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Speaker: OTAN, Outreach and Technical Assistance Network.

Ian Summers: Hello, everybody. My name is Ian Summers. I'm a project specialist at OTAN, the Outreach and Technical Assistance Network. I'm going to be your host for this OTAN Tech Talk. The title for this month's OTT is using HyFlex instruction. Our presenter today is Francisco Pinedo, an OTAN subject matter expert. Francisco, go for it.

FRANCISCO X. PINEDO: Yeah, hello. My name, again, is Francisco Pinedo, an OTAN subject matter expert and also the lead instructor at Soledad Adult School. And it is my great pleasure to be having this OTT about HyFlex and HyFlex learning.

So again, we're going to be talking about flexing your instruction with HyFlex learning using some tips and tricks that we've learned along the way for using HyFlex learning here at Soledad Adult School, mainly in our ESL program. The agenda is and the objective is to inspire you to reach more students with HyFlex teaching, which is something that I will be highlighting and emphasizing a lot throughout the presentation that we can reach more students with HyFlex teaching.

In the agenda, define what is HyFlex teaching. We'll be looking at some successes in HyFlex teaching and learning. But also, we'll be looking at some barriers. We know there are barriers for HyFlex learning models so we'll be looking at those. I will be sharing with you examples of how I do a HyFlex class mainly for my beginning low-- well, all of my beginning levels ESL. And then also, I'm going to invite you to read more about the HyFlex learning and other digital learning models through the Digital Learning Guidance Document, which I will be talking towards the end of the presentation.

So when we talk about digital learning models, so there are three different types of learning models. The first one is distance, where learning happens away from the traditional classroom, including online learning. Example, teacher and students are in different locations. So if we remember back about four years ago when right before-- well, a little less than four years ago when we were ready to go to shelter in place, that was an example of distance learning where the teacher was at one location and the students were at another location.

Then we have blended learning, which kind of was happening around that time as well. Some agencies started before, like us in Soledad. Some agencies started a little bit later. With blended is learning that combines in-person and online instruction where the learner has the control over time, place, and pace, referring to the online portion of the instruction.

For example is we would have two days in class, brick and mortar classroom, which we referred to, and one day online using, either an LMS system, a learning management system such as Canvas or similar. Sometimes students use other programs that are offered through other vendors, and that would also count as, for example, the day when they work outside of the classroom, but they are still doing their required work.

Then more recently, HyFlex-- and it's not very recent, but in adult education, it seems to be more recent-- where students choose the mode of participation. It could be asynchronous, where students can view materials at any time they choose, but there really isn't a live video lecture, or synchronous, where students can log in at a set time, view live video lectures and discussion. So we'll be focusing on the last part, the HyFlex learning, and give you some examples of some of our students how they connect both synchronous and asynchronous and they all get the same learning experience.

Some of the fundamental principles and values in HyFlex learning is, for example, the learner choice. The learner can choose class participation mode that adapts to their schedule. Sometimes we have issues with babysitting and the student can't come to class. But now they're able to fully participate from home or whatever remote location they are connecting with the actual class here in person and with the instructor.

It also offers equivalency. Activities in both modes are equivalent with the same outcomes. So what I mean by that is that all of the activities that I prepare for my students in class will also be able to be accessible by students who are not in the classroom. So we use a lot of technology in the classroom. We use a lot of-- instead of paper handouts, we now use digital handouts. We also use a lot of different things like Google Forms, Padlet, and different things that the student can also access it from home and still get the same learning experience.

Reusability, materials shared between modes-- for example, paper handouts in class, digital format for students, or both have the digital format. In our district, we are moving away from paper, more digital. So our students know that as well. So they also were moving in that trend as well. So the students know that instead of receiving a paper handout, they'll be getting a digital handout. Either they could access it through our LMS system and in class. Also, I have the option to send it via email to the students. I usually do both.

Accessibility, learner possesses or develops basic digital literacy skills and have equitable access to participation modes. So I think this one is very important where the student, now their digital literacy skills, literacy skills are being enhanced because of HyFlex model. So they could come in the classroom. They could participate from another location. But they will be using technology pretty much in both situations.

So there are many benefits to HyFlex for all stakeholders, most importantly for our students. So our biggest stakeholders and the ones that we cherish the most are our students, of course. So now we have more course access. Before, we used to have a limit of about 20 students per classroom. Because of space and because of availability, we do not have many offerings because of, again, lack of space.

Now we have increased participation because now we could serve more students than in the brick and mortar classroom. So there's more opportunities for students to join the classroom and not be on waiting lists. This year was very minimal, the waiting list that we've had for our ESL program, because two of our classes are using the HyFlex model. So instead of capping out at 20, we now have one class has 40, and the other one has 42 students that are connecting at about, let's say from those 40 to 42, we have about 30, 33 who are either participating.

