other. The second educator I got a chance to talk to was Jessica Osterhout-Koch. And she understood the problem with her English classes very well. She has five preps for English classes. And above all else, it was just cathartic to be able to talk to these people who had been through the same thing who had had gotten new classes before and had to monitor classroom eyes on the spot. So just to hear that there was a light at the end of the tunnel, especially from us that is well rewarding today. Zach Diamond 27:32 Yeah, I mean, I think that's so cool. We do read those emails. So again, really happy to get those emails and I think that yours, the question, it's just a challenging question. I feel like, I don't know. Like, it feels like the right answer to your question is like, have the school hire more Project Lead the Way teachers so you don't have four preps? Right. In an ideal world, that would be the the answer it, wouldn't it? Steve Schlarman 27:57 Yeah, of course, that would be nice. It might happen soon as my numbers keep continuing to climb, but it's not happening anytime this year. So I had to kind of figure out a way to write at least get some advice on the subject. And so Tony, Rose, and Wesley and Jessica, they all gave me some good pieces that I think are worth mentioning. And so here's some honorable mentions that I hadn't been able to introduce yet, but at least should be helpful to maybe some of the listeners that are listening out there. First, they ended up telling me that if I gave some of my lab prep work to my upper level students, they might be looking for that experience in the lab, which is amazing. And I would definitely love to teach those kids how to make chemical solutions and be able to poor hack our plates. So I didn't have to. But unfortunately, none of my students have been able to take me up on the opportunity, because there's so much curriculum that they have to get through. And I am just one small piece of their pie that they have in so many activities, so many honors courses. It just doesn't fit with them, unfortunately. So yeah, they're interested. But do they have time for it? No, do I have time for it? No, someone's got to have time for it. I guess it's going to be another piece of information or advice that they gave me was to try to automate my mastery checks as much as possible. And that's always a good piece of advice for anyone new to modern classrooms. But I actually really prefer open ended questions for my master checks because I have to prepare my students for an end of course exam. So it doesn't seem like I'll be able to really prepare them for the exam with multiple choice questions, even if they are higher order thinking and difficult questions. It doesn't feel like I'll be able to get them to that point. If I just stick with multiple choice automated only in formative or something like that. And until we get AI to grade, everything that we do, it doesn't seem like it would be feasible for me to really hand off the responsibilities of grading those mastery checks and giving valuable feedback. Zach Diamond 30:13 Yeah, we're going to talk more about feedback a little bit later, I think. But especially in project based classes like this, I think that multiple choice, it's really tough to just, it is a really great and very convenient way to assess students. But I think it's, you know, when you're talking about checkpoints, along the way to the sort of a project goal or like a project endpoint, it makes it really hard to accurately assess where they're at, because they need to write about their own experience. And it's good for us to be able to see that in order to target that feedback really, specifically. So I agree. I don't use multiple choice either. But I know that for some people, and then for some types of content, it is definitely a very good way to manage a really, really large, like, well, either multiple preps, lots of different classes, or a really large student body, right? Like if you're teaching a lot of students, I've worked with mentees who have like 400 or 500 students, and I don't know, I just I can't envision a world in which I would be able to provide feedback on that number of students. Open ended responses. So multiple choice might be the solution, depending on your context. But yeah, Steve Schlarman 31:25 so the big question is, yeah, so the big question is, what does actually work. So I did find some things from my talks with the monitor classroom mentors, that actually helped out a lot. The first thing was that I now devote one specific prep to each day of the week. So my freshman class will be the only thing that I work on on a Monday, and my sophomores only on the Tuesday. It just so happens, my juniors only see me on Wednesdays for their block day, they don't see me on the Thursday. So that's perfect, because that's right after my plan, period, and I can have a lab ready running for them right away, and have to worry about staying after school on Tuesdays for that reason. So some days are gonna end up being really heavy. But it's now more predictable. And so that ahead of time, oh, I can see that my hard deadline for my freshman classes coming up, I need to have my Progress Tracker ready for that Monday, and all the copies for that unit to roll out for the Monday after that. And I can really relatively mourn my wife and family which days I have more on my plate. And I don't end up having that constant mind switching the ends up wasting time. If I if I focus on one class at a time, I'm focusing on one task at a