Faculty Survey Suggests Shift in Pre/Post-Pandemic Teaching
31% increase in those open to non-traditional approach, FA21
"I teach mostly grad students. I did not expect to find any positives about remote teaching - in 35 years of teaching I had NEVER done it and did not plan on doing it before retirement [...] It is a lot of prep work and can be frustrating, but once I figured things out and was less anxious, things went pretty well and that can be quite rewarding. I think the biggest lesson for me was that you get as much effective learning in remote teaching as you put work and effort into prepping. Versatility in approach, flexibility in dealing with issues and a sense of humor are essential. The students reward your effort with their effort."
~ Professor Marina Adler, Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Public Health
As UMBC prepares for a possible return to campus next year, DoIT wanted to better understand the faculty experience of remote instruction and online learning over the past year. To do so, we sent an anonymous survey investigating faculty online support needs to three distributions of faculty: those who completed PIVOT Plus, PIVOT Live and those who did not participate in PIVOT.1 Respondents were provided with the option to provide their email address for follow-up questions. The survey was available from Feb. 9 to 17, and was completed by 204 respondents. Of all respondents, half, (50%) indicated they would prefer to return to campus f2f. However, this is down from 81% prior to the pandemic. Indeed, of the 131 respondents who initially indicated that face-to-face (f2f) was their preferred form of delivery, 40% changed their mind to believing some other form of non traditional instructional delivery is preferable. Only 9%, or 8 respondents, went into the shift to fully online believing that some other form of online or hybrid instruction was preferable but now indicate a preference or interest to teach f2f when the campus reopens .
Three fifths of respondents spent a week or more developing just one course in Blackboard. Microsoft tools were the most leveraged by all respondents (75%), followed by Bb Collaborate and Bb Ultra. About half of respondents indicated they made use of Google Apps, Webex (Meetings), and Panopto. As illustrated in Figure 1, there were deviations in use patterns, depending on PIVOT participation, particularly related to used to support learner engagement tools, such as Google Apps, Panopto, and, in particular, VoiceThread.
Figure 1: Percent Tool Use, by PIVOT Training Participation
Nearly all respondents (97%) indicated they believed their internet skills were adequate to teach their course(s) and posting and receiving assignments worked smoothly (91%). As illustrated by Figure 2, of those who sought support during the Fall2020 term, the majority (63%) submitted a ticket through UMBC’s request tracker system. Around half of respondents also gained assistance through PIVOT training or from their colleagues.
Figure 2: Percent of Respondents Leveraging Resource
The qualitative comments followed several primary themes, one of which was a concern for the quality of online instruction compared with traditional f2f instruction. In general, the harshest criticisms appeared to originate from instructors who did not participate in PIVOT.[1] These qualitative descriptions complement the quantitative data, which indicate 63% percent of instructors would most like additional improvements to support Learner Engagement, while 45% of instructors would like to get a better handle on the best tools to fit their unique instructional needs. Additionally, there were voiced for the tools that were available for instruction, both articulated as there being too many choices and not the correct ones for their interests, particularly around synchronous instruction (e.g., disapproving of Bb Collaborate or WebEx while lauding Zoom or Google). Another area of concern was physical access to technology for both students and instructors. This element is echoed in the likert-type data, where 20% did not agree with the evaluation that the technology available to them during the fall was sufficient for teaching synchronously (e.g., students’ use of Chromebooks, lack of web cameras, or poor internet access).
However there were also many comments supporting the transition to away from fully f2f instruction, as exemplified by the Professor Adler’s quote at the top of this summary. Respondents voiced their appreciation for the support they received transitioning online, or described how they were able to grow pedagogically in online spaces and hoped to carry forward these new knowledges, skills, and abilities (KSAs) to their instruction once the university eventually moves back to some semblance of normal.
Conducting high-stakes assessment was also a prevalent concern voiced in the respondents’ comments. This theme was echoed in the quantitative data, where managing online tests appeared to be an area of potential opportunity with only 73% of respondents agreeing that they had the necessary KSAs to be successful in this domain, and 9% strongly disagreeing that they were well equipped to assess their students online.
[1] About 3 out of 5 respondents participated in some form of PIVOT (59%), about the same proportion teaching full-time (63%), while 2 of 3 indicated they had previously taught online or hybrid/blended courses either at UMBC or another institution.
~ By Tom Penniston & Mariann Hawken
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"I teach mostly grad students. I did not expect to find any positives about remote teaching - in 35 years of teaching I had NEVER done it and did not plan on doing it before retirement [...] It is...
