Challenges of Teaching Live and Distance Audiences Simultaneously
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Stephen Scott Davis
Abstract
The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association (JAOA) encourages osteopathic physicians, faculty members and students at colleges of osteopathic medicine, and others within the health care professions to submit comments related to articles published in the JAOA and the mission of the osteopathic medical profession. The JAOA's editors are particularly interested in letters that discuss recently published original research.
Letters must be submitted online at http://www.osteopathic.org/JAOAsubmit. Letters to the editor are considered for publication in the JAOA with the understanding that they have not been published elsewhere and are not simultaneously under consideration by any other publication. All accepted letters to the editor are subject to editing and abridgment.
Although the JAOA welcomes letters to the editor, these contributions have a lower publication priority than other submissions. As a consequence, letters are published only when space allows.
To the Editor:
The Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine (OU-HCOM) recently opened an extension campus in Dublin; a second in Cleveland will open for the 2015-2016 academic year. The goal of OU-HCOM is to provide a transformative educational experience equally for the main campus and 2 extension campuses, and this goal largely focuses on videoconferencing technology. For our faculty who must now attend to 3 geographically separate audiences, we call it "the new reality" of teaching.
Videoconferencing at OU-HCOM is primarily used for medical education through classroom lectures—still the crux of the first 2 years of medical school. Whereas technological innovations can accommodate multiple locations, they exacerbate 4 interrelated challenges: classroom attendance, learner-centered education, videoconference teaching, and faculty development.
Classroom attendance for lectures is not required. Because audio and video recordings are available online, many students elect to attend lectures online only, where they can jump to any part of the recording, rewind, and control the speed. However, online lectures may be less engaging.
In addition to lower attendance rates, engaging students is now more difficult for faculty because of higher student numbers and the challenges of simultaneous live and videoconference teaching. Many faculty now choose a more traditional style of lecture instead of a more engaging learner-centered strategy supported by educational and cognitive science literature.1-4
Teaching a large lecture hall full of students is an art, as is teaching distant audiences. Distance education requires mastering new skills, including the following5:
■ engaging live and remote audiences simultaneously
■ making eye contact with the remote audience by looking at the camera
■ staying in camera view range
■ identifying and knowing remote participants
■ being cognizant of millisecond speaking delays, reliance on microphones, and remote room configurations
We have worked hard to orient OU-HCOM faculty to technological innovations. Although our efforts have been useful, they are often simulated without the fidelity of the actual experience. Faculty development must evolve to address these challenges and identify the best learner-centered teaching practices for live and distance audiences.
One strategy OU-HCOM is exploring is the use of remote site classroom faculty to coordinate with the primary instructor and help with activities, handouts, and unique instructions. We have also developed frequently asked questions and checklists for faculty regarding videoconferencing technology.6-8
As technology, new delivery models, and the philosophy of teaching and learning continue to evolve, colleges of osteopathic medicine must collaborate to answer such questions as:
■ How do new teaching modalities, such as the fipped classroom (ie, using the classroom for engaging activities based on learning before and outside of class), effect the new reality of teaching?
■ How can one engage both live and remote students effectively?
■ How can colleges of osteopathic medicine engage busy faculty members mastering new teaching skills needed for success in this changing environment?
