Abstract:

Located in the state of Ohio, USA, Bowling Green State University (BGSU) hosts the Career Tech Workforce Education (CTWE) program. This program offers the coursework required for professionals from diverse industries who do not hold education degrees to obtain a Career Technical Workforce Development (CTWD) teaching license. Implemented in 2013, coursework for individuals seeking a CTWD teaching license was designed for an online environment to best serve individuals from all areas of the state (approximately 44,826 square miles or 116,098 sq km). For visual reference, Ohio is a comparable size to Iceland. The BGSU Career Tech Workforce Education program employs 4 full-time faculty members responsible for all aspects of the CTWD licensure program. In addition, eleven part-time University Career Tech Mentors (UCTM) are also employed by BGSU to help with required classroom observations of teachers enrolled in the CTWE coursework.

The Ohio Department of Education and Workforce (ODEW) provides grant funds to universities offering the required coursework for the CTWD teaching license. The BGSU program has operated as a 100% online environment until the 2024 academic year when the state grant funding model was changed to require coursework be presented in face-to-face or blended learning environments. A major challenge of integrating blended learning requirements into the program is the need to travel long distances to attend in-person sessions. BGSU is in the northernmost part of the state and would require teachers to travel anywhere between 5 to 250 miles (8 km to 420 km) to attend sessions on campus. Off campus sessions would also pose a travel challenge as faculty members would need to travel throughout Ohio to conduct face-to-face sessions.

An additional challenge was to continue to offer coursework in the flexible online format that meets the needs of full-time teachers yet design face-to-face opportunities that enhance professional support beyond the scope of online instruction. After much discussion and research, a creative approach to meeting in face-to-face sessions with over 225 teachers located throughout the state was designed. Partnerships with various school districts were developed to host the sessions in 6 distinct locations. Eighteen sessions each semester (36 sessions for the academic year) were held in 6 different locations across the state. Faculty, UCTMs, and district partners were utilized to facilitate the in-person sessions. This presentation will discuss the development of monthly face-to-face sessions in 6 separate locations throughout the state, the hiring of facilitators for each location, design of the sessions, course requirements for attendance, and student feedback regarding the benefits and suggestions for improvement of the sessions.

Keywords:

Online, Blended Learning, Hybrid Learning, Career Technical Education, Vocational Education.