Memorandum: Progress Report

Posted on February 27, 2022 by

Alexander Clements Posted in Team 5 — No Comments ↓

To: Dr. Erika Paterson, ENGL 301 Professor

From: Alexander Clements, ENGL 301 Student

Date: February 27, 2022

Subject: ENGL 301 Progress Report – Determining the Feasibility of Adopting a Hybrid Course Delivery Model within the Computer Science Department at the University of British Columbia

Per the guidelines for the ENGL 301 course, a progress report has been created for the Formal Report titled “Determining the Feasibility of Adopting a Hybrid Course Delivery Model within the Computer Science Department at the University of British Columbia”. Please find this progress report in the sections below.

Audience

The report will be targeted at Dr. Ian Mitchell, the head of the Computer Science department at the University of British Columbia. Dr. Mitchell has the influence within the department to provide guidance to the instructors on how courses should be set up and facilitated.

Report Purpose

The purpose of this report is to provide recommendations on moving forward with a hybrid online/in-person course delivery method for Computer Science courses at the University of British Columbia.

Report Significance

Many students at the University of British Columbia are commuter students and spend a significant portion of their days traveling to and from school. It is hypothesized that students would be able to save a large amount of travel time and expenses if they had the opportunity to attend lectures and labs from home if they wished. Allowing students to recoup time lost commuting may lead to improved academic performance within the Computer Science program. In adopting the hybrid course delivery model, the Computer Science department has the opportunity to become a leader in improved classroom accessibility.

Methods

The primary sources of data to be collected for this report are interviews with Computer Science department staff, and student surveys. The surveys can be found at the following URL: https://ubc.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_1X41orQdY9akMcu

Questions to be used in interviews with the Computer Science department staff can be found at the following URL: https://blogs.ubc.ca/alexanderclements/2022/02/28/formal-report-interview-questions/

Secondary information sources will include peer-reviewed journals, to be found within the UBC Libraries system and online through Google Scholar.

Formal Report Outline

The outline for the proposed report can be found at the following URL: https://blogs.ubc.ca/engl301-99c-2021wc/2022/02/27/formal-report-outline-determining-the-feasibility-of-adopting-a-hybrid-course-delivery-model-within-the-computer-science-department-at-the-university-of-british-columbia/

Research Plan

Collect UBC student commute data, including costs and travel times.
Identify the most and least effective aspects of online and in-person classes, as reported by students.
Contact Dr. Jessica Wong, Dr. Robert Xiao from the department of Computer Science at UBC to discuss the challenges, costs, pros, and cons of running courses online. Simultaneously discuss any issues with running courses both online and in-person.
Organize and analyze data collected through surveys and interviews.
Produce visuals for inclusion in the Formal Report based on survey data.
Use the UBC Libraries and Google Scholar to locate research articles discussing the effectiveness of online and hybrid courses in contrast with in-person courses.
Create recommendations for a path forward based on the data analysis and research performed.

Writing Schedule

March 8th: Complete primary data gathering exercises through surveys and interviews.
March 10th: Complete analysis of primary data.
Marth 11th: Complete Introduction section of Formal Report Draft.
March 12th: Complete secondary data gathering from research in peer-reviewed journals.
March 13th: Complete Data section of Formal Report Draft.
March 14th: Complete the Conclusion section in the Formal Report Draft.
March 15th: Complete Formal Report draft.
March 16th: Submit Formal Report Draft.
March 19th: Submit Peer Review of Formal Report Draft.
March 25th: Complete edit of Formal Report Draft based on feedback in the Formal Report Peer Review.
March 26th: Submit final copy of Formal Report.

Thank you for taking the time to review this progress report. I am looking forward to receiving any constructive feedback that can be provided to enhance this work.