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Enhance Student Engagement with Virtual Social Learning Spaces - Dr. Catlin Tucker

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Virtual social learning spaces are technology tools that provide an avenue for students to learn from and with each other.

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The Concurrent Classroom: Using Blended Learning Models to Teach Students In-person and Online Simultaneously

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The Concurrent Classroom: Using Blended Learning Models to Teach Students In-person and Online Simultaneously

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The Concurrent Classroom: Using Blended Learning Models to Teach Students In-person and Online Simultaneously - Dr. Catlin Tucker

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Teachers all over the country are being asked to teach "concurrent classrooms" in which some students attend class in person and others attend virtually. The teacher in a concurrent classroom attempts to meet the needs of the students in class and online simultaneously. This is the most challenging scenario I can imagine in our current [...]

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Hybrid classroom How to Teach Online and in-class students at the same time

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Inside Higher Ed | Higher Education News, Events and Jobs

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To adhere to social distancing guidelines within classrooms, many colleges and universities that are planning to have students back on their campuses are offering concurrent classrooms in which professors teach some students in person and others simultaneously online. Under those circumstances, professors can feel overwhelmed by attempting to cater to two audiences and worry that the online students may have a diminished learning experience.

In this article, we outline six strategies to promote meaningful engagement for online students while at the same time providing a rich in-person learning environment. Fundamentally, professors can take one of two approaches with their distanced students: they can simulate the in-person experience or differentiate online engagement.
First Approach: Simulate In-Person Experience
The basic premise of this approach is to make the online experience feel as similar as possible to the in-person experience by integrating across modalities. Here are three strategies that ensure balanced student engagement regardless of setting.

No. 1: Chat mods. Online students can struggle to get their professor's attention over the more visible students in the classroom, and introverted students -- especially in an online setting -- may lose out on participation altogether. Online contributions need to carry the same weight as those in person to achieve a balanced learning environment.

To ensure that happens, assign chat moderators, or chat mods, to filter questions or other quality contributions from the online platform's chat. Already knowing which student is designated for this role for the day eliminates the time spent searching for an online student willing to speak and allows for smooth transition and curation of the best student contributions. Rotate this role among the students who attend online, potentially partnering two students per class session to serve at a time if necessary. Include specific checkpoints in your PowerPoint slides or lecture notes where you will purposefully elicit the chat mods to share with the class.

For this strategy to work, of course, online students need to provide content for the chat mods to filter. Assigning participation points can increase online student engagement and quality. The online students can earn points for contributing a question or example via the chat, and the chat mods can earn points for their successful presentation of the most popular or insightful contributions to the class at large. You can also save the chat contributions through default settings for easy grading after class.

No. 2: Breakout rooms with deliverables. Breakout rooms allow for peer-to-peer conversations online akin to those that occur in a live classroom. However, online breakout rooms are harder to monitor than small group discussions in the classroom. How can instructors make sure students are on topic while online?

Have a clear deliverable from the group. Sometimes the deliverable may be the same for in-person and online groups; other times, it can be effective to give groups different objectives and let them know it. That way, the online students will be aware that their group's outcomes are distinct contributions to the larger class discussion and their voices are as important as those of in-person students.

If appropriate, you can direct all student groups (in person and online) to upload their deliverables to the learning management system as an assignment or discussion board entry for further asynchronous interaction. You can then increase cross-collaboration by having students comment on the other groups' contributions.

No. 3: Interactive tools. Polling and quizzing are good ways to engage students in the classroom and online. Most online meeting platforms have limited polling functionality in the system, however, and are poorly suited to serving both students in class and online. Other options that permit a wider array of question types -- such as open-ended responses, word clouds or clickable images -- include Poll Everywhere and Sli.do. Those sites offer free polling services up to a limited number of participants and enable students to ask questions that can be voted up or down.

Kahoot is another popular free option that offers playful, competitive quizzes that encourage student participation in class and online, declaring a winner based on speed and accuracy of responses at the end of a cycle. Kahoot also offers free basic analytics and tracking over time to allow you to review which academic material students are consistently missing and thus requires greater focus in future sessions. Additionally, it can track individual performance, helping you to remediate specific students or to ensure online students are performing as well as in-class participants.
Second Approach: Differentiate Online Engagement
Rather than trying to duplicate the in-person and online experience, this approach accepts that different modalities can lead to different experiences and leans into that as an opportunity. If some students must join class virtually, you can maximize the benefits of having those students on their devices and unmasked. Here are three strategies.

