Designing a HyFlex Course – Supports

[Dianna Dempsey]

Hi all:

I’m not sure if this is the appropriate place in the forum for this question, but it is around designing a hyflex course, so I’ll ask it here.

Our institution has opened a funding opportunity for faculty to apply for related to ‘teaching impact’. We can apply for up to $5000 for projects related to teaching impact and innovation. There are a limited number of funds, so it is a competitive application, and a one time opportunity.

My question is if you were a faculty member wanting to design a hyflex course for the first time, with limited instructional design knowledge, what would you ask for in terms of using this funding? My brainstorming to date includes engaging the services of an instructional designer to help map out an online asynchronous version of the class as the foundation of hyflex, but are there any other things that folks can think of that may be helpful?

Any suggestions are welcome!

Dianna

[Lance Eaton]

One thing that pops into my mind immediately if it’s not available would be a closed-captioning/transcription budget for videos or audio that you make so that you can make them accessible (real closed captioning, not auto-close-captioning/auto-trascription like you see on YouTube).

Lance

[Dianna Dempsey]

Thanks Lance – that’s a great thing to consider!

[Kim Graves]

A good first step in designing any HyFlex course, as you recognized in your question, is to design a good quality online (asynchronous) course. If your institution is a member of Quality Matters or another organization that provides a certification process for verifying that an online course meets standards of good design, you could include the fee in your request. If training is allowed in the budget, these organizations have a number of courses that guide instructors in applying the standards to their course. Sorry, this advice likely comes well after the application deadline for your funding opportunity!

[Dianna Dempsey]

Thank you so much – this is a really great point! I have already submitted my application (fingers crossed) but I’m still going to look into this.

[Dianna Dempsey]

Received word today that my application for funding to partially develop an online asynchronous version of a course (as the foundation for hyflex) was rejected. Here’s the rationale:

“One item that seemed contradictory was the description of the project as HyFlex but the goal is to create 2 modules of the course in an online, asynchronous format. HyFlex is a synchronous teaching mode delivered in real time both in-person and streamed. There is merit to developing asynchronous content if HRMT 450 is re-designed as hybrid asynchronous.”

How do you all approach further educating those around you that online asynchronous is the foundation for hyflex (which the allows for delivery and participation in all three modalities)? This feedback is coming from an Associate Dean. The reason I could only create 2 modules is because that is all the budget of the funding allowed for… Frustrating.

[Kim Graves]

Oh, that is very frustrating. Sorry Dianna.

I tend to define HyFlex every time I use the word. This week I am doing some training sessions for fellow faculty on the classroom equipment we installed to support HyFlex. Your post reminded me to include the definition of HyFlex in the presentation (I actually do it twice – once at the beginning and once at the end).

Helping peers with the definition is easier than helping administrators though, as we may not see them as often. Perhaps including the definition of HyFlex and linking to sources in grant proposals could help? I would not have thought to do so for grants targeting “HyFlex” but your experience shows it is not yet universally understood.

[Brian Beatty]

Kim, this is a good suggestion – defining the term for your audience without assuming they know what HyFlex is, beyond the popular press and its common assumption of simply streaming/recording the live classroom and allowing students to stay home and connect online to the synchronous mode.

I think HyFlex can be done that way but it’s not the way I do it because there is always a need for asynchronous mode with my students. I do have colleagues who emphasize the synchronous options and allow the asynchronous option only for a limited number of “excused” absences from the synchronous experience. On my campus, that’s allowable.

This flexibility in the formal definition I’ve used is problematic in this way, but it also allows for a synchronous-focused start when the time to build the asynchronous path isn’t realistically available. I consider it a compromise, and I hope that as the need for asynchronous becomes more apparent over time, faculty and institutions will follow the need and provide that path also.

Brian

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