Abstract

• Given the current development of the pandemic, the new normal for education is likely to be more virtual or a mix of online and in-person classes (known as hybrid teaching). With the travel restrictions still in place, international conferences may also go virtual where local participants join physically, and overseas participants join online.
• Currently, all communal classrooms at the University are equipped with webcam and software that support hybrid teaching. However, as the webcam is fixed in the computer of the classroom and cannot be moved around easily, it can only capture a teacher’s image at certain angle. Students who want to speak up in class need to use their notebook/smartphone to join the ZOOM meeting at the same time so that students on ZOOM can hear them, and this can only be done if students bring their own devices.
• To better support new teaching modes such as hybrid teaching during and after COVID-19, this project proposes to upgrade a total of 9 classrooms/ lecture theaters (LT) for pilot and demonstration purposes. Survey of the performance and usage of the equipment will be done after the installation to collect user feedback and make recommendation to the University on future classroom/LT designs.

Brief write-up

Project objectives

Given the COVID-19 pandemic, the new normal for education is likely to be more virtual or a mix of online and in-person classes (known as hybrid teaching). To better support new teaching modes such as hybrid teaching during and after COVID-19, this project has upgraded 9 classrooms/ lecture theaters (LT) in CUHK for pilot and demonstration purposes.

Activities, process and outcomes

• 9 communal classrooms/LTs were identified to be suitable for the pilot test in April 2021.
• Ceiling microphones and tracking cameras were installed in these classrooms by August 2021.
• A demonstration of the upgraded facilities has been conducted by the Centre for Learning Enhancement And Research (CLEAR) in one of the upgraded classrooms in late August 2021.
• Workshops have been conducted in Term 1 & 2 of 2021-22 to share tips on hybrid and online teaching.
• Survey and interviews have been conducted with teachers to gather their feedback on hybrid teaching and the upgraded facilities.

Deliverables and evaluation

• 9 classrooms / LTs have been equipped with the upgraded facilities for supporting hybrid teaching.
• Evaluation reports have been drafted to evaluate teacher feedback on hybrid teaching and the upgraded facilities based on survey and interviews.

Dissemination, diffusion, impact and sharing of good practices

• An instruction manual of the new facilities and a brief introduction of the new AV systems have been created by the Audio Visual Services Unit (AVSU) on its website.
• Workshops have been conducted to demonstrate the new facilities and to share tips on hybrid and online teaching.
• One of the project’s PI (Prof. Paul Lam) spoke at a joint-university seminar on Hybrid Teaching and Learning to share about the upgraded facilities provided by this project.

Impact on teaching and learning

It is likely that there will still be a demand for improved equipment such as ceiling microphone and tracking camera in the post-pandemic era to support new teaching modes and pedagogies. These facilities will improve CUHK’s readiness to respond to future emergencies.

Video Report

Please click the following link for viewing the report.
https://cuhk.ap.panopto.com/Panopto/Pages/Viewer.aspx?id=cf1cc9b9-f1a5-47a2-913e-b12200b2de19