Flipgrid for inclusive instruction in the language classroom

As I prepare for fall semester, I know that a significant part of my beginning and intermediate Spanish courses will take place online. One of my top priorities is to choose web applications that foster communication in the target language (TL) and are accessible to the diverse range of learners in my classes. After recently reading Disability and World Language Learning: Inclusive Teaching for Diverse Learners (2019) by Sally Scott and Wade Edwards, I have been reflecting on the instructional choices I make to best meet the needs of all my students. 

One step I am taking this summer is to evaluate some of the web applications I use in terms of their capacity to help create an inclusive learning environment. The principles of Universal Design for Instruction (UDI) provide a helpful framework for such a task. The nine principles include: equitable use, flexibility in use, simple and intuitive, perceptible information, tolerance for error, low physical effort, size and space for approach and use, a community of learners, and instructional climate (Scott, Shaw & McGuire, 2001). 

In this post, I'll do a bit of reflection regarding Flipgrid, an interactive video discussion board that includes common features in social media apps that students might already use. For example, students can add stickers, emojis, selfies, and filters to their Fligrid videos. This app has a very fun vibe, and I love seeing and hearing from my students, especially during remote instruction. 

Here I will discuss how the features of Flipgrid address some of the principles of UDI and how teachers can leverage this app successfully to create a more inclusive world language classroom. 

Equitable Use: Do all students have access to materials and instruction? Is this application useful for people with diverse abilities? 

• Students can access Flipgrid on a variety of devices--computer, laptop, or smart phone. It's also completely FREE to use! 
• Students who might be more reluctant to share in a face-to-face classroom have the opportunity to participate on a more even playing field. 
• Students with concerns about privacy or safety have options to avoid recording their face on the camera. There is a white board feature where they can draw or upload an image, they can cover their face with an emoji sticker, or they can choose the pixel filter that obscures their face. I like that these options are still fun, and students are not stigmatized for their choice. Teachers can also adjust the settings using "video moderation" to hide student responses.

Whiteboard feature

Emoji feature

Pixelated feature

Flexibility in Use: Do students have choice in how they use it according to their preferences and abilities? Are there a variety of ways to engage using this tool? 

• Teachers can create variety and novelty in the tasks they design. A few tasks I have tried include guessing games for circumlocution, expressing reactions about a film students watched in Spanish, and sharing ideas for how to care for the environment. I also loved Kara Jacob's idea to use Flipgrid for a dictation activity with the video moderation feature enabled. This allows Flipgrid to also be a source of comprehensible input. 
• Students have choice regarding the features of their video--whether they want to write text, use a filter, include stickers or drawings, use the white board feature, or upload an image. 
• When listening to videos, students can slow down the pace. I have used a few Flipgrid videos of native speakers as listening tasks in my classroom, and this was a helpful feature. 
• Students can upload videos recorded outside of the Flipgrid application. For example, they can upload a video they created with a screen casting program or with Adobe Spark! 

Simple and Intuitive: Can students use the application in a "straightforward and predictable" way (Scott, Shaw & McGuire, 2001)? 

• In the time that I have been using Flipgrid, I have gotten very few (if any that I can recall) emails or questions from students with reports of challenges or difficulties using the application. 
• Icons for navigating the application are clear and seem intuitive. When you record a video and the different options display (filter, white board, etc.), each one has an image and if you hover over the icon with your mouse, it displays text to further explain. 

Perceptible Information: Does the app allow students to access necessary information "regardless of ambient conditions or the student's sensory abilities" (Scott, Shaw & McGuire, 2001)? 

• Flipgrid has an Immersive Reader feature that will read text in the prompt to students. It will automatically detect the language, so it can read the text to students with appropriate pronunciation, intonation, etc.
• Students can add their own closed captioning using the text feature or by adding a URL that links to a Google doc with their text. 

Immersive Reader feature

Tolerance for Error: Is there adequate support and structure to accommodate students' different skill levels and background knowledge? Do app features help students avoid "unintended actions" (What is Universal Design?: The 7 Principles)? 

• There are clear prompts throughout the app to confirm or cancel possible unintended actions, such as deleting or uploading their video. 
• Teachers can easily provide feedback to students, either through text or video. 
• I prefer to use Flipgrid videos as a low-stakes assignment in terms of grades, which allows students to take risks with the language without fear of negative impact on their grade. 
• The teacher may provide students with sentence starters or helpful phrases to support a variety of abilities in the TL. 

A Community of Learners: Does this app provide a way for students to connect with one another and with their teacher? 

• Teachers can create prompts that encourage students to interact with one another. For example, the prompt might be a guessing game, require students to identify something they have in common, or respond to a question posed by their peers. 
• It's important that the teacher structures the assignment so that all students have the same opportunity to respond and interact; you want to avoid some students getting dozens of responses while other students may not get any. I love that the course I am taking this summer groups students, and we are responsible for responding to those in our group, thus ensuring equal interaction. 
• Teacher interaction with students is also essential on Flipgrid. In their article "How to Establish a Strong Community in an Online Course," Maeda and Rosen (2020) explain that this interaction "may be as simple as liking a video that your students post, response to a student video, or it might be holding up one of your students’ examples as a model for others." By also posting a video as a model for students, they will get to know more about you as an instructor. 

Instructional Climate: Does this app contribute to creating a "welcoming and inclusive" classroom dynamic (Scott, Shaw & McGuire, 2001)?

• The app has many elements that feel fun and allow students and teachers to use humor (Maeda & Rosen, 2020). 
• In designing tasks appropriate for their proficiency level, teachers can create an inclusive space where all students can feel successful. 

By evaluating Flipgrid's features with the principles of UDI, I can affirm the value of this app for creating a more inclusive world language classroom. This coming semester, I would like to continue using it and find ways I can expand upon how I have previously used it. 

Have you used Flipgrid? What features do you find especially helpful for creating an inclusive classroom? How might you adapt your future use of this app? 

Sources

• Darby, A. (n.d.) "Understanding Universal Design in the Classroom" [Web page].  
• Jacobs, K. (2019). Easy and adaptable sub plans. [Blog]. Retrieved from http://www.ceauthres.com/2019/10/easy-and-adaptable-sub-plans.html.
• Maeda, M. & Rosen, L. (2020, June 22). "How to Establish a Strong Community in an Online Course." The FLTMAG.
• Scott, S., McGuire, J., & Shaw, S. (2001). Principles of Universal Design for Instruction. Center on Postsecondary Education and Disability, University of Connecticut. 
• Scott, S. & Edwards, W. (2019). Disability and World Language Learning: Inclusive Teaching for Diverse Learners. London: Rowman & Littlefield. 
• What is Universal Design?: The 7 Principles [Web page].