Blended course redesign for large enrollment classes Alan Aycock, Ph.D. Learning Technology Center University of Wisconsin Milwaukee June 2009
Challenges to blended course redesign in large enrollment classes Large classes encourage lectures & one of the herd mentality Online learning activities that involve rich media may be hard to develop Integration of online and F2F can be problematic Instructors work longer hours to grade and provide feedback
Examples of large enrollment courses Two ends of a continuum: 60 students vs. 600 students Present different pedagogical issues related to class size Offer different pedagogical solutions to improve the teaching and learning in the course
Example #1: A large Political Science lecture International Law Third-year level 60 students Supports majors in Political Science, International Studies, and pre-law
What s the problem that prompts redesign? Students avoid dry, difficult reading Technical or obscure considerations need clarification Lectures may be hard to follow Legal reasoning is a specialized genre Students need time to reflect and lots of practice with analysis of case law
A blended solution One F2F meeting each week Online activities include Viewing voiceover PPT lecture Reading case studies Writing case brief Discussing case studies online Identifying muddiest point
What does a typical week look like? For students View voiceover PPT online Read PDF-based case studies Write case brief for dropbox Discuss cases on discussion forum Post muddiest point to discussion forum For instructor Instructor lectures on Thursday TA grades forum postings & case studies
Integrating face-to-face and online Begin by addressing muddiest points Discuss cases Highlight key issues Clarify legal points Place in broader context Assessment of every online & F2F activity
Example #2: A large Psychology lecture* Introductory-level course Taught at San Diego State University 600 students Presents significant size-related issues *example used by kind permission of Mark Laumakis
What s the problem that prompts redesign? Students disengaged and isolated Room too big to see/hear well Instructor s social presence muted Grading increases workload Teaching assistants not available
A blended solution 60% face-to-face, 40% online Increase interactivity & engagement Use of publisher materials for online work Use of clickers for face-to-face work Increase instructor s social presence In-class sessions archived online Voiceover PPT mini-lectures produced and placed online
Interactive content Publisher s materials Quizzes Demonstrations Video clips Games and simulations Clickers Simple recall Predict outcomes Think-pair-share & peer instruction Feedback to instructor
What does a typical week look like? For students Read textbook chapter and access publisher content Review instructor s voiceover PowerPoints Complete mastery quizzes online Attend at least 8 F2F classes during semester For instructor Deliver face-to-face lecture, also use publisher s demos, polling, videos, simulations Record F2F session for online retrieval Produce supplemental voiceover PPT minilectures to be viewed online
Integrating face-to-face and online Online quizzing rehearses content of faceto-face class meetings Live sessions archived for online retrieval Spontaneity of F2F interaction PLUS ability to review materials online
Conclusion: General goals for blended large-enrollment courses Interactivity to build community Media richness and engagement Frequent, prompt feedback on student work
Strategies for online component of course Interactivity Very low stakes online participation Rich media Materials provided by text publisher Online presentation of other content Feedback Auto-graded assessments TAs and undergraduate tutors/interns
Strategies for F2F component of course Interactivity Use of clickers Think-pair-share interactions Rich media Bringing Web-based content into classroom Very short, focused mini-lectures Feedback Very low-stakes entrance & exit tickets