By Jack Prostko, Director, Faculty Development Center

While not everyone at UMBC visits a Blackboard site daily, most professors now regularly use this course management system, if only to post a syllabus or announcements or grades. Indeed, students have become so comfortable with accessing course information on Blackboard that in my focus group interviews with them, they frequently request that their professors use Blackboard if they aren’t already doing so. Having materials, assignments, handouts, and communications organized on an easily accessible location can make life easier for students and, though it initially requires an investment of time, saves faculty time and energy in the long run.

But Blackboard offers the opportunity to use the Web as more than just a virtual bulletin board for housekeeping details. Many faculty are exploring ways of expanding their use of the out-of-class teaching occasions, using the Web to create “hybrid” or blended courses. Hybrid courses combine face-to-face meetings times--perhaps one to two hours a week or every other week--with online class sessions.

Hybrid courses allow for much greater flexibility in the way both faculty and students use information and communicate with each other. Especially in small courses with group projects, extensive research, or field work, this flexibility allows students to pursue their own work on their own schedules while keeping pace with the course content delivered through online lectures or readings. Discussion groups, either synchronous or asynchronous, can help students collaborate on assignments and can provide documented feedback to both the student and the instructor.

Hybrid courses are not, however, simply regular courses with some added “computer time.” Faculty who have chosen to develop these blended courses say that they began by examining their goals for a course, and saw that using Blackboard resources could enhance those objectives. Unless there are specific reasons to think that Web-based resources and communications can better achieve a learning goal, then it may be wise to avoid the temptation to use technology options only because they’re available.

Having a clear reason to invest effort in creating a hybrid course will help you accept the inevitable investment of time, both in developing and in teaching the course. Most faculty who teach such courses readily admit that though hybrid courses have advantages, requiring less of a faculty member’s time isn’t one of them. There are upfront commitments, including gathering materials, developing new assignments, and perhaps producing video lectures. And commenting on student participation demands considerable time at the computer. For these reasons, experienced faculty suggest that those interested in experimenting with hybrid courses start with small classes--or find TA or other support.

For faculty interested in learning more about hybrid courses, one good place to start is by hearing from colleagues who have already traveled this road. On April 6, three UMBC professors from three different disciplines--Dr. Linda Oliva, (Education), Dr. Carolyn Seaman (Information Systems), and Dr. Brian McGuire (Emergency Health Services)--discussed “What It’s Like to Teach an Online or Hybrid Course.” Part of the Teaching, Learning, and Technology Brownbag series of lunchtime talks, this session is available online, along with past TLT events. These three professors describe the advantages and some of the disadvantages of teaching blended courses, including how these courses affect student learning, student participation, and academic achievement.

Finally, the Office of Summer, Winter and Special Programs (OSWSP) is piloting a new program to increase the number of hybrid and online courses offered during special sessions. Information about grants available through participation in this program is available online. The deadline for submitting proposals is May 13.

Resources:

Hybrid Course Links:

A list of various university courses and resources.

Brown, D. (ed.). (2000). Interactive Learning: Vignettes from America’s Most Wired Campuses. Bolton, MA: Anker.

Brown, D. (ed.). (2000). Teaching with Technology: Seventy-five Professors from Eight Universities Tell their Stories. Bolton, MA: Anker.

Comeaux, P. (ed.) (2002). Communication and Collaboration in the Online Classroom: Examples and Applications. Bolton, MA: Anker.

Conrad, R. and Donaldson, J. (2004) Engaging the Online Learner: Activities and Resources for Creative Instruction. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.