It is incumbent on all educators to help each other in the new reality of teaching through research on best practices, participation in national conferences, and continued dialogue on this important topic. We realize the challenge of effectively teaching live and distant audiences simultaneously is a marathon and not a sprint, and we recommend that educators include this topic as an ongoing agenda item for future medical education meetings. (doi:10.7556/jaoa.2015.038)
References
1. Bransford J ,BrownA,CockingR, eds. How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience, and School. Washington, DC: National Academies Press;2000. http://cft.vanderbilt.edu/guides-sub-pages/how-people-learn/. Accessed February 23, 2015.Search in Google Scholar
2. Madina J . Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School. Seattle, WA: Pear Press;2008.Search in Google Scholar
3. Caine RN ,CaineG. Making Connections: Teaching and the Human Brain. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development;1991.Search in Google Scholar
4. Weimer M . Leaning-Centered Teaching: Five Key Changes to Practice. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass;2002.Search in Google Scholar
5. Andrews T ,KleaseG. Challenges of multisite video conferencing: the development of an alternative teaching/learning model.Aust J Educ Technol.1998;14(2):88-97. http://www.ascilite.org.au/ajet/ajet14/andrews.html. Accessed February 23, 2015.10.14742/ajet.1902Search in Google Scholar
6. Angelo TA ,CrossKP. Classroom Assessment Techniques: A Handbook for College Teachers. 2nd ed. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass;1993.Search in Google Scholar
7. Barkley EF . Student Engagement Techniques: A Handbook for College Faculty. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass;2010.Search in Google Scholar
8. McKeachie W ,SvinickiM. Teaching Tips: Strategies, Research, and Theory for College and University Teachers. 14th ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning;2014.Search in Google Scholar
© 2015 American Osteopathic Association
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Articles in the same Issue
- EDITORIAL
- The JAOA: Growing, Changing, Improving
- Transitions in Osteopathic Medical Education
- IN MY VIEW
- A Structural Examination of Medical Education Reform
- MEDICAL EDUCATION
- New Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine, Branch Campuses, and Additional Locations—What Is the Difference?
- IN MY VIEW
- Single Accreditation System: Opportunity and Duty to Promote Osteopathic Training for All Interested Residency Programs
- The CAST Model: Enhancing Medical Student and Resident Clinical Performance Through Feedback
- LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
- Challenges of Teaching Live and Distance Audiences Simultaneously
- MEDICAL EDUCATION
- Comparison of COMLEX-USA Scores, Medical School Performance, and Preadmission Variables Between Women and Men
- Developing Technology-Enhanced Active Learning for Medical Education: Challenges, Solutions, and Future Directions
- Innovative Approach to Teaching Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine: The Integration of Ultrasonography
- Relationship Between Residency Placement and Clerkship Site Enrollment: A Retrospective Analysis
- Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination-USA Level 1 and Level 2-Cognitive Evaluation Preparation and Outcomes
- International Medical Graduates in the US Physician Workforce
- The Single Graduate Medical Education Accreditation System
- Osteopathic Postdoctoral Training Institutions' 2014 Annual Report
- Evolution of AOA Specialty Board Certification
- APPENDIX
- Appendix 1: Osteopathic Graduate Medical Education, 2015
- Appendix 2: American Osteopathic Association Specialty Board Certification
- Appendix 3: Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine
- CLINICAL IMAGES
- Large Paraesophageal Hiatal Hernia in a Patient With Chest Pain
Articles in the same Issue
- EDITORIAL
- The JAOA: Growing, Changing, Improving
- Transitions in Osteopathic Medical Education
- IN MY VIEW
- A Structural Examination of Medical Education Reform
- MEDICAL EDUCATION
- New Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine, Branch Campuses, and Additional Locations—What Is the Difference?
- IN MY VIEW
- Single Accreditation System: Opportunity and Duty to Promote Osteopathic Training for All Interested Residency Programs
- The CAST Model: Enhancing Medical Student and Resident Clinical Performance Through Feedback
- LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
- Challenges of Teaching Live and Distance Audiences Simultaneously
- MEDICAL EDUCATION
- Comparison of COMLEX-USA Scores, Medical School Performance, and Preadmission Variables Between Women and Men
- Developing Technology-Enhanced Active Learning for Medical Education: Challenges, Solutions, and Future Directions
- Innovative Approach to Teaching Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine: The Integration of Ultrasonography
- Relationship Between Residency Placement and Clerkship Site Enrollment: A Retrospective Analysis
- Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination-USA Level 1 and Level 2-Cognitive Evaluation Preparation and Outcomes
- International Medical Graduates in the US Physician Workforce
- The Single Graduate Medical Education Accreditation System
- Osteopathic Postdoctoral Training Institutions' 2014 Annual Report
- Evolution of AOA Specialty Board Certification
- APPENDIX
- Appendix 1: Osteopathic Graduate Medical Education, 2015
- Appendix 2: American Osteopathic Association Specialty Board Certification
- Appendix 3: Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine
- CLINICAL IMAGES
- Large Paraesophageal Hiatal Hernia in a Patient With Chest Pain
