2 sections of the same course, one synchronous, one asynchronous. Tips?

[mythbuster]

My approach was to flip my courses. I made narrated videos of my usual Powerpoint lectures. These were posted for asynchronous viewing. Then I had a planned discussion or activity for our synchronous zoom sessions. You likely could set up something similar with your synchronous session using the asynchronous material.
   The single most critical thing that I learned the hard way doing this is that you have some way to force students to watch said videos (or do the reading etc) in advance of the discussion. I honestly should have seen this coming. I ended up redoing much of my schedule about 1/3 of the way through the semester as a result of too many dead air discussion where it was clear that no one had even heard of the terms I was using. Now students take the weekly quiz before the discussion section and we have actual questions to talk about regarding the material.
   I'm pondering now how to encourage more than just the usual 2-3 students to participate. My classes are too large for me to easily keep track of who is speaking midstream, so participation points are not really feasible in that sense.

[the_geneticist]

My approach was to flip my courses. I made narrated videos of my usual Powerpoint lectures. These were posted for asynchronous viewing. Then I had a planned discussion or activity for our synchronous zoom sessions. You likely could set up something similar with your synchronous session using the asynchronous material.
   The single most critical thing that I learned the hard way doing this is that you have some way to force students to watch said videos (or do the reading etc) in advance of the discussion. I honestly should have seen this coming. I ended up redoing much of my schedule about 1/3 of the way through the semester as a result of too many dead air discussion where it was clear that no one had even heard of the terms I was using. Now students take the weekly quiz before the discussion section and we have actual questions to talk about regarding the material.
   I'm pondering now how to encourage more than just the usual 2-3 students to participate. My classes are too large for me to easily keep track of who is speaking midstream, so participation points are not really feasible in that sense.

Could you have an assignment related to the discussion that appears during discussion?  Or use Google Drive or similar shared document to see who has contributed to a brainstorm/list/etc?  One of my colleagues has tried using PollEverywhere during classes and it mostly works well to get responses.
I use the "Learning Module" feature in Blackboard to enforce "you have to at least open the reading before you take the quiz". 

[Dismal]

I think the key to using some of the asynchronous content for the synchronous class is to record the pre-recorded stuff in smaller chunks. Having the synchronous students watch entire asynchronous lectures before their own class is just too much screen time. 

[mleok]

I think the key to using some of the asynchronous content for the synchronous class is to record the pre-recorded stuff in smaller chunks. Having the synchronous students watch entire asynchronous lectures before their own class is just too much screen time.

I prerecord my lectures in front of a whiteboard. If they were delivered in person, the lectures would be 80 minutes long, twice a week, but I have been recording lecture segments that total about 60 minutes per lecture, and some of my colleagues have been recording lectures that are as short as half the in-class time as we don't have to recap the material or stop to answer questions, not to mention the faster decay in attention span for online lectures. The shorter segments make it easier for students to rewatch the segment if they're having difficulty with the material.

[FishProf]

Would it count as Synchronous if I take my already recorded (for asynchronous course, natch), and play them for the class at the appointed synchronous time?

I'd like to offer an argument for why that isn't OK, but I got nothing.

[downer]

Would it count as Synchronous if I take my already recorded (for asynchronous course, natch), and play them for the class at the appointed synchronous time?

I'd like to offer an argument for why that isn't OK, but I got nothing.

I agree that the only real point of doing synchronous is if it involves students participating. If it is just the prof lecturing, play a video, or make slides with audio available.

Some people are saying that students want synchronous classes. If they do, then they need to be ready to be active in them.

[kiana]

Some people are saying that students want synchronous classes. If they do, then they need to be ready to be active in them.

And yet students keep telling our scheduling committee that they want sync classes, registering for them in preference to async, and then not. doing. stuff.

*bang* *bang* *bang*

[the_geneticist]

Some people are saying that students want synchronous classes. If they do, then they need to be ready to be active in them.

And yet students keep telling our scheduling committee that they want sync classes, registering for them in preference to async, and then not. doing. stuff.

*bang* *bang* *bang*

Our students want the best of both worlds.  They want the "flexibility" from the asynchronous classes, but they also want the interaction from synchronous classes.  They hate that asynchronous classes means they are likely to miss deadlines, but they also hate having a synchronous class where it's just a Zoom screen of black boxes where no one is willing to talk.
Students - you have to PICK!  Either you go to class and participate or you have to be more responsible with your time.

[marshwiggle]

Some people are saying that students want synchronous classes. If they do, then they need to be ready to be active in them.

And yet students keep telling our scheduling committee that they want sync classes, registering for them in preference to async, and then not. doing. stuff.

*bang* *bang* *bang*

My guess it that at least some of them think that beign synchronous means that they will hear about everything like in a normal face-to-face class, whereas in an asynchronous course they have to open each document (or whatever) and go through it. Even the ones that may not* be necessary.

(If you stand in front of a firehose to get clean, it's the firehose's fault if you don't. If you take a shower, you have to use soap, shampoo, and do a whole bunch of complicated stuff.)


*THEY WON'T TELL US WHICH ONES ARE ON THE EXAM!!!!

[mythbuster]

I also think many are relying on those few good students who ask all the questions in the synchronous sessions. I have had several Zoom sessions that are review the day before the exam. They can come with questions but I tell them in advance that I do not prepare some grand overview- it's all about their questions. I have had large groups of students show up with no questions at all- they are waiting for others to do the work for them. So I sit ane answer my emails while the Zoom is open, unless someone asks a question

[Anon1787]

Would it count as Synchronous if I take my already recorded (for asynchronous course, natch), and play them for the class at the appointed synchronous time?

I'd like to offer an argument for why that isn't OK, but I got nothing.

I don't see why not either, especially when it is so difficult to get students to watch videos prior to class. My recorded lectures also seamlessly incorporate other materials. So what about a combination of recorded lecture material with pauses for questions and brief activities?

[AvidReader]

I don't see why not either, especially when it is so difficult to get students to watch videos prior to class. My recorded lectures also seamlessly incorporate other materials. So what about a combination of recorded lecture material with pauses for questions and brief activities?

My courses this semester were basically hybrid: half the class in person each day, with students making up the other half of the material from videos and online work. My plan was to run the in-person sessions as workshops building on the lectures, but most students would show up not having done the reading and not having watched the videos. In the spring, I will be adding short (3-5 question) quizzes about every video (I'll be able to re-use most of them). It is silly and pedantic, but I don't have time to give them all of that information without the videos, and being able to give in-person feedback in a timely manner is much more valuable than lecturing at them.

AR.