Come hear the story of an open-enrollment institution college that exists with no traditional campus that is also not fully online. Breakout into small groups to plan the programming design and implementation of this college model, and together imagine a future that is just a beautiful blend.
In an education desert, communities face the challenges of supporting aging populations and quelling the “brain drain” of talented and industrious individuals. The region is vast and varied from a place that is more urban with many four-year options, but no two-year options, to copious small towns throughout the rural landscape. Residential Internet infrastructure is lacking and commuting to a campus would be an impossibility for most residents.
This session will focus on one institution’s experience using a hybrid learning model, not as a way to give the “best of both worlds” or to overcome the challenges of the pandemic, but as the primary method of delivering education to overcome geographic boundaries and serve a rural population in an education desert. This institution serves an area that spans over 6,000 square miles without a singular "hub" or main campus and uses innovative teaching methods and flexible technology implementation to bring the opportunity to receive a college degree to many towns simultaneously.
After a brief presentation regarding history and background of the institution, an explanation of the geographic and technological barriers faced, and the delivery model used to overcome them, participants will break into small groups. The task of the groups will be to brainstorm ideas to make classes more interactive and engaging through teaching methods or different forms of educational technology.
Level of Participation:
This session will use interactive classroom technology (i.e. Mentimeter, Padlet) through which groups will share their ideas. These ideas will shape the discussion facilitated by the presenter. This discussion will serve to help other participants take away a variety of ideas from their peers and will also provide an opportunity for the presenter to share the experiences of the institution.
Session Goals:
Individuals attending this session will learn about successful experiences in hybrid learning. They will also discuss the best strategies of innovative technology and methods currently used in blend environments. Lastly, attendees will discuss lessons learned from past attempts.