MAO Pedagogical Tools for Hybrid CIS 105

Multiple Attendance Option

Hybrid (primary modality) with asynchronous as a secondary option

Description

At MCC, students have many sections of CIS105 to choose from – offered as Hybrid, Live Online, or Online (Asynchronous). Students who sign up for hybrid courses sometimes need to attend in person to meet veteran or international student requirements or know they learn better in a face-to-face environment. This MAO course was designed to encourage students to attend in person when possible but not penalize them if they were sick or needed to be absent.

The hybrid class is scheduled for a 2-hour session, one day per week. Students are expected to read course materials and complete homework assignments, quizzes, and other assessments from home. The classroom is a computer-lab style room with a whiteboard/screen in the front of the room, a short-throw projector, an instructor lectern with media controls, a computer/monitor, and a large screen TV mounted to the wall as a “second” monitor (to manage hybrid/live-online sessions). A motion-sensing camera is mounted on the back wall near the door. The camera is set to move between the instructor’s lectern and the front whiteboard/screen area. A smart microphone is embedded in the ceiling, roughly centered in the room above the students, and uses smart technology to pick up the main speaker and diminish recording classroom chatter. Course lectures, activities, and discussions are captured using Panopto which provides a seamless screen capture of the instructor’s computer, classroom video and audio recordings, and a searchable text/timeline feature. Visit the Tech Set Up to learn more.

Pedagogical Approach

Structuring class activities to a mix of lecture and hands-on research worked well for the flexible attendance format. The first portion of a class period focused on the introduction of a new topic, followed by small, low-stakes “in-class assignments” designed to keep students actively engaged in learning. These assignments would be worth just a few points and were due at the end of class. Students viewing recordings from home could also complete these activities and had an extra few days to complete and turn them in for credit.

Examples of in-class activities include:

• Group research and discussion on a topic to create a shared presentation or document to teach the rest of the class (Google Slides or Docs work well for collaborative work)
• Research (group or individual) and create an outline on a controversial topic to inform a group debate
• Instructor-led technical walk-through to learn new software

In all cases, the lecture notes/PowerPoints and class Pantopto recordings were available in Canvas. In-class assignments were also posted in Canvas and had specific instructions, examples, and tools for students attending asynchronously.

Contributor

For more information, contact  Miriam Lierley (Mesa Community College) miriam.lierley@mesacc.edu