During the covid-19 pandemic many of us have transferred our teaching online. At some point in time we can return back to our campuses and meet the students face to face again. But what have we learned during this exceptional time, are there some teaching and learning activities that would be better to keep online also in the future? Can we transform our campus courses to blended or even online courses with the same or even higher quality? How can we design a successful course based on the experience we have gained by attending the ONL course and the covid-19 crisis?
Some teaching and learning activities are necessary to keep as face-to-face teaching at campus. This is mainly all practical teaching, such as lab work and workplace placements, that cannot be replaced by online activities. Teaching and learning activities such as group assignments (PBL, case) benefit from interactions between the students face-to-face, where they group dynamics can easily be formed. However, it is possible to achieve the same online, although it will require more investment in socializing activities. Campus teaching is also beneficial for new students, it will help them to get to know the university, teachers and fellow students, and build a feeling of belonging. Theoretical examinations in exam halls on campus are in many cases necessary since online exams struggle with issues related to identification of students and risk of prohibited collaboration between students. Some exams also not suited for the open book format that is necessary for online exams.
Many teaching and learning activities are well suited for online delivery. Recorded lectures, quizzes to assess understanding of the lectures, discussion forums, assignments including peer feedback as well as reading assignments can be delivered online asynchronously. This will give the students an opportunity for some flexibility and will support skills such as time management and writing skills. Synchronous online activities include webinars, online discussions sessions and group assignments. The advantages include that invited lectures from other universities or organisations can easily be delivered online avoiding traveling and at lower costs. Online discussions and group assignments also give the students more flexibility and will give the students to practice their much needed competence in online interactions. Take-home examinations are also suitable in many courses, allowing the students to reflect and synthetize knowledge using reading material and online sources.
The challenge will now be to find the right balance between campus and online teaching, taking into consideration the learning outcomes and content of the course, target group of students, the available tools for online teaching and the skills and experience of the teachers.
References:
1. https://www.gillysalmon.com/five-stage-model.html cited May 23, 20202.
2. Vaughan, N. D., Cleveland-Innes, M., & Garrison, D. R. (2013). Teaching in blended learning environments: Creating and sustaining communities of inquiry. Edmonton: AU Press. Chapter 1 “The Community of Inquiry Conceptual framework”.