Usually, it's about a 50/50 mix. So we might have about 15 students in the classroom, maybe about 15 students who connect via video. We use Zoom. That way, they're both participating in the class. And then we also have a handful of students who will have access to the material, can't join the live lectures, but they will have materials, the presentations I upload, the PowerPoints or Google Slides I do upload.

The only thing we do not upload are the videos because of bandwidth capacity, which I'll be talking a little bit later, both from our district and from the students' point. For faculty, we provide built-in alternative to the classroom instruction. We have more multimedia, less paper. And we can be reusing the information each semester. So for example, this semester that's about to start, we just update a few of the links or a few of the activities that we had from the students from last semester, and we're ready to go.

Also, talking about, like we said before about the digital learning skills, we're teaching the students how to use the computers for computer-based testing. So they're accessing different activities via our LMS system or in class during the class participation. So they're using the technology skills that they're going to need when they do computer-based testing either for ESL or for HSC program.

Also in our program, we have seen an increased student enrollment. So we have about a 20% student enrollment in the first semester compared to other semesters. So we are actually above pre-pandemic levels of attendance because we are enrolling more students. We are increasing course offerings. So now we have the same class, but it's not capped at 20 now. It's unlimited, pretty much.

In the classroom, we do have a cap of about 20 because again, we have to follow district guidelines and everything. But students can connect to our video lesson via a HyFlex model. It's unlimited. We could serve as many as we want online. And we're also yielding higher payment points.

So we are yielding higher payment points, which is one thing that is catching a lot of people's attention is because we are serving more students. So when it comes time to CASAS test, we usually do let them know when the testing will be. And we have a pretty good attendance, so we're able to yield higher payment points in conjunction with the curriculum that we use as well.

So here in Soledad Adult School, the way that we offer HyFlex instruction is synchronous. So the student logs in at 6:00 PM for whatever class they're in. Usually, Monday, Tuesdays the beginning. Wednesday, Thursday is the intermediate advanced. And asynchronous, so for the students who can't connect at six, so they would do asynchronous.

So from our learning management system, they could view the presentation. Usually, it's on a Google slide or a PowerPoint. And sometimes we do have a short video to go along with it that will cover the same content. So the content is going to be relatively the same.

The only thing they are really not getting is watching me doing the instruction and also the activities on the border or whatnot. And they won't be able to participate with the students when we do different types of activities as well. But they're getting most of the experience. They're getting the lecture. They're getting the objectives. They're getting all that in if they do asynchronous.

Most of our students, except for two in my beginning class are doing the synchronous model. So they do connect at 6:00, and then we're able to have them online, and then also here in the classroom have students. We use the Owl Camera, which is a 360-degree camera in the classroom that has a speaker and it has a 360 camera.

So when the student in the classroom is speaking, for example, or reading something, the camera focuses on that student. And then the student from home is able to see who's actually reading. And then also from home, students usually do connect with their video on. Again, that's something you have to check with your agencies, as each agency does have a particular rule about having cameras on or off. Our district is pretty flexible. So if the student opts to have it on, they can, or they can remain off.

So then the student is able to participate who's online with a student who is in the classroom. Also for reading activities, the speaker in the classroom is very nice and clear. So the student who's connected online is able to, for example, read their sentences, read their ideas. And everybody in the classroom is able to hear them. So it's a device that we use. I know agencies use other things. Some of them have wall-mounted video, whole elaborate system. We just use an Owl Camera that has that. And we are looking at other options as well. But for now, an Owl Camera seems to work well.

Students in the classroom are connected via Zoom as well. That way, they could interact with the students who are not in the classroom. So that way, everybody's connected. So in a few slides, I'll show you some examples of how that works here in my classroom. But students are connected via Zoom. That way whenever there's an activity to share, I could just put it in the chat box, and it would prompt them to open a link, for example, if we're doing a Padlet activity. Or if I want to refer them to a website, I usually just pop it in the chat. It pops up on their screen. They're able to open it and we're able to do that reading activity.

One of the things I didn't mention before is for students who are having difficulty with using so much technology, we do have technology drop-in days on Fridays. We used to have them more regularly on Fridays. Now it's as requested. So the students know if they need any type of help with technology, they could contact me or the other instructor and we could set up a time for them to go over, for example, Zoom, and how to connect, or how to access the LMS system.

So it's not that we just sign up the student and say, OK, you're going to be in a HyFlex class, but you're only going to participate online. Good luck. No, we actually do sit down with students who need that help as well. I know, again, some agencies might not have that capability. But in our agency, we do.

