A Flexible Future Education Model-Strategies Drawn from Teaching during the COVID-19 Pandemic

As they emerge from the pandemic, universities worldwide are evaluating the adaptations in the education sector during the pandemic and determining their course of action for the future. In this work, drawing on the lessons from four courses across two different universities, a survey of over 300 students, and the literature, we present strategies for successfully implementing a flexible blended education format. The survey revealed that the performance of the cohort taking the course during the pandemic performed nearly the same as the cohorts that took the courses before the pandemic. However, the students did not prefer an entirely virtual format, felt that their social wellbeing was impacted, and preferred a hybrid education model with a lot of supplementary learning material. As a key contribution of this work, we have identified and elaborate on four key pillars for a flexible blended education format, namely, course design, pedagogical strategies incorporating active learning and providing a sense of online community, infrastructure for delivery and training, and incorporating activities that support student wellbeing.

随着全球从疫情中走出，世界各地的大学都在评估疫情期间教育领域的适应性调整，并确定未来的行动方案。在这项工作中，借鉴两所不同大学的四门课程的经验教训、对300多名学生的调查以及相关文献，我们提出了成功实施灵活混合教育模式的策略。调查显示，疫情期间修读课程的学生群体的表现与疫情前修读这些课程的学生群体几乎相同。然而，学生们并不喜欢完全虚拟的教学模式，他们觉得自己的社交健康受到了影响，并且更喜欢有大量辅助学习材料的混合教育模式。作为这项工作的一个关键贡献，我们确定并详细阐述了灵活混合教育模式的四个关键支柱，即课程设计、包含主动学习并提供在线社区感的教学策略、教学实施和培训的基础设施，以及包含支持学生健康的活动。