A scaffolded structured approach for efficient transition to online small group teaching

Abstract

Responding to social distancing guidelines, as a result of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, small group teachers in the University of British Columbia's Undergraduate Medical Programme were required to transition from face to face small group teaching to a synchronous, online format within days. To do this effectively, teachers needed to simultaneously master new technological skills, respond to altered group dynamics and ensure that learning objectives were met. In the context of a Distributed Medical Education programme, this was a daunting task, with approximately 125 faculty members teaching 576 learners across small group contexts at four sites making the transition simultaneously. Our goal was to support faculty members to optimise learning in virtual spaces within the short time frame. We utilised a constructivist framework, whereby we built upon faculty members' existing facilitation and teaching skills and highlighted their transferability. To avoid time constraints and the inability of any one group to provide comprehensive support and training, we created a collaborative structured approach to scaffold teacher training with our offices of Educational Technology, Faculty Development and course leadership. The challenges faced involved navigating different training processes with overlapping areas of expertise between the groups and to identify and fill gaps in virtual teacher support. We balanced these priorities by aligning our groups from both the operational and strategic levels of our units to organise and implement the following supports: ‘Pre-session training’ held before the first session, which served as a practice session by using the same platform teachers would use with students. ‘Post-session debriefs,’ which focused on mutual sharing of experiences, questions and answers and suggestions from faculty members and support groups. ‘Ongoing drop-in sessions’ offered daily, which provided individualised support, until issues raised reached saturation. A summary was iteratively shared with teachers. Success was achieved by implementing improvements after each session. The collaborative approach avoided confusion related to dissociated and siloed support by enabling teachers to ask questions of any group in the same virtual space. Virtual environments require teachers to shift their role and presence; by collectively supporting and strategising teachers’ shifting teaching approaches, a sense of confidence and connectedness was built.1 We learned that addressing technological and platform challenges in ‘pre-session training’ enabled teachers to then focus on the more nuanced aspects of teaching online. Fielding problems experienced by teachers and then focusing on sharing experiences with each other in ‘post-session debriefs,’ created a sense of community and peer support. Providing opportunities to pitch questions back to the group often led to relevant strategies and suggestions that were grounded in lived experience. This format engaged teachers to co-construct lessons learned through validating each others' new approaches to teaching and building upon their existing skills. Having early and frequent discussions with collaborating groups, at both operational and strategic levels, enabled a cohesive approach whereby roles and responsibilities were clearly defined. This enabled us to provide efficient and effective support to teaching faculty members. Though this scaffolded, structured and collaborative approach was born of urgency and necessity, it may also be efficient for, and promote community in, other situations that shift the presence of the teacher.