No. 1: Discussion leaders. Given that students in the classroom during COVID-19 will need to wear masks, online students are best positioned to lead large group discussions or presentations. Assign discussion leaders for the day who complete prep work to stimulate student debates or deeper inquiry.

You can accomplish that by having the discussion leaders research outside content relevant to the day's topics and generate complementary student discussion questions. Then, display a discussion leader on the projector screen in the classroom where they can speak to the students and share their own screen with prepared content as needed. Depending on the location and flexibility of your classroom webcam, you may need to facilitate in-class student responses or help relay their comments back to the online discussion leaders. But the students in the room and online will both benefit from being able to clearly see the unmasked discussion leaders.

No. 2: Search masters. Since online students are already connected to the internet, use this strength and engage them in live searches for current events or answers not found in the textbook. Make it a lighthearted competition for the fastest find or the best example procured, with small extra-credit points for the winners.

You can give all online students this task or assign it to two or three of them for the day, just like chat mods. They can share their findings back to the class live during the session, drop them in the chat or post them on virtual whiteboards (such as Miro) or the learning management system for a deeper dive later on. Coupled with the discussion leader ideas above, these strategies can quickly diversify your course content and keep it up-to-date, as well.

No. 3: Reflective summaries/analogies. Consider bookending class with online student reflections that help the class summarize what discoveries were made in the session or how course material applied to their everyday life between class meetings. For added fun and challenge, have students generate relatable analogies or memes. A student once summed up a class session on workforce planning by stating, "Bad workforce planning is like trying to recruit more checker pieces when your business needs to play chess." You can either have them drop those in the chat at the end of the session and read them aloud as class is dismissed or have them submitted more formally for your review. Then at your next class meeting, open with a few of your favorite reflective takeaways to recap the previous session. Keep a running list of them for the semester, and you will have a wonderful one-of-a-kind summary of the course in this section's own words.
Which Approach?
When determining which of these approaches to use, consider two factors. First, how many students will be online versus in the classroom at a given time? If there are substantial numbers of online attendees (half or more of your class), simulating the in-person experience may be the simpler, less time-intensive solution. It reduces the amount of role assignment and analogy wrangling on a day-to-day basis.

Second, is the course more didactic or more activity-based? A purely didactic course lends itself to the first approach by transforming passive, online learners into active participants engaging with the material in a meaningful fashion. A more activity-based course requires the second approach to enable the online students to experience the same learning opportunities as their in-person peers.

Teaching online and in the classroom simultaneously is a challenge, but using instructional strategies that reflect the educational design of the course can allow both sets of students to have a rich and robust learning experience.

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Strategies for teaching online and in person simultaneously (opinion)

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Amy E. Crook and Travis W. Crook outline strategies to promote meaningful engagement for online students while at the same time providing a rich face-to-face learning environment.

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HOW CAN CONCURRENT TEACHERS MAXIMIZE ENGAGEMENT AND EQUITY FOR VIRTUAL LEARNERS? 

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HOW CAN CONCURRENT TEACHERS MAXIMIZE ENGAGEMENT AND EQUITY FOR VIRTUAL LEARNERS? 

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Most school districts are planning for one of three different learning scenarios this fall:

1. In-Person or On-Campus Learning

2. Virtual Learning

3. Hybrid Learning - a mix of virtual and in-person instruction

These scenarios include options for synchronous instruction and asynchronous instruction but there is another learning option that has not received as much buzz, that some districts and schools are choosing--. This approach , also known as the , is delivering instruction simultaneously for students in-person, on campus and virtually, at home. Concurrent teaching might be used for a few grades, an entire school, or as a part of a learning model. Districts like MAYA client Trimble County Schools in rural Kentucky are working to incorporate concurrent teaching into their fall planning and implementation. Some districts are choosing this learning model due to a lower number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in their county, a smaller amount of parents choosing distance learning, or fewer staff and resources available to divide between in-person and virtual instruction.

