Hi everyone! Bianca, Katie and I have created a website on learning in a time of crisis. Our focus for this topic is on hybrid learning. Please take a look at our website and feel free to participate in our discussion in the comment section below. Thank you very much for taking the time to visit our website!
https://sites.google.com/view/etec523learninginatimeofcrisis/learning-in-a-time-of-crisis
Discussion Questions:
- How would you accomodate students’ preferences for mode of delivery?
- How would you take advantage of new possibilities while supporting those that do not like change?
- How would you help students balance the flexibility and self-directed learning while maintaining a cohesive learning community?
In Ukraine the war worsened access to education, reduced the quality of the educational process and worsened psycho-emotional state of parents, children and teachers. Nonetheless, several educational initiatives have helped to support the Ukrainian education system.
For example, in Sumy Oblast an initiative created recreation and education functional areas. Children have an option to attend online lessons, art studios, film clubs, photography masterclasses, game events or speak to a psychologist. Facilitators also provide children with information that is relevant now – first aid and mine awareness. This range of activities allows children to learn new life skills and also experience childhood to the extent it is possible in the context of war.
Hi Mariya,
Thank you for providing this example. This definitely enriches the first page of our OER where we tried to defined what constitutes as a crisis. We only included calamities and we did not include wars. I can only imagine the resourcefulness of the teachers and their resilliency to provide classes to the children despite what is happening around them.
In answer to your questions, which are appropriately student-focused… As a non-teacher my role involves working with faculty to help them create online materials. I sometimes face push-back from teachers when it comes to moving toward flexible modes of delivery. One argument I have heard (I work in a vocational college) is that students need to be prepared for the world of work, where they are expected to clock in 9-5 and won’t have the same flexibility of options. I’m not sure this is a good reason to deny flexibility. For me, a really important driver for providing flexible access is the whole EDI side of things: the ‘old’ model of in-class synchronous education was a choice, not part of some natural way of learning, and moving toward more flexible modes of delivery opens up access to groups of people who were otherwise excluded.
Hi Andrew,
Thank you for contributing to our group project. I totally understand where they’re coming from in terms of simulating the school environment to mirror the working world. I think after the pandemic some companies are more welcoming of their employees to work from home. However, when it comes to important meetings, an employee isn’t really given much choice to follow the preferred modality of meeting (in person or online) that the manager has decided on. I also agree with your sentiment about EDI and providing as much access to the students. I think another consideration to your point is education is one aspect of social mobility. Not all students have the luxury of just focusing on their studies. By receiving education, these students have increased chances of participating in the workforce where they could earn a living. Receiving proper education can open doors for an individual.
Apologies for the late reply to this thread, but I had to read this report for my work and I think it pertains directly to your theme. To understand the trends in offering online and hybrid courses in BC, BCCAT conducted interviews with post-secondary administrators, faculty members, and staff from the BC Ministry of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills and other organizations. The report is here: https://www.bccat.ca/publication/onlinedeliverytrends/
Hi Jennie, Bianca, and Katie,
Thank you for putting together such a well-organized, informative presentation this week. I believe the COVID-19 pandemic forever changed the way we percieve blended learning and online/mobile learning as we found it absolutely useful and necessary to get through the challenges posed by the pandemic. I found the HyFlex mode of learning very interesting as I think it would benefit many learners by providing them with options to participate online or in-person. I think this would be a great option for fully online courses as I know some learners may appreciate and benefit from the opportunity to connect in person and able to discuss learning materials synchronously with their peers. Although there are benefits to asynchronous discussions, allowing for more in-depth exploration of ideas and thoughts, synchronous discussions can be particularly beneficial to some learners. Through synchronous discussions, learners can co-contruct and recontruct knowledge as they can bounce off ideas off of each other during real-time discussions. This HyFlex learning option would be able to support learners who may not favour the shift to online learning.Educators would be able to support their learning by offering this flebible option, accommodating various preferences and needs.
Thank you for the great presentation!
I think the concept of mobile learning is best applied in our world where crisis can force us to take learning on the go. The Covid crisis was the perfect example of how, instantly, everyone had to shift how they teach. In many ways, at my school, the intermediates still follow the outlines of this model. Major topics and assignments are constantly put onto google classroom. Unfortunately, much like homework, only those who who do not really need it, access it at home. It is my students who finish their work in class who use the LMS at home to do extra work, or finish early. Students who are away, or go no vacation, rarely use the system to keep up. Additionally, as I work at a low SES school, we run into problems of multiple students not having access to mobile technology (or any computer) at home.
