As we look back on the past academic year at Junction we’ve seen similar effects through the data we’ve been analyzing – 4-8 minute attention spans, importance of peer support (synchronous and asynchronous) and the favorable effects of face-to-face instructor and peer interactions.
As colleges and universities look to embrace online learning, the role of face-to-face interaction cannot be ignored.
We couldn’t agree more. The richness of a guided, supported, learning journey which we’ve been employing for hundreds, if not thousands, of years isn’t something to be ignored simply because we’ve been innovative enough to build connected devices with glowing screens. The better question is how to meld the best of what we know with what is possible today without building a confusing, cluttered and distracting experience. Improving the student experience online to borrow the best of in-class instruction is what has driven us to selectively turn on features this such as in-app messaging using a familiar texting UI and virtual office hours using live webcams.
Today’s students have a six-to-ten minute attention span away from screens and devices, said James E. Ryan, dean of the Harvard Graduate School of Education
In blended and flipped classes, this implies more constructive time in lecture halls dissecting and probing issues, as a whole class or in small groups, striving towards reaching higher order Bloom’s levels.
To keep students engaged in learning, delivery methods must change and students must be encouraged to interact with the material and each other in ways that connect them to it.
This is critical, screens aren’t only an access point, but can be used to encourage both active and social learning which are known to have favorable impacts on retention. As a higher education industry we’re certainly getting there, but we need to do more faster.
Face-to-face interaction still important as higher ed shifts to digital
