The HyFlex Teaching Modality was first conceived by Ja Ne’t Rommero, Psy.D., administrative faculty in Pacific Oaks’ Department of Academic Affairs, in response to students struggling with a return to in-person classes after a COVID-19 pandemic.
“We wanted to figure out a better way to serve our students who have families to take care of at home, who come from marginalized communities, or who were frontline workers,” Dr. Rommero says. “We wanted students be able to maintain responsibilities they may have elsewhere while still feeling engaged in courses, whether they were in the classroom or online.”
Dr. Rommero created and tested a pilot of the new approach in her own classes. When it showed positive results, she set to work helping her fellow faculty members implement the modality. The model uses Zoom throughout the duration of the class for all participating teachers and students. This allows everyone to remain face to face with anyone speaking.
To enhance accessibility, the college loans out laptops to students who need them. Faculty provide transcripts and captions of online classes and keep students up to date on all class materials and announcements. The increased flexibility and blended format of online and classroom learning provides additional support for more learners.
“Students can decide, even at the last minute, if they’re going to participate from home or in the classroom, allowing them to make their learning needs at all times,” Dr. Rommero says. “And we’re observing that overall, they’re showing strong improvement in their work.”
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