The Challenges of Concurrent Teaching

The ability to pull off concurrent teaching relies heavily on both students and staff having the necessary technology and internet access for learning. At a minimum, teachers need a computer or a video camera to live stream or record themselves teaching. Students need access to reliable wifi and a device to watch and participate in the live instruction. Most schools are choosing an online learning management system (LMS) or platform, like , to house teachers' videos and accompanying student practice materials. Virtual learners might inevitably face more distractions at home, have technology issues, or feel left out of the classroom conversation. Teachers may notice and tend to in-person students more and naturally focus their attention on them.

Concurrent Teaching Benefits

If the technology challenge is overcome, there are many benefits to concurrent teaching, such as in-person and virtual students having the same teacher with that teacher only having to plan for one lesson delivery as opposed to two (in-person and virtual). This method provides one "classroom" community, allowing virtual students to participate in real time with their in-person peers to provide connection and build culture.

How can concurrent teachers maximize engagement and equity for virtual learners?

Three way to utilize concurrent teaching today:

1. Peer-to-peer accountability. Indiana University's School of Education suggests that a way to empower students is through incorporating a "buddy system" and "interactive groups" with a mix of online and virtual students. Imagine a classroom where a 5th grader at home has a question about fractions and messages their in-class buddy. The buddy then raises their hand to let the teacher know that their virtual buddy needs help.

2. Modify the lesson structure. In order to maximize student practice time, teachers could tweak their typical lesson structure. For example, perhaps teachers may choose to pre-record their direction instruction to allow more class time to engage with just the virtual students. In-person students could view the direct teach during the first 10 minutes of class while the teacher checks-in with the virtual learning students who had already watched the lesson the night before. As Ted Ladd from Entrepreneur Tech advises in , "As a rule of thumb, any monologue that persists for more than two slides or five minutes should be pre-recorded." Dedicating more time for students to practice would enable the teacher more time to respond to ALL students' questions and to provide feedback. Additionally, more interactive time provides teachers with more opportunities to praise students, pulse check their social-emotional well-being, and cultivate the critical student-teacher connection and relationship.

3. Innovate. Whether teachers are looking for how to use a document camera with Google Meetor how to use an interactive whiteboard , the internet is filled with free tutorials and sites dedicated to helping teachers integrate more technology into their lessons to authentically interact with students virtually in real time. A professional development idea is for teachers to pick one YouTube tutorial on their own, select their favorite new "tech teaching strategy" to incorporate in their classroom, and then practice that strategy by teaching other staff, thus adding new tools to everyone's "teacher tool box." Allow teachers time to fail quickly, ideally with their own children, or with a small group of student volunteers, in-person and virtual, during dry run rehearsals of this new teaching method.

Progress Not Perfection

As with any learning scenario, there are several moving parts and new skills with "concurrent" instructional delivery that teachers, parents, and students are being asked to learn quickly. The best leaders are ensuring that everyone has time to practice, practice, practice before the first day of school.

Trimble County Schools has hosted a "Google Classroom office hours" for their teachers to share best practices and get questions answered before students return. Purpose Prep , a Nashville charter school, hosted office hours for families and students to provide a technology test run days before school started. Shelby County Schools , in Memphis, hosted three "Stakeholder Orientations" for nonprofits and community service organizations that will be supporting or interacting with families in virtual learning during the school year.

With so many variables and uncertainty this fall, the flexibility that "concurrent teaching" provides is a strategic route to pursue as long as school leaders and teachers are ensuring equity of learning, especially for those students logging in at home. Follow MAYA on Twitter below to learn more about how educators across the country are utilizing this unique learning strategy and more!

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Back to School: What is Concurrent Teaching? - MAYA

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There are many benefits to concurrent teaching, such as in-person and virtual students having the same teacher with that teacher only having to plan for one lesson delivery as opposed to two (in-person and virtual). This method provides one "classroom" community, allowing virtual students to partici

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Possible set up for a concurrent classroom K-5

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Possible set up for a concurrent classroom K-5

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It's no secret the pandemic has changed how we teach and how we do school. Schools and districts across the nation now offer several options to students and their families, including the Hybrid Education model, completely virtual education, and traditional in-person learning. In many cases, teachers are responsible for finding ways to effectively deliver instruction for those students who attend school in-person and those who are at home learning virtually simultaneously.