time. And for that reason, I'm much more more able to get things accomplished without like, reaching over and saying, Oh, I have this paper on my desk, I gotta go do this as well. And realizing that not every problem has to be solved in a day that you can leave stuff for the next week has really helped me kind of prioritize things. And that's another thing that they told me about something that my student actually one of my students last year, told me after having my class she organized her to do lists based on must do should do and aspire do tasks because she had my class that has the most you should do and aspire to do system there. So I decided to give it a shot for myself. And Wesley said I should do that too. So why not? I now have a life that is organized. In must you should do Aspire do tasks Zach Diamond 33:38 Yeah, that's great. Steve Schlarman 33:40 And I can, I can really just focus on the things that really matter. Now I have the musters in front of me, the should use are no longer a problem. And this fired us or something I can do, if I really think about next year or something like that. Before I was really just white knuckling it and hoping that if I was going to get this done, or I'm going to forget where I left off, I had that mentality like a runaway train just barreling through item after item. And before you know it, you look at a clock and you see it's past dinnertime, or you miss a staff meeting or something like that. Zach Diamond 34:18 Yeah, these are great, just sort of like productivity tips, you know, like segmenting out your time. I meant to ask you like when you say that you're focusing on one prep per day? How often do the classes meet? Like, is it do you have each class once a week? And so you can sort of dedicate a day to each class or is it is the schedule different from your kind of planning schedule? Steve Schlarman 34:43 The planning schedule is a little bit different. I have a modified blocks what on Monday, Tuesdays and Fridays, I see all seven of my classes and that's pretty intense, but I at least have a two hour block period that I get to plan on Wednesdays. But that also means I don't get one on Thursday, so darn. Zach Diamond 35:02 Wow. Man, this is just a, it's an incredibly dense workload. So, you know, props to you, if you're, you're able to stay afloat. There's more here, I guess you must need more strategies. There's more here, keep going, keep going. Steve Schlarman 35:21 So the last piece of information that I got from Toni Rose specifically, and this is going to be the most touchy feely, we talked about how to really be patient and lenient with yourself, and it really got cracked on my school that it's okay to take some shortcuts here, it's not necessarily going to be perfect the first time around, and it shouldn't be perfect the first time around, you should be learning how to improve your craft every single year. So what's perfect the first year, you're not going to be a better teacher the next year. And not to say that things were ever perfect in the classroom before I have the same manic energy as an emergency room a lot of times, but Toni Rose reminded me that my best is not just going to be good enough, it's going to be highly effective. And so my second best will still be pretty amazing, my third best will still be great. And so on so forth, I have to give myself a slack in order to be able to reasonably accomplish my second and third best attempts at this daunting task of having four prime periods at once. So as long as I'm creating a positive learning environment, where every student can be engaged in my curriculum, and is able to know their progress towards meeting my standards, the job should be considered done and should be considered done well. And I, I want every listener to really feel like they're hearing that for the first time. If you have to go and steal a reading assignment from an online textbook, or if you have to give the students an animation that you found on YouTube, rather than recording a lecture for yourself. Or if you have to just a lab just to condense it a little bit. Or worst case scenario, if you have only half the Unit ready at the beginning of the unit, know that it's okay that your students are never going to outpace you first off, you're always going to be ahead of them no matter what. And not only is it okay for you to give yourself some slack. But it helps me focus on the important stuff, which is the feedback that you're going to give the students that's the whole reason I really wrote into the amount of classes email, I didn't feel like I was giving my students were the feedback of the time that they were committing to me, because I was spending so much time just planning. And that's not fair to them to be able to learn from that process. So focus on the feedback, rather than focusing on the lead up to the feedback and no classroom can ever work without the feedback that you give and the relationships that you build with the kids. And so that's the important stuff that we need to focus on. And I think every listener needs to remember that. Zach Diamond 38:03 Yep, that is definitely some very Toni Rose advice. And I completely agree. I mean, like, the teachers tend to be such perfectionist, because we care deeply about this stuff. And we want it to go as well as it possibly can. I feel like I personally, this is one of the reasons I said before, I'm sort of taking my foot off the gas, in terms of trying to rework my units and tweak them and make them better, because like, especially in middle