{"id":1127,"date":"2021-10-14T09:24:41","date_gmt":"2021-10-14T09:24:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/digitaleducation\/?p=1127"},"modified":"2022-01-10T09:18:46","modified_gmt":"2022-01-10T09:18:46","slug":"part-2-teaching-in-the-hyflex-classroom-benefits-and-challenges","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/digitaleducation\/part-2-teaching-in-the-hyflex-classroom-benefits-and-challenges\/","title":{"rendered":"Part 2: Teaching in the HyFlex Classroom: Benefits and Challenges"},"content":{"rendered":"

This article has been divided in two parts. Part 1<\/a> <\/strong>explains what HyFlex is and which are the key points to consider before using it. Part 2 presents a wide range of teaching activities that can be used in a HyFlex classroom.<\/em><\/p>\n

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What teaching activities can be planned in the\u00a0HyFlex\u00a0classroom?<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

At the IoPPN,\u00a0we\u00a0have\u00a0trialled different teaching activities with\u00a0HyFlex, and identified\u00a0practical considerations\u00a0which\u00a0should\u00a0be\u00a0taken\u00a0into account\u00a0when planning such activities within the\u00a0HyFlex\u00a0teaching environment.\u00a0We have also\u00a0created\u00a0a\u00a0<\/span>quick card<\/span><\/a> (link only available for internal viewing i.e. King’s students\/staff members) <\/span>that gives a general idea of what kind of activities can be done with HyFlex (and what challenges\u00a0might be\u00a0encountered).<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Ice-breaker activities\u00a0<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

Especially at the start of a module\u00a0or programme,\u00a0HyFlex\u00a0can be used to plan activities aimed at getting students to know each other. Students, either online or in the class, can be involved in quizzes, polls or\u00a0Padlet<\/a>, and they can interact by using their mobile phones or\u00a0laptops.\u00a0In order to\u00a0do so, the lecturer should\u00a0become familiar, in advance of the HyFlex session, with the tools used (including sharing screen\/window)\u00a0and ask students to bring their own device\u00a0(computer or mobile)\u00a0to class.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"HyFlex<\/p>\n

Brainstorming and polls (Padlet or PollEverywhere)\u00a0<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

Students (online and in the class) and lecturers can all contribute to brainstorming activities to collate ideas and thoughts (Padlet) and be involved in quizzes and polls (PollEverywhere<\/a>) by using their mobile phones or laptops.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

While\u00a0<\/span>Padlet<\/span><\/a> (accessible only internally)\u00a0is\u00a0a virtual whiteboard to which anyone can \u2018pin\u2019 content (including text, links, images, videos and audio), PollEverywhere (PollEv) is a platform where surveys, quizzes and polls are created and presented to students, who can easily respond by using their device. If\u00a0the lecturer plans to use\u00a0Padlet or PollEv,\u00a0it would be important to\u00a0make sure\u00a0everyone has\u00a0their own device\u00a0through\u00a0which they can contribute\u00a0(an announcement on Keats ahead of the session could be useful).<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

When using PollEv,\u00a0a poll\u00a0can be created\u00a0ahead of time\u00a0(on\u00a0<\/span>www.polleverywhere.com<\/span><\/a>, see the\u00a0<\/span>KEATS guidance on PollEv<\/span><\/a>\u00a0for more information)\u00a0and\u00a0either be embedded into a PowerPoint or shared via a browser tab.\u00a0Otherwise, it is possible to create\u00a0a poll in the Teams chat, where students will be\u00a0able to respond. Whatever\u00a0the\u00a0choice, it would be good to have a teaching assistant who can support\u00a0and use the Padlet\/PollEv while the lecturer interacts with students.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Screen sharing\/ Streaming a video or audio\u00a0<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

