Our interactive learning design blueprint has indicated several learning activities that help the students develop and consolidate their understanding of the learning materials, such as in-class discussions, presentations, and Q&A sessions for guest lectures etc. As the question mentioned, we cannot predict all unexpected events that may occur while conducting the learning sessions with the learner, such as the pandemic, which compels everyone to work from home remotely. Therefore, an alternative solution must be applied to this unique situation to ensure all the learners can access and learn successfully; specific training is also required according to the adjustment of the learning environment. If the pandemic exploded before or between the face-to-face learning session, the learning design would be transferred into an online format. Our potential audience is the students majoring in economics program or with a strong interest in learning economic-related knowledge, which means all our learners who participate in our learning design could be of different ages, cultures, time zones, gender, social determinants etc. Therefore, the major potential barrier to online courses is identified as students’ different levels of internet literacy. The senior group may have a weaker understanding of the internet than the junior or adult groups; the rural population may have more likely to have an unstable internet connection than the urban population.

To achieve an inclusive learning environment that guarantees “all students [could] equitable access to learning, opportunities for achievement, and the pursuit of excellence in all aspects of their educational programs” (Inclusive Education Canada, n.d.), there are a few solutions are planned under the pandemic condition. Firstly, all students will get a package of instructions via email stating all the steps they need to follow and set up for further online courses to proceed. Considering the different literacy levels of students, the package will describe in exact detail what software they need to use with the download links that direct them to the download page, how they can set up the account and join the classroom with the link, how they can participate in the online course; how can they finish the assignment or quizzes etc. The assistance will be available by email or phone call to help with the setup of the online learning session. The learning activities such as in-class discussions, presentations, and guest lecture Q&A could all deliver by software (such as Zoom or Microsoft Teams) to ensure the participation of the students. Online quizzes and assignments with corresponding deadlines will also be set up to assess that all learners successfully accept and understand the knowledge. Suppose the students do not have a stable internet connection, which does not allow them to participate in the real-time course and involves in the discussion. In that case, we will also prepare a video recording of the class to let them review and have a discussion forum to bring out the questions and obtain the answers from others (the discussion forum will be one of the assignments as well). For the in-class presentation, the learners can send their presentation video to the instructors to play in class if they cannot attend the course personally because of internet problems. The above design should be an excellent solution to ensure everyone can effectively continue studying with the course under unexpected situations.

References:

Inclusive Education Canada (n.d.). Right to Education – Inclusive Education, retrieved from: https://www.inclusiveeducation.ca/learn/right-to-education/

COMMENT ON WANQIN’S BLOG POST #3

Link to the post: https://wanqinjiang68.opened.ca/2023/06/08/blog-post-3/#comment-9

Hi Wanqin,

Thanks for sharing your excellent post! I agree and feel really connected about your idea in your post with mine; during the pandemic period, the face-to-face course will be moved from face-to-face to an online format, such as Zoom or Microsoft. As you mentioned, one of our learning activities is the in-class presentation, which requires the students to show up in class and present their ideas to others. These could be achieved by holding the Zoom meeting to let the students present their ideas anywhere remotely without contacting each other to increase the risk of getting sick. In my post, I stated the same idea as you that another activity in our blueprint – in-class discussion, could also be achieved by this format. The most significant benefit that online meeting software could bring to remote learning is that there are no location or time restrictions, which means everyone can participate in the real-time online class at any place or time, increasing the study design’s inclusiveness. Meanwhile, as you mentioned, the post-presentation quiz is a really effective way to assess whether the students listen carefully to others’ presentations. I feel online quizzes and assignments are actually two effective methods for testing the learning outcomes of the students through an online format.

Thanks,

Angel Liu