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Wed, 24 Feb 2021 11:05:22 -0500
Tue, 02 Mar 2021 15:31:40 -0500
Chromebooks Supported for Ultra Tests & Respondus LDB
Beta extension available for Original & Ultra tests
An updated release of a beta Chromebook extension for Respondus LockDown Browser is now available for assessments in both Original and Ultra Blackboard courses. This version of the Chromebook extension also supports Respondus Monitor.
Please note: This is a beta extension, which means it will have some limitations.
- The setting must be enabled on a per test basis.
- There is no direct link to the Chrome extension. Students must click on the click on the same RLDB download link as the Windows/Mac versions to install for Chrome.
- Pop-ups need to be enabled in Chrome to avoid students encountering a "can't open page" error.
- LockDown Browser’s internally linked “Help Center” is currently unavailable.
- Also not supported at this time:
- Instructor-created passwords passwords. Please do NOT remove the automatically generated passcode set by Respondus to secure the test environment.
- The “Early Exit” feature in LockDown Browser.
- LockDown Browser’s Calculator and Spreadsheet features aren’t currently supported.
- The extended keyboard functions (for adding symbols and special characters) isn’t currently available.
The how-to instructions for faculty and for students are posted to the FAQs. To report a bug/issue with the Chromebook beta, please open a support ticket with Respondus directly so your feedback is escalated with their developers. Be sure to indicate you are using LockDown Browser for Chromebook.
As always, if you have any questions about teaching, learning, and technology at UMBC, please consider the following options:
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An updated release of a beta Chromebook extension for Respondus LockDown Browser is now available for assessments in both Original and Ultra Blackboard courses. This version of the Chromebook...
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Wed, 24 Feb 2021 10:58:12 -0500
Motivational Monday TEDx of the Week
The 1 minute secret to forming a new habit
Looking for a dose of inspiration to start your week? No need to look any further. Each week, we curate talks on topics that matter NOW for all of us related to resilience, self-care, dealing with uncertain times, as well as ways to stay connected, inspired, and grounded when the earth beneath us is shifting.Today's talk is The 1-minute secret to forming a new habitby Christine Carter. You know how resolutions often go: you set a goal and start strong ... then the motivation runs out and feelings of frustration and shame creep in. The struggle is real -- but what if it doesn't have to be? Sociologist Christine Carter shares a simple step to shift your mindset and keep you on track to achieving your grandest ambitions.
After you watch, we invite you to reflect on the following:
- What resonated for you in the video?
- What lived experiences do you have, either personally or professionally that align with the core message of the talk?
- As you think of your role as a student, employee, or manager what feels relevant and useful to remember?
- What are you taking away that feels meaningful - either a new perspective, a potential action, etc.
- How might we take better care of ourselves and each other during this time?
If you're a supervisor, consider using this talk for team building purposes! You might send the video ahead of your meeting with several reflection questions on which you'd like your staff to come prepared to speak.
Today's talk is 4 tips to kickstart honest conversations at work by Betsy Kauffman. Why is it so hard to speak up and productively disagree at work? Leadership and organization coach Betsy Kauffman shows how to bring the candid conversations that usually happen at the watercooler out into the open with four practical strategies you can implement right now to have honest, transparent discussions with your colleagues.
After you watch, we invite you to reflect on the following:
- What resonated for you in the video?
- What lived experiences do you have, either personally or professionally that align with the core message of the talk?
- As you think of your role as a student, employee, or manager what feels relevant and useful to remember?
- What are you taking away that feels meaningful - either a new perspective, a potential action, etc.
- How might we take better care of ourselves and each other during this time?
If you're a supervisor, consider using this talk for team building purposes! You might send the video ahead of your meeting with several reflection questions on which you'd like your staff to come prepared to speak.
The theme of the 2021 conference is Using OER to Advance Equity and Inclusion. The COVID-19 pandemic and continuing patterns of racialized violence have brought to the forefront inequities in educational access, preparation, and experiences on our campuses. How might the use of open educational resources (OER) advance equity and inclusion at our postsecondary institutions and statewide?
Attendees will have an opportunity to hear from presenters from across Maryland on how they are tackling these issues and building, growing, evaluating, and sustaining their OER initiatives. Keynote presentations will feature Angela Debarger, Program Officer, William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and Maha Bali, Associate Professor of Practice at the Center for Learning and Teaching at the American University in Cairo.
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Registration is now open for the 2021 M.O.S.T. State Summit, which will take place virtually April 8-9, 2021. The theme of the 2021 conference is Using OER to Advance Equity and Inclusion. The...
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Thu, 11 Feb 2021 12:08:36 -0500
GO Chat Recap: The Year of Open Ed - UMBC Alum Leads the Way
Here's what you missed from our Go Online Chat!
