University West invests in hybrid teaching

-It has previously been difficult to create balance for the students who are present digitally, compared to those who are present physically on campus. We want to change this, so that it becomes an equal experience for those who attend digitally. In this way, we create greater flexibility for students who normally have difficulty participating in higher education, says Lars Johansson, head of the division Educational development and Study Counselling and sub-project manager in the infrastructure project for hybrid teaching.

Tell us about the infrastructure project you are working on!

-The infrastructure project creates the conditions needed for us to rebuild classrooms to handle hybrid teaching. It is about providing new and developed possibilities for what you can do in a classroom. Through the project we can create a greater digital presence in the regular classrooms. Hybrid teaching is not always the best alternative, but where pedagogy allows it, we want to offer the opportunity to participate on as equal terms as possible. We start with some programmes, so that we can then learn what we can improve.

Paulina Samuelsson, Head of the Student Union:
What do you think hybrid teaching will mean for the students?

-Hybrid teaching and more flexible studies is positive in many aspects. Students can participate at a distance if they cannot participate on campus. Students are not a homogeneous group, so I believe that hybrid teaching will have different meanings for the students.

The work with the infrastructure project is closely linked to the campus development that is currently underway at the university, and there is a particularly close connection to the sub-project "Learning environments".

-We now have a unique opportunity to test new ways of working and new technology before we move on to a larger scale of changing our learning environments in connection to the campus development project based on “Campus Plan 2030”. We want to create a campus where our students enjoy spending time, says Lars Johansson.

The pandemic has provided new experiences

Lars Johansson believes that our teaching and pedagogical leadership has changed during the pandemic. He points out that both teachers and students now have lots of digital experience.

- I think that our students will question when physical presence is required to a greater extent in the future. If we want to be an attractive university, we need to be able to offer a larger digital presence where it is pedagogically possible, it is an important experience that has come with the pandemic. We also work with accessibility at the university and hybrid teaching opens up for opportunities for more people.

Lars Johansson continues:

-We have expanded our digital competence, we have learned when digital is not enough. The general attitude towards digital participation has also changed, we now have greater knowledge and have become better at understanding the digital context.

-The future classroom will need a window to the outside world, and the outside world needs to be able to enter the classroom, he concludes.

Hybrid halls - the pilot project

Blurs the line between classroom and distance by:

• System with microphones that can pick up sound from the entire room.
• Ceiling speakers convey sound from students at a distance.
• A number of monitors with different purposes that the teacher can control to create a presence even for those who are not in the room.