school, the kids barely notice the little details that I spent a lot of time putting into my head puzzles, and I did it already it's done. And I could probably improve them by tweaking them a little bit more, I don't know, how much of a difference that would make to my actual students as they watch. Because like I said, like the meat of my teaching is happening when I'm sitting with a kid or a small group of kids and talking and letting them ask me questions or asking them questions. And that's when they're actually really learning. So I sort of worked really hard this year to kind of not let myself get all worked up about the details in my videos that I care deeply about because they are my creation, you know, like I worked really hard on them. And it's, it's, it's letting me have little bit more time. So I think this is fantastic advice for someone like you who has way more. I guess, sort of like ongoing planning than I do like these labs. It's not like you can plan it, you can't front load the labs, like they're gonna do the labs every year. So you have to plan them and prep them every time you do them. Right. So. And I think also, as you were saying that it connected for me with what you were saying before about sort of structuring your life and a must, should and aspire to do kind of a way because if you have tasks that you have decided for yourself, or should or aspire to dues, that it's easier to say I'm gonna give them Myself, I'm going to cut myself some slack and let myself not do the should do today and know that it's okay. Because I have decided that these must dues there must get, they must get done and they're going to get done. And when I'm done with them, I'm going to take the afternoon off and let myself relax, go home with my family before dinnertime. So I think that that's, that's a really great piece of advice just in general to cut yourself some slack of course, but but also to have that prioritization already done. So you can cut yourself some slack intentionally and knowingly, in a way that you know that you're not letting anything just fall through the cracks like that you have to do and you're not being lazy, right? You're, you're being very intentional about what you do and don't do and where you cut yourself that slack. So that's fantastic. All right. So with that, listeners, we're going to take a quick break for an announcement. And when we come back, we're going to talk a little bit more about planning for multiple preps and also a little bit more about that feedback aspect of these classes. So don't go anywhere. We'll be right back. Avery Balasbas 41:05 Calling all Los Angeles educators. My name is Avery, your West Coast partnerships manager here at MCP. And do we have an exciting opportunity for you? Modern classrooms project is thrilled to announce the launch of our second fully funded regional scholarship here in California, the Los Angeles educators scholarship if you've been looking to transform your classroom into an equitable student centered space, enroll in our again fully funded virtual mentorship program plus a $500 stipend through MCPS, Los Angeles educators scholarship, just go to modern classrooms.org forward slash Los Angeles to apply today. If you have any questions or want to connect, you can reach me at blas bus at Avery dot blas bus at modern classrooms.org. That's a V is in Victor e r y dot b is in boy a l a s b is in boy a s at modern classrooms.org. We look forward to seeing your application. Zach Diamond 41:59 Hey there listeners we have some learning experiences I want to tell you about for the upcoming week of January 28. First off, I want to connect with other educators of color who are creating a more student centered learning environment. Join the monthly shades of excellence meet up on Monday, January 29 at 7pm Eastern we have our second learner series with genially called Building interactive learning journeys. On Tuesday, January 30. We're providing time for exploration and creation to implement in your modern classrooms. Up next, want to talk more about lesson planning in a modern classroom. Join our monthly Twitter chat on Wednesday, January 31, at 7pm. Eastern, follow us at modern class proj and follow hashtag MCP chat to participate. Finally, if you're looking to provide an interactive board so students can collaborate more, join our webinar with Padlet called using Padlet and your modern classroom on Thursday, February 1 at 6pm. Eastern, all that info and the registration information will be linked in the show notes for this episode. So if you've forgotten all those dates and times, don't worry about it. Just check the show notes. For now though, let's get back into it with Steve. Zach Diamond 43:14 All right, folks, we are back with Steve. We're talking a bit more about planning for multiple preps. And I want to talk more specifically about that idea of feedback. One of the things that you mentioned specifically in that email that you wrote to us is that you're transitioning from giving grades to giving feedback. And you know, I'm i Last year I hosted an episode of this podcast on grading and having read on grading, I feel like my the veil has been lifted. I see the world as it really is now. So I love this topic, moving from grades to feedback. But I can imagine that it was overwhelming for you. Because you have so many different students doing different things right. This is this multiple preps issue. And so what strategies have you found for giving that feedback in a way that's timely and effective for the students and also