Last month, we kicked off our GO Chat series for 2021 with a dive into all-things-open, as in Open Educational Resources (OER), Open Pedagogy, and Open Science.
We started with a brief discussion about several recent articles that caught our attention:
- Inside Higher Ed, Will College Be Free in 4 Years?, written through the lens of a 13-year-old middle schooler during the historic inauguration of President Biden, Vice President Harris, and FLOTUS Jill Biden. What might this mean for college affordability during the Biden administration? Despite the many political challenges, the authors deemed it a worthy aspirational goal for all institutions.
- Faculty Focus, This Semester, Don't Forget Participation Feedback! This was a timely reminder about what can be a frustrating experience, a "participation" grade in an online class. Faculty can start by reviewing and refreshing their often-prescriptive language, modeling effective participation, using formative assessments, and preparing students to be effective participants in the classroom and work situations.
- The Chronicle of Higher Education, Small Teaching Online column, 8 Strategies to Prevent Teacher Burnout. Author Flower Darby focused on flexibility and forgiveness as we approach the first year of pandemic teaching. She offered key takeaways for teachers: keep it simple, maintain balance, communicate strategically, and call timeout for yourself and your students.
Helping us understand this journey about all-things-open was UMBC alumni Dr. Karen Cangialosi, a Professor of Biology and Open Education Faculty Fellow at Keene State College (KSC) in Keene, New Hampshire.
Although she regularly incorporates open pedagogy in all her courses, Karen explains her journey started with an episode of the podcast, The Future Trends Forum by Bryan Alexander. During the episode featuring Gardner Cambell (2016), Karen recalled, "I'm a biology professor who used mostly traditional materials, but I did a complete 180 when it came to open education after listening to Gardner Campbell."
A proponent of Open Educational Resources (OER), Karen says OERs are an important gateway to open education in terms of people, practices, and content. Open pedagogy is about access, agency, and community. Karen describes a learning environment where her students can work with her to create content or learning outcomes, write an attendance policy, design self assessments, or determine how they will be graded.
While students can be unsure, or even resistant to this approach, Karen suggests that since most students will not know what this process can be about she still offers more traditional methods, content, or assessments. And what often ends up happening in those instances is that a few weeks after watching classmates create and share content, students will come to her and ask, "Can I change? I want to do what they're doing instead of this 25-page paper I said I'd write."
When it comes to students sharing content, Karen never requires them to create openly licensed work; however, she provides examples and opportunities that make it possible. For example, her BIO 318 students created a textbook -- A Student's Guide to Tropical Marine Biology that is utilized by other students across the open education community.
Karen acknowledges open education has been building slowly and she frequently guides colleagues to start with "your desire as a professor and what you want students to do and learn in your course." As higher education is changing dramatically now due to COVID-19, Karen sees faculty ideally positioned to shape those conversations and changes. Read more about Karen at her website: https://karencang.net/
Check out the full GO Chat here.
We will be joined by Dr. Laila M. Shishineh, Director of First-Year & Transfer Academic Programs in the Division of Undergraduate Academic Affairs (UAA) at UMBC. In this role she oversees several campus initiatives: Academic Transition Courses (FYS, IHU, and TRS), Summer & Winter Bridge Programs, and the Living-Learning Communities.
We hope you will join us!
Don't miss a GO Chat! Make sure you:
As always, if you have any questions about teaching, learning and technology at UMBC, please consider the following options:
Whether you are brand new to teaching online or looking to make some improvements to what you have started, Blackboard Instructor Webinar Series is a set of free webinars on basic and advanced topics form Blackboard Academy.
Have a question about Blackboard or Collaborate? Join a live Office Hours session where Blackboard experts will be on hand to answer questions, demonstrate workflows and provide guidance on teaching remotely.
All webinars will be recorded and emailed to you after the session. Even if you can't attend live, please register so you can receive the recording.
The Office of Equity and Inclusion (OEI) invites you to join Training and Case Manager Ever Hanna (they/them) for a discussion about how UMBC can improve business processes, technologies and apps (such as People Soft and G-suite), and overall climate for transgender, gender non-conforming, and non-binary employees.
OEI is in the process of partnering with several offices across campus to continue to increase inclusion of trans, GNC, and non-binary employees. The feedback collected in these sessions will be reported back anonymously to appropriate offices. OEI is especially interested in hearing from directly affected individuals as well as hiring managers and payroll preparers from across campus.