Teachers are feeling the pressure of this concurrent teaching model-where they are responsible for providing equitable education for students in-person and online simultaneously-especially since they have been offered little to no training or preparation (Ali, 2020). As a result, many teachers are feeling overwhelmed due to the rapidly growing demands of teaching virtual students and students in the classroom. Lack of support and resources, topped with high levels of uncertainty, have led to burnout and high stress levels (Ali, 2020). Therefor it's useful to take a look at some ideas for helping teachers approach and manage a concurrent teaching model.

Facing the Concurrent Teaching Model

With the concurrent teaching model in place at many schools now, teachers are expected to effectively manage several groups of students across different spaces simultaneously, while still delivering instruction that will meet each learner's diverse needs. This is a daunting task and one that definitely requires much planning along with trial and error to find what will work best for your classroom and learners. Below are some tips to get you started rethinking your classroom to work for both you and your students.

The Challenge: Running into Tech and Equity Issues

It's common to run into issues when bringing new platforms and technology into the classroom. Tech issues require time to troubleshoot, which in turn takes away from instructional time. For example, sixth grade social studies teacher, Cathy Gilbride, mentioned that she constantly ran into issues with her students not knowing how to use the school's learning management system, along with wifi connectivity issues when she first started teaching in the concurrent model (Allen, 2020). What is important to note is that tech issues will come up, so it's best to anticipate what those issues may be and prepare yourself-and your students-to deal with them.

Possible Solution: Anticipate and Plan for Technology Issues

Although we cannot prevent each and every technology issue, we can have a plan to deal with them as they arise. When teaching with technology, it is wise have a back-up plan in case it does not work. Mason (2020) suggests going over procedures and tips with your virtual learners for when issues like frozen screens and bad audio come up, or in case students can't log in. Keep track of common issues and make sure you communicate with your virtual students and their parents and guardians on how to troubleshoot those issues (Mason, 2020). This can be as simple as providing a Google Doc with a Q & A format that lists the most common tech issues and how to solve them.

Many schools have recently adopted an LMS, or learning management system, while others have been using them for the past several years. Reviewing how to log in, submit assignments, and locate resources are all essential for your classroom to run smoothly. Just as you would review your classroom management procedures at the beginning of the year, it is sound practice to do the same with your LMS, since it's one of your learning spaces. This should be done with both your in-person students and your virtual students, since both will likely be expected to use the same LMS.

Finally, providing tutorials and how-to videos on how to work within the LMS and complete tasks such as submitting assignments should be included in the resource section of your LMS as reference for those students who may need extra assistance. Furthermore, these tutorials should be frequently shared with students along with their parents and guardians.

The Challenge: Lack of Preparation or Guidance on How to Teach in the Concurrent Model

The concurrent model is a fairly new concept in the K-12 setting. However, this model has existed in the college and university setting for quite some time, early example being the Hyflex model. The idea was to allow college students attend their courses either in person or online. The goal of this model was to provide different modes of instruction and opportunities for self-directed learning for undergraduate and graduate students either in an asynchronous or synchronous manner (Allen, 2020).

However, when we introduce this model in a K-12 setting, it comes with some challenges, especially since younger learners are not innately equipped to be self-directed learners. At this point, there is very little research on this subject, so information and training for how to best implement the concurrent model of teaching is scarce. School districts also lack in providing support to their teachers on how concurrent teaching should look (Allen, 2020). Instead of dwelling on the lack of direction, let's look at starting points and tips on how to make it work in your classroom.

Possible Solution: Leverage Technology To Deliver Instruction

The first piece of advice when planning for concurrent teaching is to assess what technology tools, platforms, and devices are available to you and your students. Once you identify what you have, you need to identify how those devices or tools can help you deliver your instruction to two audiences at the same time. Some school districts will provide an interactive board or projector to display what is on your laptop screen. Other districts may offer a document camera or external camera to connect to an interactive board or other device.

Mason (2020) suggests starting with some sort of slide deck, since it's a tool that most teachers are familiar with and can easily be uploaded to the LMS. Other presentation tools worth checking out are Peardeck and NearPod. With these tools, you can also gauge student learning with features such as embedded quizzes, polls, and open-ended prompts (Mason, 2020). Both offer free and paid versions.