authentic for them, so that they're really getting feedback that helps them grow and learn? Can you talk more about that? Steve Schlarman 44:11 Absolutely. Because even if you go into monitor classrooms as a don't grade everything kind of teacher with that mentality that every single mentor is going to tell their mentees when they first start out teaching, you still have to make sure that your students are meeting those standards. So I do a couple of things that is right between the don't grade everything. But just the important thing is kind of sweet spot there. First, I made sure that I give completion grades for my daily activities. So I can just track the student's progress as they go through the unit. And I actually provide answer keys for those daily activities. Because I want my students to be able to have access to the proper answers and be able to ask questions to clear up their misconceptions before addressing a mastery check. I know that that kind of Send some teachers off, because they're just going to copy down the answers. But if a student chooses to abuse that system, it'll show up in the mastery check. And I'm going to have that we did more importantly, in the gradebook that's going to be a heavier part of their grade than just the daily activities that they're supposed to learn from, not just get a great from. And if a student does end up failing a mastery check after racing through an activity and getting the answer as well, then we can have a conversation about the proper mindset that we should have about this class and the correct process and accountability for these things that they, they should do the right way. As I mentioned, my mastery tests are open ended. So it does actually make feedback easier, because I can design them to be a conversation, specifically in my curriculum between a patient and a healthcare professional, some kind. And so when our misconceptions shown in their response, I can actually see it right away. And the students can easily get some feedback based on what they wrote down in that conversation. It makes it more of a narrative. And I really do like that quite a bit. I do make different versions of my mastery checks just to make sure students are kept a little bit honest through that thought process. But it's why I'm such a proponent of open ended questions for mastery checks and exams, for that matter. I can have my students literally draw diagrams, make a script, use a T chart, write paragraphs upon paragraphs, or just give me the bullet points, if it's just an identification kind of standard. And I get to decide when they've met that standard, or talk it out with them if the heavens, so that not only allows me to understand exactly where my students are at all times. But it allows me to have that next piece that relationship building, as I guide them through where things went wrong. I've even had students in the past feel comfortable enough to come up to my desk and ask me, if they could just verbally talk me through what they're thinking for their mastery check, because they might not know how to write it down. But they feel comfortable enough and to be vulnerable with this weird guy in front of the classroom at the beginning of the year, and dialogue it with them. Yeah. And that is just a win anytime because that student is buying is that is differentiation. Exactly. That's differentiation. It's, it's a student buying into the process, and you being able to allow it in the classroom. So my advice to individuals thinking about Master checks as a way to give feedback to your students. Try the open ended ones I know you have questions that you can turn into open ended questions. It's a lot of work up front, like pretty much everything about modern classrooms is. But if you take the necessary shortcuts everywhere else, it makes a huge difference in being able to give your students the feedback they really deserve. At least I feel like it has for me Zach Diamond 48:03 100% I just I completely agree. I imagine trying to give feedback on a true or false or multiple choice question. And it's like, what feedback can I give that I couldn't automate into there anyway? Like, you got the answer wrong. The right answer is this. But it doesn't tell me why they got the answer wrong. And with an open ended question, they have to actually produce something like you said, there's different types of things that could produce, it could be a drawing, it could be a graph, it could be writing, in my case, it's it's music, like it's a screenshot of a DAW showing their music, they had to make that. And so if they did something wrong, I can see what they did wrong. And I can, it really helps me to sort of pinpoint where the misconception is or where the misunderstanding is. And like you said, it leads to dialogue with the student, it leads to me having a conversation to ask them, Why did you put this here? Like was that on purpose? Did you not realize you were doing that? Was it an accident? It's it's just, it's just a much more authentic way to spark a conversation around what the student doesn't know yet. And, and really help them to grow and help them to learn. So yeah, I fully agree. I fully agree. All right. So before we close out, I want to ask you one sort of unrelated question about how you implement project based learning because as I mentioned, I fully bought the pitch of PBL. I love project based learning, I think it's the very best framework for learning, I guess, authentic and real world applications of content that would otherwise be kind of dry