Hybrid Teaching & Learning: managing expectations
By Lorraine Rogers, ESOL Coordinator
I think we can all agree that the past few years, since the occurrence of COVID-19, have been challenging for those of us teaching ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages). The sudden and immediate shift to online teaching and learning has been an uphill battle while dealing with technology issues, language issues and in some instances a lack of support for educators.
Although COVID-19 restrictions for isolating have been reduced and many ESOL classes have returned to face-to-face delivery, there may be other reasons for learner absences from class. As travel is now possible for most people, many learners may be visiting family abroad for extended periods and child illness may mean long absences from class. However, ESOL teachers can look at adopting a new delivery method when the occasion arises. Hybrid teaching involves instances where some learners are online while others are in the classroom. Though this split method of delivery may cause concern for some, it can be easily managed with a few minor alterations.
Lesson design & activities
When contemplating the idea of a hybrid lesson there are several factors that should be considered. The first is the lesson itself; what do you want the students to achieve by the end of the lesson? The second is the types of tasks you can adapt or use to make them accessible to both in-class and online learners. The third is how you create the same sense of community as being in a classroom (Kay & Hunter 2022).
Be mindful when planning your hybrid lesson. Examine your lesson aim carefully and look at any tasks that you could remove or modify to make the lesson more straightforward. Depending on the learners and their computer skills, you may need to adjust your level of expectation in your first few hybrid lessons.
Consider the activities you want to utilise and the method of instruction. Share the resources you plan to use in the lesson with your online learners before the lesson or at the very start, that way you do not need to think about sharing worksheets during the lesson itself, which may cause disruption. If this is not possible, an alternative approach is to share your computer screen just as you would in an online lesson.
Review which activities can be whole class based: for example, a group discussion, question & answer or even vocabulary activities. By actively engaging with those online and in-class you are already creating that sense of community. When setting work for the class consider which learners may need more support just like a normal lesson. Be aware of concentrating too much on the in-class learners or indeed vice versa. Additionally, do not be afraid of mixing the groups and try having a discussion or completing a role-play by using phones or laptops/tablets in the classroom. Most learners will already be familiar with this form of communication as they do this with family and friends who still live abroad.
Activities such as quizzes are often engaging for students both in-class and online, as they can work independently and compete at the same time. The website https://quizizz.com/ has an array of pre-existing quizzes and lesson templates that can be used or adapted for free. Additionally, teachers can see the correct and incorrect answers to monitor learner progress.
Class Layout
One of the biggest questions most people looking at hybrid teaching ask is - How is it possible to teach both online & in-class at the same time? There is no simple answer to this question as it will depend on many factors including the classroom itself, the technology available and of course the learners. However, there are several methods for classroom layout in a successful hybrid classroom (Boyarsky 2021a). Firstly, it is important that those at home and those in-class are able to see and interact with each other. In order to achieve this, we must consider a couple different approaches.
One method for a hybrid lesson is to simply ask everyone in the class to join the lesson online and deliver the session as an online lesson, although, this may not be as straightforward as it sounds. Would learners want to work online when they are in a classroom? Answers may vary but in most instances this method may not be suitable due to access to technology in the educational setting. It also raises the question, why are we in a classroom if the lesson is being delivered online? This is not an easily answered questions and would be dependent on many factors such as access to suitable electronic devices, good internet access and the student’s willingness to engage with an online lesson while in class (Boyarsky 2021b).
Another approach is to have the at home learners online projected through a screen to the rest of the class. An example of this layout can be seen below.
This approach requires the teacher to have a computer or laptop in the classroom as well as a projector, so that the online learners can be seen by those in class. The computer screen can be simply shared using the online platform of choice for example, Microsoft Teams, onto a plain white wall if a whiteboard is unavailable. The teacher is also visible to everyone. In using this approach, the online and in-class learners can all see the activity and participate at the same time, especially during question/answer tasks. Pair work is also possible when using this method, but only if more than one learner is online, so that breakout rooms are feasible.
Whichever approach you decide to use, make sure it is accessible for your learners and yourself as a teacher. Play around with different class layouts to decide what works best.
Personal reflection
Be bold and creative with your thinking and do not view of this style of teaching as being more work. We are creatures of habit and the routine you have in class should remain as familiar as possible when having an online element. Look at the skills and resources you already have from teaching online and use those to enhance your lessons. Not all class activities need to use technology in a hybrid lesson. A worksheet used in a class can be used in the same manner as online it just needs to be shared in a different manner.
An important thing to remember when considering a hybrid teaching & learning option for your learners is to not be afraid of failure. Just because one approach or hybrid task does not work well, does not mean that you are a poor teacher. It just means that next time you will be aware of the potential pitfalls, and you can adjust your teaching style or delivery approach as needed.
From my own experience of using hybrid learning, it has provided learners with an opportunity to continue their studies when external situations such as school inset days may otherwise have impacted their learning. Many of my learners have travelled abroad this past year and still managed to attend lessons, even if it was for a short time, while visiting family. By offering learners the option to join their lesson online, it establishes a sense of belonging and inclusion and has supported learner retention this last year.
References
Boyarsky, K. (2021a, May 6th). How to Teach in a Hybrid Classroom. Owl Labs Blog: https://resources.owllabs.com/blog/how-to-teach-in-a-hybrid-classroom
Boyarsky, K. (2021b, October 7th). The Benefits of Hybrid Teaching in a Post-COVID World. Owl Labs Blog: https://resources.owllabs.com/blog/hybrid-learning-benefits
Kay, R, & Hunter, W.J. (Eds.). (2022). Thriving online: A guide for busy educators. Ontario Tech University.