Abstract:

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, the demand for online learning has increased in post-secondary education (Coffey, 2023). Post COVID-19, students want more flexibility in how they learn (Kohnke & Moorhouse, 2022). As a result, the hyflex approach has emerged as a popular option (Lightner & Lightner-Laws, 2024). Although the hyflex format is not new (see: Beatty, 2019) – it appeared to gain popularity as a result of the global need for education systems to become resilient and adaptable in the face of polycrisis (see: Homer-Dixon & Rockström, 2022). Limited research to date has been conducted on the use of the hyflex model in post-secondary education (Wong et al., 2023). As a result, our research team designed four hyflex courses and examined the affordances, challenges and promising practices related to the hyflex structure in post-secondary education. The theoretical framework informing the design of the study is Garrison et al.’s (2000) Community of Inquiry.

Methodologically, our work is Participatory Action Research oriented (Kemmis & McTaggart, 2007). We are also using a Design-Based Research (DBR) approach in the design and study of the hyflex courses (Barab & Squire, 2004). DBR is an iterative approach to research conducted in a naturalistic setting that employs an intervention and is collaborative and responsive in its design and implementation (McKenney & Reeves, 2019). Data collection included researcher-participant field notes, written reflections, and video-recorded debriefs. Thematic coding and analysis were used to analyze the data (Creswell, 2007).

In the fall 2023 term, we conducted the first iteration of our research with two different courses: Problem and Inquiry-Based Learning and Foundations of Learning. We conducted a second iteration in the winter 2024 term based on some of the lessons learned from iteration one. Preliminary analysis of our data from these first and second iterations revealed the following in terms of the hyflex model’s affordances and constraints. One of the main affordances of the hyflex model was flexibility. Students moved seamlessly between the in-person and online options depending on their week-to-week circumstances (illness, travel, weather constraints). However, the challenges outweighed the affordances. The most frequent challenges included technological and pedagogical challenges. For example, audio issues were the most common and problematic tech issues. Another pedagogical challenge was ensuring a "mode-neutral" experience (Smith & Reed, 2010) where neither on-site nor online students were given priority over the other. An in-depth exploration of the affordances and challenges revealed from this research, in addition to an overview of the next steps in course design for the subsequent iterations and promising practice recommendations, will be discussed.

Keywords:

Technology, education, hyflex, hybrid, higher education.