Interestingly, I find younger students mostly prefer online methods of learning and making. Most of my students prefer to design online presentations, rather than work in the tangible, and they enjoy playing games or watching videos to learn. For students who struggle with mobile technology, I run support like any subject, and make sure they know they are learning these skills because they will be useful in the future. To keep the community cohesive I implement something call early finishers. If students are ahead, they are allowed to use DIY learning mobile technology to explore, like Songmaker, Duolingo, typing, prodigy, scratch, khan academy and more. Thus, students who are finished can practice learning and skill development while those who take longer have time to catch up. Additionally, since many of these sites are accessible online, linked to google classroom and my teacher account, and posted on the LMS, students have to ability to continue their learning wherever they go and post what they have accomplished or made to our google class.
Hi Rylan, thank you for reading our website and providing your wonderful insights. I really appreciate the fact that when you support students who struggle with mobile technology, you do so from the perspective of helping them acquire skills that are useful in the future. This is important as students may find more motivation to learn and apply the learnt skill. Furthermore, I like your way of keeping your students engaged and again, apply their skills through early finishers, while waiting for other students to catch up. Once these students catch up, do they also get the opportunity to explore DIY learning apps? I think these are great ways to help students learn necessary skills to prepare them for the digital world. It looks like lots of fun and very engaging. Thank you again for sharing!
Hello Bianca, Jennie, and Katie
I found your site on learning in a crisis informative and intriguing. I liked your examples given of the different kinds of learning that can be used. One of you gave experiential knowledge of your class going through a partial suspension, what modes were used, and how effective it was. This made me think of an talk by Grumke on NPR a while back about if school closures are still possible or probably with asynchronous teaching (2021). However, as this was still somewhat during the pandemic, combined with how quickly tools like Zoom, Teams, and Google Meet changed during this time, some of it feels a bit dated, but this talk mentioned on how difficult certain things, such as tactile learning and play cn be through these applications and some other limitations.
Do you think that the challenges are something that can be accounted for in a possible emergency curriculum plan or is it better to try to cover the possible missing knowledge later when classes resume?
References:
Grumke, K. (2021, December 26). Snow days could become a thing of the past with virtual classes. NPR. https://www.npr.org/2021/12/26/1068063613/snow-days-could-become-a-thing-of-the-past-with-virtual-classes
Hi Daniel,
Thanks for sharing the NPR talk. I follow their stuff from time to time. I think with online emergency teaching teachers are now better equipped to deal with emergency situations. The lessons might not be the way teachers wanted to deliver it but I think they can always review the topic when they go back in class if needed. I think there’s a certain degree of distraction from both the students and teacher whenever any disruption happens. In this case, even if we could have classes online during a snow day, students would have a hard time concentrating because they probably want to play outside or just do nothing at home. I taught before and it’s hard to go about my day teaching when something happens unexpectedly in the morning. However, as they say, the show must go on. ????
Definitely the teaching landscape has changed so much. I visited my childhood friend in the high school she was teaching at last summer and she was telling me how the students use Teams to communicate with her. Some students expect the teacher to provide them an answer to a text they sent at midnight. The level of accessibility is great but definitely students need to be taught messaging etiquette.
As with your comment about the discussion being dated, I think there’s nothing wrong with looking back. It’s amazing how much we’ve accomplished despite all the challenges. One thing that I think educators should take advantage of using tech to teach is the rich of visuals it can give students. The access to coloured photos, VR videos students can manipulate, or videos can provide a more enriching learning experience.
Hi, Bianca, Katie, and Jennie. Thanks for sharing your thoughtful and informative Google sites with the class.
I believe that a handful of educators, including myself, were exposed to learning in times of crisis due to the recent pandemic. I particularly appreciated clarifying the definitions of Hybrid and Blended learning and sharing your personal experience of hybrid implementation, as I needed to familiarize myself with the differences. I was surprised to learn that I had experience in both during my undergraduate years. It was also interesting to read over your content as I was naturally relating my experience as a student rather than imagining myself as an educator since I am teaching younger students, unlike the other modules.
I understand your content was targeted towards adult learners. However, it made me wonder about the possibilities of being implemented with younger students and if it ever would be used in the foreseeable future. To answer your second question, altering the target audience to younger learners, I’ve always thought that hybrid or blended learning modes would be challenging to implement with younger students, especially after experiencing online teaching during the pandemic. Yet, learning about the HyFlex learning model, I am hopeful and excited for the possibilities. Although it would still require significant support from older siblings or caregivers to participate in an online setting, it would benefit students who struggle with attendance. At our school, there are several students, especially with complicated home environments, who have poor attendance. Out of several different reasons, one includes not being able to commute. Due to their younger age, students sometimes need help physically attending school. With implementing the HyFlex model, students could participate in school activities, motivating them to attend school when they can and providing the four core values mentioned on the site that students can carry on as they age.