And again, some agencies that I have seen use Zoom like my agency or a similar video conferencing program to deliver instruction. Again, it does not have to be Zoom. It could be any other type of video conferencing program.

Procedures for the ESL-- and again, I'm focusing on ESL because that is our first program that we are piloting the HyFlex. We've been piloting it for about a year and a half now. And we will plan to extend also to our HSC in the near future. So students will have the Zoom link that will be used. It's going to be the same Zoom link for the whole semester. I email it to them. I post it in our LMS system in Canvas. Here in the classroom, I have it posted throughout the classroom.

And so the students, I encourage them to write it in their notebook or on their phone. And so everybody has the Zoom link that will be used. And students can access the day's agenda in Canvas, and it also has all of the links to the tasks that we will do. That way the student who is synchronous and asynchronous can see all the activities that is going to be done. We also have the objective of the day, standards that are being met. So that way, the student knows that what they're going to do prior to the actual class.

We do select apps that we're going to use about a week in anticipation. That way, the student can install it from home. For example, Nearpod, our tablets here in the school, our iPads have Nearpod, Google Sheets, for example. So ChatGPT, which is a newer one we're starting to use in the classroom. So we let the student know in advance what apps they are going to need. That way, they install it.

And for us at the agency site, we usually select which apps, websites we're going to use, let our IT department know. That way, they could either be accessed through our tablets or installed in our tablets. So there's sometimes websites that we use are blocked through the general school's firewall, but they're able to let our iPads use it if I give them about a week or two notice of the sites that we're going to use.

And stay consistent with the apps or the sites that will be used, because if all of a sudden we have this list of apps and websites, and then all of a sudden I throw in a new one, some of the students would have to download. We do know some students that have limited availability of data or storage on their device. So we are aware of that. So that's why we kind of choose maybe two apps and a few websites that we're going to be using throughout most of the quarter or the semester.

And also check that the links work across all devices. We kind of found that out the hard way. Make sure that they work for any operating system and also any mobile device. And we want to make sure that we use work that is ADA-compliant, just to follow the Americans with Disabilities Act. So we always make sure that the links are accessible, that whatever we do share with our student is accessible for everyone and for every device.

But also, HyFlex does have many challenges. We talked a little bit about some of the successes that the students have. And then we'll see a little bit more. But there's also some challenges that come with HyFlex-- lack of technology skills for students. So I addressed that one previously. So again, we do have drop-in days for technology.

We also work very closely with a local nonprofit organization here in Monterey County that offers technology training for students on weekends. Also, some of our adult schools offer technology skills with that same agency. Also, they do provide students with low-income, if they're low-income, with devices-- mainly Chromebooks-- that either student could purchase at a very low cost. Or if they participate in one of their workshops, it's even for free.

Also, this agency helps students connect to low-cost internet service providers, because we also know that also, lack of connectivity is a problem. And that's why we want to make sure that the students have access to internet knowing that some of them might have low bandwidth. So when we choose activities, we make sure that our activities are low-bandwidth.

So instead of sending the students a 15, 20-minute video, we might cut it up to maybe just a two or three-minute video on the main parts that we want them to focus on. Also, some of the websites, we make sure that they're not very content-heavy with multimedia, because again, that might be an issue with some of the students.

And some of our students as well also have no internet. So that is when we here at the school and also with the non-profit, we do refer them to the Broadband for All initiative, so here in California. So we give them the link, and then we also can help them fill out the application to get affordable, low-cost internet. It's very simple to use, just a few questions. And most of the time, the students do get a credit for their internet. So that right there is some of the ways that we help address those barriers to not having the technology.

And also, one of the other barriers is that there is no on-the-spot troubleshoot for technology problems. We all encounter technology problems. I've encountered them in presentations in the classroom. When our students do sometimes, they are able to solve the issues. But a lot of them are not. So that kind of seems to discourage some of the students.

And we found out this more when we were using activities that were only like Flash-enabled, for example. So we moved away from that. So now if it used to be a Flash video, now that component or website has a different video that maybe is a YouTube video that is accessible to the students.

So that is why we troubleshoot links, videos, multimedia that we send. That way, we kind of eliminate those problems for our students. And we do know that there are many more challenges. But these seem to be the top ones that our students do let us know that are some of the challenges for them.

But we also have successes, and that's what we like to focus on. So students take control of their learning. So we always want our students to be independent, lifelong learners. And in a HyFlex model, the students, especially if they are not in the classroom, a student is taking control of their learning. They could choose, I'm going to go in person this day or I'm going to connect on this day. And they know that they're going to get the same or pretty much the same-- I mean, it's not going to be 100% the exact same, but you're going to be like up in the 90% of similarity between in-class and not in the classroom.

