Editorial – Motivating students in online and hybrid learning – Tracy Zou
“The greatest challenge was finding the motivation to get out of bed and complete assignments. It’s not the same as getting up, getting ready, driving to class, then sitting in class to learn.” – a student response to a survey on undergraduates’ experiences during the Covid-19 pandemic (extracted from Means & Neisler, 2020)
Motivating students to learn is a task that many teachers strive to achieve. It is not surprising to find that this task becomes much more challenging in online and hybrid learning environments. According to a survey on student perceptions of remote teaching and learning conducted between May and June 2020 with 1,008 undergraduates in America, staying motivated to complete a course is the greatest challenge students faced in online learning settings.
When discussing student motivation in today’s context, it is important to address the complexities, noting that students need to manage various matters in their lives while attending classes. Some students’ home environment might not be conducive to learning. These factors have to be taken into consideration for the motivation strategy to be effective.
The current issue of Teaching and Learning Connections, Issue 13, focuses on motivating students in online and hybrid learning. We have collected four articles that introduce various means of motivating students. Moreover, we also include a special article featuring an interview with Dr. Susan Bridges, Director of the Centre for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning, about her views on leading the Centre and supporting colleagues during the turbulent times. Here is an introduction of each article:
1. Enhancing intercultural learning: A virtual classroom integrating teaching, learning, and research by Kara Loy (University of Calgary in Alberta Canada) and Payel C Mukherjee (Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology Delhi) presents the strategies to engage students in an intercultural virtual classroom. Teachers designed opportunities for students to practice and refine professional skills, collaborate with teachers and peers from an overseas university, and solve novel problems. Students found the learning experiences stimulating and rich.
2. Is immersive technology a practical means of engaging students in the new normal? by Wincy Chan provides a critical exploration on the use of immersive technology to engage students. After several cycles of experimentations in a Common Core course, The Science of Crime Investigation, the teacher shares the advantages and limitations of adopting immersive technology. At the end of the article, how the learning experiences can be further adapted to a hybrid environment with online and face-to-face components is discussed.
3. How to motivate students in an online learning environment: A personal reflection by Larry Baum shares and reflects on the teacher’s experiences of teaching a Common Core course “The Evolution of Civilization”. One strategy to motivate student was to run simple, interactive games, through which students gradually acquired the important concepts that enabled them to complete more challenging tasks.
4. The use of a simulation ward activity to enhance students’ intrinsic motivation by Veronica SF Lam and Quality & Safety Subcommittee discusses the design and implementation of a ‘Simulation Ward’ project to enhance nursing students’ intrinsic motivation. Students reported an increased confidence in providing care to real patients after participating in the simulation. Meanwhile, the project also provided learning opportunities for teachers.
5. Supporting colleagues’ professional development and strengthening the position as thought leaders – Interview with Dr. Susan Bridges, Director of the Centre for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning, the University of Hong Kong by Tracy Zou presents a conversation with Dr. Bridges who shares her vision for the Centre and plans for supporting colleagues’ professional development. Dr. Bridges assumed her directorship in July 2020, a critical period during which teaching and learning was being reshaped and colleagues required additional support for their teaching. Through the interview, Dr. Bridges suggests we embrace the opportunity to fundamentally reconsider the when, where and how of teaching and learning in higher education.
References
- Means, B., and Neisler, J., & Langer Research Associates. (2020). Suddenly Online: A National Survey of Undergraduates During the COVID-19 Pandemic. San Mateo, CA: Digital Promise.