Having the right technology goes a long way in teaching in a concurrent classroom. There are several applications and multiple devices to deliver instruction to different audiences simultaneously.

Pro-Tip:

Teachers can use Explain Everything in conjunction with iPads, an Apple TV, a projector, or a TV to teach to both students at home and students in the classroom. With the Explain Everything app, teachers are able to walk through math equations, for example, on a virtual whiteboard, while the iPad gives them the flexibility to circulate the room if needed. All this is done while the Apple TV is mirroring the iPad on the TV.

Another great option is to use a Wacom tablet connected to a laptop or desktop. This allows the teacher-similar to a teacher with an iPad-to take advantage of a whiteboard and annotate over a PDF.

Lastly, try using a video-conferencing tool with the Promethean panel. This gives the teacher the capacity to share the panel's screen with his or her virtual learners, while the students in the classroom see everything that is happening.

The Challenge: Keeping All Students Engaged

An issue that teachers run into when teaching in the concurrent model is keeping both in-person and virtual learners engaged during instruction. This is more challenging for those virtual learners, since they do not share the same space as the teacher. For instance, Allen (2020) cites Cathy Gilbride, who mentioned that when her in-person students needed assistance she would step away from her computer, which then prevents her virtual learners from seeing her. Her solution was for those virtual learners to scream into their microphones if they needed help or needed her to come back to the screen (Allen, 2020). This scenario is probably more common than we realize in a concurrent model. The good news is with a little creativity and flexibility, technology could be used to help manage the flow of the classroom and lesson while still maintaining engagement among all learners.

Possible Solution: Leveraging Technology Tools for Engagement

While technology is not the solution to all classroom management issues, it can be utilized to help a classroom run more smoothly among in-person and online learners. It is important to note that you should leverage technology tools that can offer students opportunities to respond, discuss, and reflect during a lesson. Some tools to look into include, Padlet, where students leave a virtual post-its with a response to a question or prompt, and Flipgrid, where students upload videos in response to a prompt (Mason, 2020). These tools offer students the ability to leave their responses in either a written or video format, while they also read the responses and watch the videos that their classmates have posted. These tools provide visual formats that learners can easily engage with, which in turn can give the teacher time to assist those learners who may need more assistance.

It's true that the concurrent teaching model comes with its fair share of challenges for the K-12 setting. While the concurrent teaching model may have originated in the college and university setting, many school districts have recognized this model as a useful (or, perhaps, inevitable) tool for meeting the logistical and safety needs of today's learners. Early adopters of concurrent teaching in a H-12 setting have experimented with different strategies and have leveraged technology in different ways to work for their classrooms. When it comes to utilizing technology in the classroom, issues will arise, but it is how we anticipate and plan for those issues that counts. Finally, engaging students, whether they are in person or online, can be done. It just takes some creativity and a shift in how teachers view their roles in today's classrooms.

Ali, S.S. (2020, October 18). Educators teaching online and in person at the same time feel burned out. NBC News. Retrieved from https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/educators-teaching-online-person-same-time-feel-burned-out-n1243296

Allen, S. (2020, October 16). Does teaching online and in-person simultaneously work? Center for Digital Education. Retrieved from https://www.govtech.com/education/k-12/Does-Teaching-Online-and-In-Person-Simultaneously-Work.html

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2020). Operating schools during COVID-19: CDC's Considerations. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/schools-childcare/schools.html

Mason, J. (2020, September 21). How do I teach online and in person at the same time? Your questions, answered [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://www.weareteachers.com/teaching-online-and-in-person/

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How to Manage the Challenges of a Concurrent Teaching Model

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It's no secret the pandemic has changed how we teach and how we do school. Schools and districts across the nation now offer several options to students and their families, including the Hybrid Education model, completely virtual education, and traditional in-person learning.

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Example of an Elementary Concurrent Classroom

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Example of an Elementary Concurrent Classroom

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In Person & Virtual Teaching | Distance Learning | Video Tips

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Example of Elementary Concurrent Classroom

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Example of Elementary Concurrent Classroom

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Hybrid Model Demonstration - Synchronous

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Example of HS older student Concurrent Classroom

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Example of HS older student Concurrent Classroom