Instruction Mode: Definitions & Examples

Use when all class instruction and activities are offered or occur in-person and no activities are recorded or streamed. Students must come to campus or to another in-person site to participate.

• Instructors can use UB Learns to provide a variety of elements such as the course syllabus and schedule, access to course and assignment content, a consistent process for assignment submissions, etc. 
• These elements have multiple options, including timed release, the ability to hide content until an emergency week prevents students from attending class, etc.

• An instructor lectures to students in a classroom for all class meetings. 
• Students in a clinical internship go to a medical clinic to complete all required activities.

Use when class instruction and activities include both required in-person and remote activities.

• A class requiring students to attend all lectures in person that includes the use of UB Learns is coded as In Person (P), not Hybrid.

• Students may meet with an instructor at predetermined intervals (e.g., once per week, once per month, three times per semester) and otherwise complete course elements remotely.
• Students complete some laboratory exercises in a science lab on campus and participate in instruction and discussion via Zoom or within UB Learns for remote video instruction and interactive discussion via course tools.

Use when class instruction and activities occur on campus (in person) and are also live-streamed and/or recorded. Students can choose, on any given day, to participate in each class activity in person or remotely. Remote activities may require synchronous participation.

• This is a technologically complex delivery model requiring a classroom equipped for video and audio live streaming, including live captioning. 
• In cases where large groups of students are expected to participate remotely, classroom equipment should include a very large monitor to ensure the instructor and students can communicate effectively verbally and non-verbally with classmates. 
• Faculty choosing this option should have a high comfort level with utilizing classroom technology and facilitating multiple venues of student participation.

• The instructor is in class and may have students present. Coursework is delivered synchronously, and students who elect to complete coursework remotely are expected to be present and actively participate with the instructor and class.
• An instructor gives a lecture live to some students who are physically present, while streaming the lecture live to participants. The instructor also chooses to record the session for additional students who are unable to attend class at the scheduled time. This instructor will likely supplement this instruction with an additional session fully remote via Zoom or seek interaction via a UB Learns discussion board tool.

Use when all class instruction and activities are offered remotely except for exams/final presentations, which students are required to attend on campus and in person. Students may be required to participate in some class activities at specific times remotely (synchronously).

• In-person exams could be held on campus or in accredited testing centers around the country. However, faculty should be mindful that using testing centers are expensive and can place a financial burden on students.

• Faculty and students interact remotely for all instruction and activities. Students will go to a testing center or come to campus for exams.

Use when all class instruction and activities are offered remotely with no in-person requirements. Students are required to participate in all class activities at specified class times. Activities are not recorded or otherwise available on demand.

• Although instruction occurs in real-time, there are likely additional components (e.g., readings, assignments, assessments, etc.) completed on the student’s own time, asynchronously. 
• Not all students may be living in the same time zone as the instructor. Students who are geographically far from campus might be forced to attend lectures at extremely unusual hours, which could affect their ability to learn. 
• Faculty should have an alternate plan (e.g., recorded instruction, lab experiment, etc.) in the event of technical issues to ensure progress toward learning outcomes stays on pace. 
• When live instruction is available and preferred, consider delivering direct instruction to the class at the beginning of the session and then shifting to breakout rooms for small-group interaction on specific questions.

• Remote class sessions occur on the same day and time each week while students access required materials via UB Learns before or after synchronous meetings.
• During synchronous meetings, the instructor lectures, models or instructs on course content and includes components for interaction (e.g., chat, discussions, breakout rooms, etc.).

Use when all class instruction and activities are offered remotely with no in-person requirements. Students are required to participate in some class activities at specific times remotely. Other class activities may be recorded or made available on demand at any time.

• Synchronous participation and attendance are encouraged but not mandatory.
• Consider alternate assignments designed for students who are unable to connect due to work or time zone issues.
• Peer review using an instructor-created rubric is an alternative assessment tool that works well in this mode.

• Students can choose to attend sessions via Zoom or Webex. If students are unable to attend, the instructor records sessions for on-demand review.
• Additional course content may be recorded using Panopto and posted to a UB Learns course.

Use when all class instruction and activities are offered remotely with no in-person requirements. All activities are recorded and are accessible on demand. There are no requirements for synchronous participation.

• Although sessions are not required, instructors may offer synchronous meetings, such as open office hours using Zoom, Webex or Jabber. 
• Self-directed learners are best suited for fully remote experiences. 
• To ensure your students remain engaged, consider recording weekly summaries of what happened across the class in the previous week. 
• Ensure your assignments are due on the same day and at the same time each week to minimize confusion. 
• Ask students to post a video introduction in a discussion board. Outline the key areas you want them to include in their introduction to make it easier for students to get to know classmates.
• When the class is large, use settings within UB Learns to allow all students to see core instructional material and then create small groups to offer support, interaction and accountability.

• Students access weekly modules in UB Learns that provide all necessary instruction. These may include instructor-led videos, readings, formative assessment, activities, discussion boards, assignments, etc.
• A remote learning community is strategically built through asynchronous interactions (e.g., discussion board, wiki project, peer review, group work).
• Students independently watch videos and complete homework. They might be asked to respond to a question and discuss via a discussion board, open-ended questions or short papers. Utilizing small groups assists in building your learning community and reduces some of the instructional load of keeping the class engaged.