These sessions are open to any faculty or staff member at UMBC:
Tuesday, February 16th from 2-3 PM
Friday, February 19th from 2-3 PM
Friday, February 26th from 10-11 AM
This session is open only to employee members who identify as trans, gender non-conforming, non-binary, or any other identity that falls outside of the gender binary:
Thursday, February 18 from 1-2 PM (The guest list for this event will be hidden and the meeting will be locked at 1:15 PM)
OEI will post a list of questions that may be asked during the sessions ahead of time. If you require additional accommodations to be able to access the meeting, please email EverHanna@umbc.edu with your request.
Note: The Office of Equity and Inclusion encourages any individual who has currently or formerly experienced discrimination on the basis of their gender identity or expression to report this discrimination through our online reporting form. Disclosures of discrimination that may occur during these listening sessions will not be considered reports to OEI.
The session facilitator will take notes, but these sessions will not be recorded.
]]>
The Office of Equity and Inclusion (OEI) invites you to join Training and Case Manager Ever Hanna (they/them) for a discussion about how UMBC can improve business processes, technologies and apps...
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Mon, 08 Feb 2021 16:03:03 -0500
Mon, 08 Feb 2021 16:03:34 -0500
Students favored OERs and would enroll in OER courses again
OERs met most student needs despite concerns with relevancy
In a survey of more than 900 students from fall 2020 who completed courses that utilized no-cost or low-cost Open Educational Resources (OER), UMBC students said they appreciated saving money on instructional materials and would recommend an OER course to others.
Nearly 90% of students said the quality of the OER course materials was of similar or higher quality than non-OER course materials. In the surveyed courses, faculty replaced traditional print textbooks with OERs and provided supplemental digital homework tools. Forty-five percent of students who completed the survey said they would be fairly likely or very likely to enroll in an OER course again, while 53% said they would recommend an OER course to others.
Instructors Sarah Bass (CHEM 101), Tara Carpenter (CHEM 102), and Maria Manni (SPAN 101/103) replaced traditional print textbooks with OERs and provided supplemental digital homework tools.
Open Educational Resources are teaching, learning, and research materials in any medium (digital or otherwise) that are released under an open license that permits no-cost or low-cost access, use, adaptation, or redistribution (UNESCO, 2002). OER can include textbooks, syllabi, supplementary materials, quizzes, assessment rubrics, homework, or labs.
About 60 comments were provided about students’ experience with OERs. The majority of written feedback focused on positive engagement with the digital resources and homework tools that supported students’ ability to practice problems or equations and learn vocabulary.
Students offered additional comments about how they would use money saved from OER toward paying tuition or other fees (64%), covering personal expenses (55%), buying textbooks or materials for other classes (46%), or taking an additional course (19%). Some expressed challenges with the materials themselves, such as relevance to course content, impact on learning style, or ability to annotate online content vs. printed material.
Additional observations:
- 61% of students reported spending between $51 - $150 on textbooks or other course materials in a typical semester.
- 55% of students said they usually purchase online or digital textbooks.
- 80% of students reported having fairly reliable or extremely reliable internet access, with 19% reporting neutral or somewhat reliable access.
A total of 551 students completed the survey from the 917 invited to participate. The survey was distributed to students using Blackboard’s native Enterprise Survey tool.
Explore how you can adopt OERs for your course:
Attend upcoming virtual events:
Contact OER co-chairs Erin Durham (edurham@umbc.edu) or Susan Biro (sbiro@umbc.edu) for more information on OER at UMBC.
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In a survey of more than 900 students from fall 2020 who completed courses that utilized no-cost or low-cost Open Educational Resources (OER), UMBC students said they appreciated saving money on...
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Mon, 08 Feb 2021 10:45:30 -0500
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Motivational Monday TEDx of the Week
How your brain responds to stories
Looking for a dose of inspiration to start your week? No need to look any further. Each week, we curate talks on topics that matter NOW for all of us related to resilience, self-care, dealing with uncertain times, as well as ways to stay connected, inspired, and grounded when the earth beneath us is shifting.Today's talk is How your brain responds to stories - and why they're crucial for leadersby Karen Eber. How do the world's best leaders and visionaries earn trust? They don't just present data -- they also tell great stories. Leadership consultant Karen Eber demystifies what makes for effective storytelling and explains how anyone can harness it to create empathy and inspire action.
After you watch, we invite you to reflect on the following:
- What resonated for you in the video?
- What lived experiences do you have, either personally or professionally that align with the core message of the talk?
- As you think of your role as a student, employee, or manager what feels relevant and useful to remember?
- What are you taking away that feels meaningful - either a new perspective, a potential action, etc.
- How might we take better care of ourselves and each other during this time?
If you're a supervisor, consider using this talk for team building purposes! You might send the video ahead of your meeting with several reflection questions on which you'd like your staff to come prepared to speak.