Hi Michelle,
Thanks for offering a positive review of our page. I personally did not know there was a difference between hybrid and blended learning as I used them interchageably before. I’ve also experienced a blended classroom in my undergrad without realizing it until I did this project. Before the pandemic, hybrid learning has never crossed my mind. This whole COVID experienced also opened my eyes to the world of educational technology and that led to my enrolment into this program.
I didn’t think about implementing HyFlex with younger learners. For sure, sometimes students are unable to commute as their guardians also have to manage their own schedule and sometimes commuting is an added cost to the household. I also thought that HyFlex could possibly help younger children who do not necessarily feel comfortable sitting in a classroom. I’m wondering if this could help ease anxiety.
Another point I can think of is the opportunities to socialize in between classes. For example, during recess or lunch time. This is a big part of school life. If a parent of the student decides that their child would stay mostly online, how do you think the class designer or the teacher could simulate this in a HyFlex classroom? During the lockdown, I taught adults and some of them opted to stay on Zoom to chat while we take our 15 minute breaks. Do you think this could work with younger students or should it be more organized?
Hi Bianca,
It is definitely more challenging to implement hybrid learning with younger students. Research shows that teachers are not supportive of this and students can experience many difficulties during the learning process. On top of that, it requires parents’ support to supervise and motivate students at home. Regarding your last question, if hybrid learning is inevitable, teachers need to implement a structured routine for young students and help them get used to it. For example, in the morning, for 20 minutes, the activity could be story time. During this time, students are expected to sit in front of their screen and listen to the teacher. Of course, teacher will need to use various interactive ways to keep their attention, but the point here is that, students know what they should be doing.
References
Tustiawati, I. A. M., & Yanti, P. A. K. (2022, April). HYBRID LEARNING IN PRIMARY SCHOOL, DOES IT WORK?. In Proceedings: Linguistics, Literature, Culture and Arts International Seminar (LITERATES) (Vol. 1, pp. 302-308).
Widikasih, P.A., Widiana, I.W., & Margunayasa, I.G. (2021). Online learning problems for elementary school students. Journal of Educational Research and Evaluation. 5(30,489-497.
Hi Michelle, thank you for reading our site and providing your thoughtful notes. I do believe hybrid learning, e-learning or mobile learning require a bit more skillsets than traditional classroom learning. Students would have to acquire skills to manage their time, schedule and find ways to motivate their own learning. This could be challenging for young learners. I agree support from older siblings or caregivers are needed. In addition to your and Bianca’s suggestions around socialization and collaboration to increase their motivation and attendance, I wonder if more mobile learning games can be designed and incorporated into younger learners’ hyflex learning environments. Games are often attractive to younger (or adults!) learners. This is why design is very important in order to make hybrid learning, or e-learning effective. This reflects what Meagan said below, we really need to assess our audience in order to make our learning design effective.
Hi Michelle,
While the learning community I work in is not fully hybrid, there are many aspects of Hybrid learning implemented for our grade 5/6 students. We use google classroom as our LMS, and most content and important assignments are put on there for students to access at home or if away. However, you hit the nail on the head about parent involvement. With 9-12 year old’s, without at home support, the LMS is used very little outside of class time. In addition, as the website states, keeping up with in person planning and online posting is extremely time consuming, but for the handful of students it properly supports and allows them to keep up with work outside of class time, it is worth it.
Hello Bianca, Katie, Jennie –
Very fluid, well-researched and visually appealing site. Well done.
Q: How would you take advantage of new possibilities while supporting those that do not like change?
A: It depends on the type, size, timeline and urgency of the new possibilities, who are the students resisting the change, how many and why they are resistant to change (i.e. comfort with familiar, fear of unknown, concerns about negative impact to academic performance, disruption, lack of understanding, overwhelm and stress, previous negative experiences, cultural and social differences, ineffective communication etc.).
If there are only a few students that do not like change, I wouldn’t worry; however, if there are many who are reluctant, I would determine the why and then come up with a solution. For example, if the problem was lack of understanding and ineffective communication, the goal would be to effectively communicate the drivers for change, realized benefits, and how it impacts them.