But students do take control. I've seen some students who work in the afternoon, do log into our Canvas into their Canvas accounts at 2, 3 in the morning when they're on break or when they get off of work. And they're doing the work and submitting that work at that time. So they're taking control of their learning.

Again, as we said, it promotes digital literacy skills that they're going to need when they apply for a job or at their job, for example. And these are soft skills that can be used outside of the classroom, these technology skills. I mean, anywhere our students go now and we go, we have to use technology to some extent.

We also prepare students for post-secondary education. Our community college does use Canvas as a learning management system. So by us using Canvas in the classroom, we are already preparing our student for that next level and one less barrier for them. Again, and we empower the students so they get enough skills, technology skills, to start small online businesses.

We've had two students this year so far who learned enough technology skills and who learned how to do different things on the computers with activities that we do that now, they actually have started their own small-- again, I want to emphasize small-- online business. But again, it's just empowering that student that with the technology skills that they learn and they are using in our classrooms that they get those skills that help them take it outside the classroom and into the workplace.

Or, like, in this case, where students actually know how to use the computer to promote their business, to take, for example, using Google Forms for orders and things like that. So those are some of the things that the students learned in the classroom and then they adapted it to start their own small business.

So this is a picture of the classroom I am in currently. This is my classroom. So here you could see the setup. So usually I'm standing here right in front of the board and between the Owl Camera. So I pointed an arrow, a red arrow, to the Owl Camera so you could see the camera is then connected to my laptop. And then from there, it's projected onto the screen we have here in the classroom.

And also the students-- so you could see that pretty much we're all on the same page because the students are connected on Zoom. And here you can't really see it because I have a timer. But there, the students could see the students who are connected remotely. So that way, all of us are pretty much on the same page, no pun intended. But we are on the same page because we are all able to see exactly the same thing I'm displaying to them.

So sometimes with distance learning, students get lost. They don't know what page I'm talking about. This way, I'm able to project it via Zoom to them and they're able to see. And if they have the textbook as well, they can also follow in their textbook.

So you can see the students are usually in pairs, and then the student online as well. So when we do breakout activities, this is an "in-person," quote unquote, breakout activity. Then online, I put the students in different breakouts as well. And I'm able to go in from group to group to see what the students are doing and how they are participating in the classroom.

Again, here is another example. So especially with this group here, I focused in because here it's a group-- it was an activity for groups of three. So here you could see there was two students. So these two students are actually interacting with one. So in this situation what I did, because again, we're a fairly small class, so I was able to customize the breakout rooms and put these two students and also a virtual student. That way, they're in a group of three and they're able to collaborate.

I do recommend them-- they didn't have them that day. I'm sorry, we do have headphones. But that day, we were getting new ones, so they didn't have access to them. But usually the student does have a headphone with a mic device as well. And we do encourage them to bring their own as well. So this is how the students would collaborate with the students in the classroom and also the students who are not in the classroom.

And again, it creates that classroom environment where students know their classmates, the ones who are in person and the ones who are virtual. And for example, when we have celebrations like in the fall, the students who connect only online come into the classroom. And everybody's like, wow, like, you're my partner. You're so-and-so. And it's so nice to physically see you instead of just on the camera.

So it's really nice to see how even in an online virtual setting, HyFlex setting, the students still recognize each other. It's like if they were all in the classroom and they all get the same experience.

And I invite you to also look at the chapter 4 and chapter 5 of the Digital Learning Guidance where it does have a lot more examples on how to implement and how to start a HyFlex program. Again, so you would visit the OTAN website. So on the upper right-hand corner, usually the first link, you would see the Digital Learning Guidance. And then from there you could see that you do have the PDF.

So you could download the whole document, which is about 120-some-odd pages. Or if you want to specifically focus on chapters-- for example, I did mention chapter 4 and chapter 5. So these are the two chapters in the Digital Learning Guidance that will give you more examples of blended learning. So I do invite you to, if this is something of your interest, to really look at the guidance document. And here, it will talk a little bit more, give you a lot more insight of how to be able to do this type of learning. So with that, thank you very much.

Ian Summers: All right. Thank you, Francisco, for that informative presentation. I'd like to encourage viewers and everybody else at this time to subscribe to OTAN's YouTube channel where instructional tech videos related to adult education can be found, including OTAN Tech Talks just like this one. All this information and more is available on the OTAN website at www.otan.us. Thanks again for watching this OTAN Tech Talk. We'll see you next time.