Overview
Planning for a course that has students attending both face-to-face and via synchronous video conferencing should be planned with your synchronous, online participants in mind. We tend to focus on those who are inhabiting the same physical space when we conduct our courses and you will want to build in moments, activities, and other content to support student involvement in a way that also requires little classroom management on the instructors’ part.
Pandemic Caveat:
As we have seen over the past year, things are regularly unpredictable. While courses may be scheduled as face-to-face, it’s possible that any course may need to change modality part way through the term. Recommendations for planning would be to create your course, materials, and other activities in such a way that they can easily pivot to be done online, should it be necessary to go back to remote learning.
Lecture
If your primary in-class method will be lecturing, you will want to ensure all students (face-to-face or synchronous online attendees) can see, hear, and be able to ask you questions. To plan for successful lecture delivery, make certain that your video, audio, and any screen sharing content is set up with that in mind.
Whiteboard/Chalkboard:
If you plan to write while lecturing (on a whiteboard/chalkboard) ensure that it can be seen with ease by your online participants. Oftentimes, a webcam cannot capture whiteboard/chalkboard writing in a way that your online students will be able to see. Consider using a document camera (if available), digital tablet, or another method to digitally represent your writing/diagramming so that students in the classroom as well as those participating via video conferencing can still follow along.
Work with the appropriate technology support individuals at your campus to make the most of lecture content for both audiences.
Questions and Attention:
Don’t forget about your online synchronous students. Including them in your initial welcome to the class as you begin the session, making an effort to acknowledge them during the lecture as well as making space for them (and your face-to-face students) to ask questions during the lecture is very important in maintaining their engagement.
Consider how you want your online synchronous students to ask questions/interact with you and their classmates during lecture. Do you want to build in strategic breaks during your lecture for questions to make it easier to scan the video conference chat or look for the “raise hand” icon? Do you want one of your face-to-face students to help facilitate the chat/questions from their online classmates while you are lecturing?
Make sure that your ability to take questions from both face-to-face and online synchronous students is equitable as it is easy to only focus on the students that are in-person.
Group Work
Similar to lecturing, doing group work will also involve some logistical considerations to make the most of group activities. You may need to adjust your plans, depending on how many face to face versus online synchronous attendees you have and the type of group work you are wanting to do in-class.
Same Groups: Face-to-Face and Online Student Activities
First, decide whether or not you want your face-to-face students and your synchronous online students to work together. This can make for a more rich and engaging classroom environment and help build community and make your online students feel more integrated into the live class. If you wish online and face-to-face students to work together in groups, you may need to plan for the use of some technology. For instance, face-to-face students should have access to computers in order to work effectively with their online counterparts. Additionally, because of the nature of video conferencing, headphones may also be helpful to eliminate echoing and other audio-related issues. Keep in mind that you will also need to manage the larger video conference room and potentially implement breakout rooms where you have face-to-face students join the meeting and you move the appropriate students into breakout rooms based on their groupings in class.
Separate Groups: Face-to-Face or Online Student Activities
A second option is to have your online synchronous students always working together as groups and your face-to-face students in groups in the classroom. This does cut down on technological considerations and certain logistics, however, it will depend a great deal on the number of students, the kind of work they’re doing, and how it is structured. Whichever option you choose, be very clear in your instructions, pacing, and how you organize students to make sure everyone understands the task they must perform, how, and with whom. Remember to carefully curate documents or other electronic resources for your synchronous online students, especially if they will be working together and not with your face-to-face students so that they are able to locate the materials they need to engage in the in-class activities successfully.
Similar to our other recommendations in the lecture section, online synchronous students may also require your attention. As you are maneuvering around the room, checking in with your face-to-face students, don’t forget to ensure your online students are also getting their questions answered, especially as you might be away from the computer that is running the video conference. Make allowances for yourself and for those students and establish methods for asking questions, getting your attention, etc., during the group work session.