and lacked context for the students in your classes. And it's, you know, you mentioned in your email that and you mentioned on the podcast you like I think it's so cool that your students are doing things and learning concepts and skills that you learned as an as an actual biomedical researcher. And these are highschoolers that sounds pretty authentic to me. And I just love to hear more about the PBL that's happening in your class and sort of how it interacts and interfaces with MCP. Can you talk a little bit more about that, even though it's not really related to multiple preps? Steve Schlarman 50:15 No, absolutely. I love that you asked that. Because you're right. It is real life learning. And it's something that I'm very passionate about being able to teach through Project Lead the Way and give these students these experiences that they wouldn't have in the regular science classroom, and would never know about from the rain, the science classroom. Like my curriculum is very dense, it's very difficult, but it's worth it because the kids are not just learning the content knowledge that they would get in normal classroom, but they're also learning the skills that give them legs up in their future internships, or job shadowing experiences. And employers constantly talk to me about this and tell me that they really needs students that are ready for that kind of work. Even if they just have some of the soft skills, it really does help them become more engaged in the experience itself, rather than being nervous about being wrong all the time, or being scared or shy. So my freshman just the other day, we're measuring blood pressure. And I thought to myself that while that's a really easy thing to learn, I could teach it to anyone in about 10 minutes, I can guarantee that there is a sophomore sitting at a university right now, somewhere out there who says they are pre med, and just a few years will be a doctor, but they've never even held a stethoscope. And to me, that's really scary. And that's why I love having that problem based learning and that experience where they can add to it. So without going into too much detail, because I could talk about it for a whole nother hour here. Project Lead the Way is designed to give those students that experience the the entire value of problem based learning here. So my curriculum is really just one that the students are trained to treat patients for an entire unit of time and, and learn the material that will give them the ability to recommend how the patients should change their lifestyle or what treatment plan we should employ on the patient, and really prepare them for that type of thinking in their future. And it's not always patients. By the way, that's there's a really cool part about the freshman course, it begins with a crime scene of a hypothetical 19 year old named Anna Garcia, who died working in a biomedical science lab. And I get to decide how exactly she died. But then the freshmen spend like a quarter of the year learning how to analyze different types of evidence, set up experiments to test hypotheses, write an autopsy report. And all these tasks can be set up to be self paced, with my videos being able to guide them along the way. So I actually don't have to do a whole lot of front loading in the material, I can have them jump in and say, actually start a presumptive toxicology test on Anna Garcia's gastric samples, while they're learning about toxicology tests, and what it actually is measuring. And then I can test not only their mastery on the content knowledge, but the analysis of those tests, which is really important for employers, because when I see a lot of kids go through college and come back to me, they said that no one knew how to read a gel electrophoresis gel or microscopes live for histology or anything like that. And it's really unique and special. For me, I mentioned my seniors to independent projects. But what I failed to mention is that every student had to actually figure out how to conduct their project. Like they have to figure out how to actually do the lab itself. They don't get any information from me about how to find out how much protein is in their sample once they're done with their treatment process, or how much a person's breathing rate increases or decreases based on whether or not they've been in an MRI machine and are scared of the claustrophobia of that. So like I get to have my students look up stuff that's brand new to them that no one is doing at the high school level. And I can say oh, cool, a BCA essay. We've never tried that before. But let's do it. And I get to blend some instruction personally for them, so that they can complete their projects and learn along the way. So Zach Diamond 54:45 yeah, I love I love that. I love when that happens when you're when you're like I've never tried this before, but let's try it together because it feels it's like one of the most authentic, like human moments in a class where a teacher and a student together are like, I don't know. Let's try. Let's see what happens. It shows the students like, We're curious, like, I don't know everything. I don't know how this is gonna go. But let's try it. I think that's really cool. Sorry to jump in. But I think that's really cool. Steve Schlarman 55:11 That's okay. It really is just an authentic way of learning you go home. And when you need to learn how to rewire some electrical work in your house, and you don't have enough money, because we're teachers to pay an electrician to come in and do that you get on YouTube, and