Choosing a Modality

Teaching and learning can occur via a variety of modalities: In addition to traditional in-person approaches in which instructors and students occupy the same space together, online synchronous modalities are spaces in which instructors and students convene for the class period in a virtual space (such as Zoom), and hybrid modalities bring together some students in a physical instructional space with others in a virtual instructional space simultaneously. By contrast, online asynchronous courses leverage a variety of online teaching and learning activities in which students can engage independently on their own time. Ultimately, any given course may combine several different modalities across the span of a disruption to purposefully engage students in the most effective ways possible.

Which to Use, When?

Different modalities may be more or less useful to you and your students, depending on the nature of the disruptive event. For example, events accompanied by loss of electricity or internet access suggest a low-tech approach, such as asking students to read printed materials, engage in hand-written reflections or responses to prompts, and communicate by phone or text (if possible). Infectious disease outbreaks or other non-infrastructure-related disruptions may suggest hybrid or online (synchronous or asynchronous) course designs, with the choices among them depending on university guidelines, the level of current risk, state or local restrictions on occupation density or travel, student and faculty comfort levels with classroom instruction, and whether students are located on campus or at home.

In planning an emergency pivot using either modality, questions to contemplate might include the following:

  • Am I and my students located in the same or similar time zones? If not, carefully consider the impact of synchronous teaching and learning activities, and whether their goals might be better achieved with asynchronous ones.
  • What course activities or components would best be accomplished via in-person meetings or synchronous online interaction (via Zoom)? Possibilities might include: Interactive lectures, perhaps including the use of polling; scaffolded small group work or peer feedback, perhaps using breakout rooms; or conferencing between instructors and individuals or groups.
    • How much synchronous online interaction is likely to be productive given the experience of “Zoom fatigue”? What classroom agreements or design practices might help keep Zoom fatigue to a minimum?
  • What course activities or components would best be accomplished via asynchronous work and engagement via Moodle or other tools? Possibilities include:
    • Reading discussions using social annotation tools like Hypothes.is
    • Recorded lectures, perhaps including a Video Quiz using Kaltura or with a follow-up discussion forum for questions
    • Quizzes or other low-stakes assessments to help you and your students monitor their learning
    • Feedback on common mistakes or concepts students are struggling with via recorded video
    • Writing-to-learn assignments designed to prompt students to recognize their prior knowledge or prepare for group activities
    • Discussion forums that foster learning and community by inviting students to share personal experiences related to content, integrate and draw connections among ideas or concepts, discuss case studies, etc.
  • How familiar are my students and I with the necessary technologies? What support might we need?

Further guidance and details about each technology-enabled modality are available via the links in the left-hand menu.