If there are many resistors, you may look at a piloting approach or a phased implementation approach vs a big bang implementation. A pilot (just like MyLA on Canvas in the current ETEC 543 course https://ubc.github.io/my-learning-analytics-docs/index.html) will enable less risk, identify lessons learned and can generate support for change from even the nay-sayers. A phased implementation approach also enables reduced risk, learning from each phase, and can allow students to adapt to changes more gradually.
Another suggestion is to engage students early into the new possibility projects. For example, getting input through surveys, focus groups etc., have them participate in the decision making (design thinking workshops), have students be the testers (user acceptance testing, prototype testing), and have them provide continuous feedback throughout the implementation process. By including students in the process, taking advantage of a new possibility can reduce resistance to change and improve learning outcomes (like the implementation of a new possibility).
Hi Sebastian,
Thank you for posting your response to the 2nd discussion question. A phased implementation is always the best to get the users ready for the change. I also like the idea of involving students early on in a project. This is also definitely seen in big companies where they engage the employees to offer their thoughts about the proposed changes that management tends to implement. It seems that a top down approach doesn’t go down very well. You also offered the same sentiment as Meagan Kelm in terms of support and training.
Thanks for sharing the pilot in your ETEC 543. I don’t know much about learning analytics so I clicked on the link you provided. Based on the description, it’s another way to help students make use of the resources available to them in order to be more successful in their studies. In terms of hybrid learning, I think this is another robust functionality of an LMS. When I first started using in my undergrad, I’ve only seen it as a way to get the readings and PowerPoint slides and a platform to do the occassional class discussions. I think learning analytics is another way to advance the functionality of an LMS and eventually could help enrich the hybrid or online learning experience. What are some things that you think my LA could help in a hybrid classroom?
Hi Jennie, Bianca, and Katie! Your third question you posed is a great one:
How would you help students balance the flexibility and self-directed learning while maintaining a cohesive learning community?
There are so many benefits of fully online learning and blended learning. Students can go at their own pace and access a seemingly infinite amount of resources for aid. However when in a hybrid approach, as your group pointed out, it can be a challenge for a teacher to balance and tend to the online students while teaching in-person at the same time. One great strategy is to use in-person classmates as the bridge to connect online students, not necessarily the teacher as the bridge. The Community of Inquiry model you outlined seems a great way to do this. Group members, whether they be in-person or not, can troubleshoot together and provide different strengths based on where their location is while they work together on a larger learning task.
Hi John,
Thank you for your response! 🙂 I personally have never experienced a hybrid class as a student. I think it would be cool to be partnered with an in-class student if ever I get a chance to be a student in this kind of classroom. When I taught a hybrid class, as much as possible I tried to group an online student and an in-person student at least once or twice in a class period. This also helps to diversify the people the students work with. I think the online students would be bored if they only talk to their fellow online students all the time. I also think from a teaching perspective it’s easier to monitor the class during activities as the teacher can sort of gauge the level of discussion that’s happening based on what the in person student is doing. Sometimes it’s hard to monitor online only students as the teacher needs to constantly be dropping in and out of the breakout rooms.
Hi Jennie, Bianca, and Katie
Thank you for your presentation, I liked how you chose a specific and very relevant topic to showcase mobile and open learning. I know teaching and learning during this time was full of uncertainty and constant change but also led to a lot of innovation and new possibilities. To help take advantage of these possibilities while supporting those that are resistant I think there are a couple things to consider in your strategy for implementation.
1. Needs Assessment
Before you implement change I think it is important to consider the learning needs of your audience understanding the diverse preferences, technological literacy, and access to devices and the internet.
2. Mobile friendly content and open learning platforms
Having content housed in areas that are flexible and accessible as well as easy to navigate and is available on a number of different devices makes it easier for learners to adapt to change. It is important that the interfaces are user friendly and the tools be intuitive to use and require minimal training. This can help ease the transition for those less comfortable with technology.
3. Training and Support
I think it is important that when change is implemented everyone feels confident and supported in the changes. This can include ensuring people have training to implement changes as well as on going support. Fostering a community of collaboration where peers are supporting peers can help alleviate some of the apprehension of changes.
Hi Meagan,
Thank you for providing a well organized answer! I agree with the 3 points you provided.
1. Needs assessment – This a crucial step to pinpoint what the learners need and can/can’t do in terms of tech and their access to tech. Without a needs assessment, arguably, any steps thereafter would be useless because the solutions provided might not address the problem in the first place.
2. Mobile friendly content – For sure! Make the interface as easy as possible to use is great. Do you know any examples of any open learning platforms that are really easy to use? From experience, less intuitive designs cause a world of pain for the end users.