you learn how to do some rustling yourself. And right really is kind of that the motivation for my students to be able to do that independently, as super special to me, that's why that senior class was probably my favorite of the four, I get to differentiate my instruction not only based on their skill level, and their needs, but on their personal topic to topic, interests. And that's, that's all you could ask for. And I get to have them. By the way, I present that to faculty and industry leaders from companies like Bayer and DuPont. And I'm so happy that I get to do that. Because last year, we actually entered them into contests. And two of my eight seniors from last year took home scholarships for their efforts and their projects. And we swept the Biomedical Science category for this thing that I call just class. Zach Diamond 56:17 How cool how cool. I mean, I think that like, that's why I like project based learning so much or like, can you call it Problem Based Learning? Is that is that like, a thing? Is that a different thing besides PBL, project based learning, Steve Schlarman 56:28 Project Lead way likes to trademark that as their kind of thing, it really is a is a project based thing. But what they do is they have the students go through one patient as a guide, and then all of a sudden, they're thrown another patient who has something completely different. And it's a completely new problem. That's why they call it problem based learning. Zach Diamond 56:50 I see. But still, like I think that like those opportunities for first of all those interactions, but also just like allowing curiosity to be a thing in school, I think it's I think it's like changing how school works, and changing mindsets around what school is for. It's really learning. It's like, I'm curious about this, I have a problem to solve, what can I do? And then I feel like, when you when students are new to this, they start off asking like, well, now what do I do? You know, they asked me, like, they asked me to solve the problem for them. And I've had to sort of learn how to, first of all, gently let them down and be like, I, I don't know, like this is I teach music, it's like, I don't know what is going to sound better in your song. If I were to do this myself, I would sit here and I would try out things until I figured out something I like, you know, I do have a lot more years of music, making experience and also expertise. So I can sort of hear things on my head and try things out in a more targeted way. But what I would do is just sit down and experiment. And so for them to sort of like learn like, Okay, I'm not going for the right answer here, I'm just, I'm just going to, I'm looking for a solution to my problem, which is that I want to make the sound better. Or in your case, the problems are a little bit more well defined, but still like, they can try out stuff they can learn. They can take what you're teaching them and apply it in different ways, depending on the kid on the student, right? And depending on the problem. So I just love project based learning. And I would strongly encourage anybody who hasn't to just at least go read a little bit more about it. So yeah, thank you for thank you for walking me through that a little bit. That's really cool. Steve Schlarman 58:30 Absolutely, I'm happy to Zach Diamond 58:32 Well, so what do you hope to see in the future, we always ask this question about what goals you have for the future. And I know we did talk about how you're sort of right now front loading a lot of this work. So I can imagine that you're probably looking forward to next year when that front loading is done. But what else would you say? What, what is it that you hope to see in the future, either next year or beyond? Steve Schlarman 58:51 Well, in the close term, I have the 16 new seniors this year all with a, I'd say better than average chance with those scholarships I mentioned again. So they're my current goal to help them get to the chance that they have at those scholarships, and really feel proud about these projects. I mean, these are things that they'll remember for the rest of their lives. So I want them to feel really encouraged and proud of what they have accomplished in my classroom. But besides that, I really feel quite honored to be able to run this biomedical science program. Like I said, it's my dream job, it's really hard, and it's gonna get easier. But I just want to see it grow even more so that more kids can experience this curriculum at its best that it can be, which this year we turn six sections into nine. So if that continues, I might have to get more teachers, like you said to run the program with me and teach them the sections because I'm gonna, I'm gonna have too many students that might count. In a broader sense, if I could really say what my goal is, it would just be to see my students leave me and turn into these outstanding health care professions. littles that I know they can be that they aspire to be and change the world with a passion that I have for teaching this stuff that I have here. If I can get to that point, if I can get them to avoid that burnout that healthcare professionals also experience, I'll be a happy man, that's for sure. Zach Diamond 1:00:18 Yeah. And I love I love. Well, first of all, it sounds like they're already sort of getting those accolades. So that's great. And it sounds like they're also learning those soft skills like the student you mentioned, who is learning to structure her life using must shouldn't aspire to. So hopefully, that'll