Hello Community,
I wanted to share an insightful experience I had recently, delving into the realm of asynchronous online Team-Based Learning (TBL). It’s fascinating how different educators navigate this space, as I encountered contrasting tales from two professors just last week.
The first encounter involved a group of TBL educators keen on integrating TBL into their online asynchronous classes. During a demo session, a few educators faced significant hurdles using their existing LMS. Engaging students in teams seemed almost impossible, leading to frustration and a sense of overwhelming challenge. Understandably, the online landscape can be daunting, especially when trying to foster teamwork asynchronously.
In contrast, the very next day, I participated in a workshop centered around peer evaluation. One educator (who was using InteDashboard) shared her experience of successfully engaging teams in online asynchronous classes. Despite teaching multiple classes with sizable teams, the struggle was minimal—only one team out of 20 encountered difficulties. Upon digging deeper, she revealed employing a structured approach, heavily scaffolding the initial weeks of the course. This method of easing students into the TBL model garnered positive feedback. The students felt a sense of closeness and camaraderie, turning a class of 50 into what felt like a tight-knit group of five.
The key takeaway was the significance of scaffolding—starting with low-stakes or ungraded assignments and gradually increasing complexity. This approach not only eased students into the TBL framework but also garnered enthusiastic responses from them. It’s heartening to witness success stories like these, especially in an era where institutions are increasingly shifting toward online environments.
Learning from these diverse experiences, I believe finding ways to make asynchronous teamwork effective holds immense importance. Active learning, particularly in asynchronous settings, remains a realm ripe for exploration and growth.
I’d love to hear your thoughts or experiences on navigating asynchronous online TBL. Is there anything we at InteDashboard can do to facilitate this? A workshop on Asynchronous Online TBL? A TBL simulator to guide students through a TBL process?
Kind regards,
Brian
Hi Bridgette