This poster will report on a case study involving the use of a hybrid teaching model in a fourth-year transdisciplinary capstone course in Child and Youth Studies. The structure of the course follows a predictable lecture cycle that focuses on a pedagogical continuum, consisting of four distinct but related aspects of disciplinarity. For instance, there are four cycles of lectures, each cycle focusing on one of the four aspects of disciplinarity, namely, 1) Uni-, 2) Multi-, 3) Intra-, and 4) Trans-Disciplinarity (TD). The first lecture in each cycle is presented digitally through a web-based course delivery system (i.e., Sakai), where students engage with a number of components, including, a) a 50-minute video specifically developed for this course, b) targeted readings related to disciplinarity and capstone relevant course material, and c) posted responses to instructor prompted questions to the videos and the readings. The last lecture in the cycle is held in a traditional face-to-face (F2F) classroom environment, where students are engaged in a number of activities designed to expand and review the unit.
The concept of teamwork is central in this course. Students are asked to organize themselves into teams, consisting of four members. Each member has the opportunity to lead the team twice. Teams are required to have F2F and electronic meetings, record minutes and action plans. In other words, students become fully functioning teams.
Other requirements of the course emphasize the dovetailing of the F2F and digital components. For example, a major course component involves the completion of a TD focused team wiki, which also involves the preparation of a case study and the production of a short video (5 minutes max). As well, each team has to make a presentation of their wiki in front of the entire class.
The hybrid experience is evaluated twice, namely, a Fall term initial reflection on what works and what does not, followed by a Winter terms set of reflections. This poster will report on students’ experiences with the hybrid environment. In particular, we will attempt to capture how students lived their hybrid learning, what worked and what did not work, and what particular aspect of the hybrid environment was beneficial for their learning. Also important will be students’ reflections on ways to improve future offerings.