help them to tackle some of that burnout. That you mentioned in the health care professions as well. That's fantastic. Steve Schlarman 1:00:44 Fingers crossed, at least. Zach Diamond 1:00:45 Yeah. So how can our listeners connect with you? You know, we've mentioned that this entire episode was the result of you connecting with us. So I would encourage listeners to do that. Don't be shy, you know, get get over those. Whatever inhibitions we have that stop us from, like, it's just a randomly emailing people. You did it. And I am so glad that you did. Sorry, that was a little bit of a tangent. I was going to ask listeners how they can ask you have listeners can connect with you. But just connecting in general, just such a great thing to do. So how can listeners connect with you if they want to ask you more if they maybe now you can be one of those mentors for them who has multiple preps and they can come to ask you the questions. how can listeners connect with you? Steve Schlarman 1:01:28 I'm so happy you mentioned me during the podcast again. Because I do want to say that it was probably one of the best decisions I've made not only to be able to connect with teachers that really understand what I'm going through. But also just talk with you guys again and be able to, to connect with you, as you say. And it led me actually to being able to become a distinguished modern classroom educator, and my application to become a mentor to enroll in the mentorship Academy just got approved. So that's how that's where your listeners can find me this is what the mentorship can be or at the Summer Academy when I finally become a mentor. Zach Diamond 1:02:09 That's great. That's so cool. Steve Schlarman 1:02:11 Yeah, I'm very happy about that. That was something that was I was really looking forward to for a long time and, and Toni Rose finally pushed me over this should do it. So kudos to her kudos to you as well. Steve Schlarman 1:02:23 The easiest way to find me if you want to connect with me sooner before I'm a mentor, is to find me in the modern classrooms project educator, Facebook group. My last name is Schlarman, spelled sch L a r ma N. I'm constantly commenting on posts in there. It's it's one of the things I do only regularly around dinnertime and around bedtime and stuff. So if you're PLT, W educator, especially, go find me there. You can also find me in the field CW biomedical science teacher Facebook group, I'm always going to be talking in there, the sides that I'm not really active on Twitter. But I think with my 16 projects, I'm going to have a lot more to talk about with my kids now. So I'll say that this is probably the perfect opportunity for me to restart my activity on Twitter. And you can find me there at Mr. Schlarman, underscore FC n. That is sch l, AR ma N underscore FC M Zach Diamond 1:03:28 fantastic and I will link all of that in the show notes. Again, I love that question specifically for this episode. Because how cool. How cool is that? All of this led to you becoming a mentor? Like, yeah, this is something that I've been working on this year, the year? Well, I say 2023 You know, just getting I used to be kind of scared to like email people but I'm doing it more talking with more people that work. It's it just gets you opportunities. And hopefully this episode like that you're doing that has hopefully benefited listeners as well, who have gotten to hear this story. And then you hear the fantastic strategies you learned from from Toni Rose and the other mentors as well. So definitely reach out to Steve reach out to people who you have questions for us though social media, I guess like what a what a cool story. And what a way to stick the landing on the episode here. That's such a fantastic bit of news that you that you're going to become a mentor. I love that. Steve Schlarman 1:04:26 Thank you. I really do feel honored. Yeah, this is this was fantastic. Zach Diamond 1:04:31 Thank you so much, Steve. This has been a pleasure. And I'm really happy to have now to have the other half of the story filled in for me. Thank you so much for joining me. Steve Schlarman 1:04:40 Absolutely. Thank you for your time today, Zach, of course. Zach Diamond 1:04:43 Thank you listeners. Remember, you can always email us at podcast at modern classrooms.org Just like Steve did. And you can find the show notes for this episode at podcast dot modern classrooms.org/ 174. We'll have this episode's recap and Transcripts uploaded to the modern classrooms blog on Friday, so be sure to check their check back in the show notes for this episode if you'd like to access those, and we are asking our listeners to leave a review, if this podcast has been helpful in supporting you to create a blended self paced, mastery based learning environment, it does help other folks find the podcast so we would really appreciate that. Otherwise, thank you all so much for listening. Have a great week, and we'll be back next Sunday. Zach Diamond 1:05:31 Thank you so much for listening. You can find links to topics and tools we discussed in our show notes for this episode. And remember, you can learn more about our work at www dot modern classrooms.org. And you can learn the essentials of our model through our free course at learn dot modern classrooms.org. You can follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram @modernclassproj. That's p r o j we are so appreciative of all you do for students in schools. Have a great week and we'll be back next Sunday with another episode of the Modern Classrooms Project podcast.