3. Training and support – Sometimes this can get overlooked as designers may think that their audience has the same level of competence as them in terms of using tech. I also think finding the correct people to do these trainings is a must. We need people who have patience and empathy to support students and peers during the transition period.
Thanks for the response, I have used a number of different learning platforms some good and some not. The one thing I find interesting is sometimes it is a really great tool for the instructors but then the learners themselves don’t have a great experience or vice versa. I have been a fan of Moodle and Brightspace especially from the perspective of mobile learning as students are able to see and do a lot of the work on their phones if needed. This was really helpful while teaching remotely as I found 75 or more percent of the students were using their phones for work and did not have access to laptops or tablets.
I think you bring up a good point about who is doing the training as you are right patience and empathy are so important
Hi Meagan, thank you for reading our site and sharing your wonderful thoughts. I agree with you that pre-assessment, mobile friendly interface and content, as well as training is important. Afterall, usability does influence heavily the learner experience and their ability to achieve their learning goals. What are some of your strategies to get learners and instructors on the same page with e-learning or mobile learning? Have you had to host and maintain training sessions for both?
Hi Jennie,
Thanks for your reply. I think one of the strategies that has worked for me in getting people on the same page has been showing them that this makes their roles as learners or instructors easier in the long run as well as it helps create a better learning product. Showing them through examples and courses that have already made the change and the feedback that comes along with it helps them to see it is a change that will be beneficial to them. Showing them it is relevant to their practice and their is benefits to them I think can help with the transition.
Hi Jennie, Bianca and Katie,
Thank you for your informative and thought-provoking presentation. During the pandemic, I balanced caring for my kids and creating teaching videos amid a laptop shortage. The high-tech classroom example in Belgium resonates with the needs of teachers during those challenging times. Your insights into future AI devices, envisioning a setup akin to Iron Man’s interface without the need for laptops or phones, have captivated my interest. I can’t stop thinking about the possibility of it becoming a reality one day.
My answer to Question #3
To balance learning freedom with a supportive community, make sure students can easily talk to each other and get help. For instance, have regular online chats or group projects. Give them clear goals for self-learning, like finishing a chapter, and check in regularly to see how they’re doing. This way, students can learn on their own but still feel part of a helpful learning team.
Imagine students have to earn credits to survive in the community. We assign them tasks to earn credits.In this scenario where students must earn credits to survive in the community, task assignments become vital for their success. The tasks could be designed to cover a range of skills and knowledge areas. It’s crucial to ensure that these assignments are relevant to real-world scenarios, encouraging practical application of what they learn. Providing a variety of tasks with different difficulty levels can accommodate diverse strengths and interests, fostering a well-rounded skill set. Regular feedback and support mechanisms would also be essential to help students navigate challenges and succeed in earning the credits necessary for survival in the community.
Thanks!
Debbie
Hi Debbie,
Thank you for providing a great response to our discussion questions. I really like your suggestion of fostering a sense of community between the students. I think this is one of the most common criticisms of online or hybrid learning in that students don’t get the same interaction as face to face classes. There are definitely ways to be social online and regular chats are one of them. I taught ESL over the pandemic and in my school we had a camera policy. As much as possible students need to turn on their cameras. I know although a bit controversial, it really does help to see a face when you’re talking to someone. Just hearing a voice especially in a language classroom doesn’t really help much with building rapport with the students.
I also agree with assigning assessment that’s relevant to real-world scenarios. Students often question if the things they learn in school are useful in the outside world and rightfully so. Of course, as you’ve said, support should be provided. Enough guidance is needed but not to the point of spoon feeding the students.
The example of the high tech classroom is dream! I wish I had access to that kind of set up back in 2020 – 2021.
In the spirit of hybrid learning, would you be able to elaborate a little bit more on the learning videos you created? What subject(s) did you teach? How did you create your videos?
Hi Debbie,
Thank you for visiting our website and sharing your thoughts. I completely agree with you that communication, support and feedback is vital in fostering the sense of community. This is why the Community of Inquiry framework is so great in designing courses, as learners need to interact with each other, their instructor and their content, and collaboration is key when it comes to learner facilitated, decentralized learning. This will give learners that freedom to support each other, and build the community to achieve all of their learning goals. Thank you!
This one works: https://sites.google.com/view/etec523learninginatimeofcrisis/learning-in-a-time-of-crisis
Thank you so much, Andrew! Sorry about that! I’ve updated the link.
Hi Jennie
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