Through screen sharing, online students can \u2018see\u2019 and \u2018listen to\u2019 what those in the room are watching and listening.\u00a0However, this poses several challenges, so it should be used after practicing and only for a limited part of the session. In fact, when using\u00a0HyFlex\u00a0(vs the usual Teams) it might be\u00a0more\u00a0difficult to select the \u2018correct\u2019 screen to be shared, and navigating between windows might become challenging (some, in fact, are presented on the lecturer\u2019s computer while others are split between the HyFlex screen and the projected image).<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The lecturer\u00a0should remember\u00a0to\u00a0make the video\/audio ready to be played ahead of time\u00a0(e.g., by opening the video on a browser or logging in to platforms where the video will be streamed from, e.g.,\u00a0<\/span>Box of Broadcasts<\/span><\/a>).\u00a0We also noticed that during screen sharing the\u00a0video quality\u00a0of\u00a0the classroom\u00a0view\u00a0drops (this does not happen if a PowerPoint file is shared instead, see below).\u00a0Moreover, the computer audio is not automatically \u2018shared\u2019 with the screen; therefore, the lecturer\u00a0should\u00a0remember to select \u2018Include Computer Audio\u2019 before sharing the screen\/window, if they need to play any audio.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

If a student\u00a0attending online\u00a0shares their screen via Teams, this displays on the\u00a0HyFlex screen\u00a0and not the main projector screen.\u00a0It might be worth considering asking the student to send the presentation\/file to the lecturer or a teaching assistant, who will be able to open the file on the\u00a0classroom laptop and then\u00a0project\u00a0it on the main classroom screen\u00a0(this will also be visible to people online),\u00a0allowing\u00a0online\u00a0students\u2019 faces\u00a0to be seen on the HyFlex screen.\u00a0Moreover, we noticed that\u00a0students attending online cannot\u00a0hear\u00a0the classroom sounds very well when a\u00a0video\u00a0with\u00a0audio is streaming;\u00a0if the lecturer would like to comment on the video, or a student would like to ask a question, it would be best to pause the video.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

PowerPoint<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

Sharing a PowerPoint file on Teams, instead of sharing a screen\/window, will allow students\u00a0to\u00a0see the presented slides with clarity (both online and in class, if they have their own laptop) and navigate the slides independently. However, in this case,\u00a0the presenter view on the main HyFlex screen \u2018hides\u2019 the faces of people online (which become small).\u00a0As a lecturer, it\u00a0might also be\u00a0difficult to see any notes on the main computer screen when standing\u00a0far away from the lectern.\u00a0The lecturer might want to try using\u00a0a clicker, which is likely to help\u00a0standing\u00a0in a more comfortable position to view\u00a0both\u00a0the room and\u00a0the\u00a0screen.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"HyFlex<\/p>\n

General discussion \/ Q&A\u00a0<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

HyFlex\u00a0helps\u00a0students attending online\u00a0to \u2018feel part\u2019 of the classroom environment: the audio and video streaming quality is high, and this is likely to help online students to engage\u00a0with\u00a0the discussion and\u00a0be\u00a0more willing to contribute. However, support from a Teaching Assistant or a student attending online\u00a0might be\u00a0needed to monitor the Teams chat and the \u2018Raise hand\u2019 function; some students\u00a0(either online or in the classroom)\u00a0in fact prefer using the chat to ask questions,\u00a0instead of speaking in front of the whole group.\u00a0Overall,\u00a0the lecturer should put some efforts in\u00a0equally\u00a0engaging\u00a0students attending in-person and online.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Pair or small group discussion \/ Breakout rooms<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

Through HyFlex, students attending online can be involved in pair\/group discussions, as in-person students.\u00a0However, support from a second lecturer (or teaching assistant) is necessary, if any interaction between the lecturers and the groups is planned (i.e., moving around the classroom vs visiting the online Breakout Rooms on Teams). If someone in the classroom needs to \u2018visit\u2019 the Breakout rooms, they should\u00a0be confident in changing audio\/video settings on Teams\u00a0(they will need to use the laptop webcam, and not the classroom webcam, and they should\u00a0use a headset plugged in the laptop, and not the main classroom speakers).\u00a0It is important to remember, as a lecturer, that any announcements made while people are working in pairs\/small groups, must be made both in person and on the Teams chat.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Considering there are multiple challenges, we suggest to carefully think whether running this kind of sessions in the HyFlex environment is beneficial to students. It might be better planning these by using a single modality (in-person or online) or running it multiple times (in-person and online).<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In brief:<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n