10 Ways Higher Ed is Responding to the New Normal
The world has suddenly changed as communities are sheltering in place. In light of this “new normal”, higher education is experiencing a rapid transition to remote teaching. Overall the performance has been nothing short of heroic. The capacity of faculty members, administrators, and students to adapt so quickly to remote instruction is inspiring.
Transitions are never easy. Everyone is experimenting with new online tools, hurried up instructional design and the community is iterating fast.
Given the current circumstances where teaching and learning aren’t like anything experienced before, the following list addresses 10 key themes to be addressed by every institution of higher education.
1- Privacy & Security
In regards to recorded videos and virtual classrooms, the Department of Education has updated the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and has provided a webinar recording for "FERPA and Virtual Learning during the COVID-19".
FAQs on Photos and Videos under FERPA might be a useful guide when videos are recorded and maintained as education records.
2- The Digital Divide
Face-to-face instruction has been replaced with asynchronous live video streaming for K-12 and higher education. This shift to online instruction – by default excludes a large segment of the population who may not have high-speed internet, WiFi at home, or an unlimited data plan. Another challenge is many unlimited plans are capped at 22GB of data per billing cycle, after which it may slow or throttle the download speed.
3- Digital Literacy
Remote instruction has many traditional instructors facing a steep learning curve – and some have resorted to mailing course materials to students to support the completion of the semester.
To identify the best delivery model, the first step is to evaluate the students’ technology access. Instructors have taken steps to survey students to identify their ability to transition to remote instruction. Student surveys have included these types of questions:
what type of technology will be used most to access materials for this class (Smartphone, Laptop, Notebook, Desktop)
could they download a PDF
could they join a two-way voice conversation
would they be able to stream a video
and lastly – could they join a two-way video conversation
The latter would vary based on their broadband connection or cell phone plan. Some students surveyed reveal that live, two-way video would be difficult if not impossible. In this case they need to have an alternate modality. Regarding instruction preferences, another important concept is – to know whether they prefer real-time (synchronous) or on their own time (asynchronous) class instruction.
As millions of people have made the shift to working online – all at once, one unanticipated hiccup after a week or two of daily internet usage is the slowing of the internet. Adoption can be a challenge and also the ability to provide guidance when introducing new technologies, for example, how to download the school’s LMS app. These steps require first that the faculty member knows the process, and next, that they can relay them to students needing support. The following is an excerpt from an instructor struggling to adapt to online teaching:
4- Creating Inclusion for Students Challenged by Video Conferencing
According to a Barnes and Noble Education Survey on College Student Preparedness, more than half (55%) of students surveyed were concerned about the impacts from peer interaction, citing they learn better in the company of their peers, and 45% of students cited had concerns about their academic performance under these strained circumstances. A relevant, albeit smaller percentage (12%) cited technological concerns about their internet access not being strong or fast enough.
One professor reported in a post that in response to his student survey, he decided to adapt his lesson to make it accessible to all students:
“I developed a hybrid course where I pre-record a lecture through PowerPoint and post it to our class webpage at the start of the week. This allows students to download the video at their leisure. Next, I conduct a text-based, chat session during regular class time. Both of these activities respect my students’ broadband limitations but do not surrender the material or learning outcomes.”
Some important concepts when evaluating students preparedness to learn online, include:
Face-to-face is not equivalent to video conferencing pedagogically. Traditional face-to-face instruction brings interaction and facial expressions of comprehension. In contrast, while on video, students are present but many block video screens.
After a face-to-face video conference lesson - the learning stops and all the discussion (async) is in the recording, and all of the chat transcripts must be downloaded separately.
Video hosting is not centralized - as instructors have to share video recordings manually via email or add them to their LMS.
Class discussions are not accessible without replaying the full video - this can be a non-starter for any video that’s longer than 5 minutes. Live video conferencing does not lend itself to asynchronous learning.
5- Student Equity
Emergency Student Aid funds have been set aside by colleges and universities to provide emergency funds to help students graduate from college this year. Many campuses have set up ways to help students who have: lost a job or experienced income loss; need to buy/borrow computers for home use; need to obtain access to reliable home internet; and need to purchase books for online classes.
Even with major internet providers offering assistance to low-income families, some still face hurdles with getting online. Others may struggle to keep up and get the work done making their assignments take twice as long to complete.
6- Provide Multiple Ways to Access Lessons
Video conferencing can be an effective tool, but it requires a lot of data and a stable network as hot spots are not currently accessible. For a significant number of students video conferencing is not an option, and other options such as a text-based chat session or a conference dial-in to allow students to phone into an audio conference are necessary. To be successful, the instructor must also share the presentation in advance for the students to follow along.
Tradepal supports the use of creating a PDF to be uploaded onto the course module as well as connecting with students using a conference dial-in. Students can access this on-demand on the Tradepal platform where one has a single discussion thread that is continuous and is archived and accessible throughout the semester. This type of adaptation for remote learning is best suited to supporting all students and also to supporting both synchronous (in real-time) learning and asynchronous (on their own time) learning.
7- Opt for PDFs that Require Less Data
To reduce the amount of data students use, instructors can reduce the size of PowerPoints by saving them as PDFs that require less data when downloading. Another option is to use QR Codes or as last resort email copies of the course materials. Also, the use of plain text requires less data thereby consolidating lesson content using plain text rather than attaching a PDF is preferable. Whenever possible, share lesson content two to three days in advance to give students as much time as possible to gain access before the scheduled lesson.
8- Make Transcripts Using Speech-to-Text Features
One way to support diverse student populations is to use the Voice Type feature in Google Docs that transcribes your voice into text during a lesson using your computer’s microphone. Once the live (synchronous) lesson is complete, review for errors and then share the link to the Google Doc within the course module.
9- Archive the Lesson
As students continue to learn remotely, many have to share screen time with other family members. It is important to archive live session recordings, to share with students asynchronously. This also supports students with learning disabilities who may benefit from working at their own pace.
Some common occurrences students face are technical and WiFi issues. This can be remedied by sharing the recording of the lesson, and more often sharing a PDF of the lesson a few days in advance of the next class.
Make sure to include session takeaways and also be available for questions when students need clarity. Tradepal provides a built-in way to support Professor’s Office Hours within the course module. Students scroll down and can set up an appointment, and once it is confirmed they are connected to privately chat with their instructor at the scheduled time.
10- Making Remote Learning Interactive
To master online instruction, three types of interactions are required: student-to-content, student-to-student, and student-to-teacher. Student-to-student is specifically critical to building a learning community within an online environment. This interaction helps students in developing problem-solving and critical thinking skills around the course material. These two soft skills rank in the Top 10 Job Skills of the Future, according to the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report. Overall, when meaningfully integrated, the presence of each of these types of interaction increases the student learning outcomes.
It is still undetermined when the flattening of the curve will happen, and colleges are still uncertain whether they will be able to resume face-to-face classes in the Fall. With careful planning, campus leaders can evaluate their past efforts, allow all those involved to highlight strengths and identify weaknesses, and be better prepared for the future.
To learn more about how Tradepal is supporting continuity in higher education, visit: https://www.tradepal.com/continuity