Abstract
Transparency in Learning and Teaching (TILT) is an initiative focused on making the learning process simple and clear, which allows equitable access for all students irrespective of their race and social background. The application of TILT to various disciplines and each course in a discipline can be challenging due to the variabilities in course delivery modality, student learning outcomes, content delivered, etc. Therefore, it is important to study the application of TILT in various settings and study the success. This chapter discusses applying TILT framework in a general business course in a small university for multiple modalities. The effectiveness of implementing TILT in terms of student confidence and student success is discussed in this chapter for different course modalities. When TILT framework is applied in instructional design for different modalities, the impact on student performance, confidence, and choice of learning strategies is further studied.
TopBackground
In fall 2019, 37.2% of all higher education enrolled students were taking at least one distance education course (U.S. Department of Education, 2020). In the Fall semester of 2020, 72.8% of the enrolled students selected one or more distance education classes despite the overall number of enrollments in universities and colleges decreased in the 2020 Fall semester compared to 2019 (U.S. Department of Education, 2021). As a result of canceling the in-person classes due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many universities transitioned to a virtual, online delivery modality in 2020 (Gallagher & Palmer, 2020). Some universities responded to the pandemic with rapid curriculum redevelopment for fully online offerings (Crawford et al. 2020). In addition to the traditional college and university education, the interest in online learning with EdTech platforms has increased as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The increase in non-traditional online learning is proportional across higher- and lower-income neighborhoods and neighborhoods with a high and low percentage of African American residents (Kizilcec et al. 2021). The students choose distance education as an alternative to the traditional face-to-face courses, increasingly.
The students choose face-to-face mode over online courses due to reasons such as face-to-face classes are convenient for on-campus schedule, belief that they learn better through face-to-face instruction, preference of connecting or working with peers in face-to-face classes, and a perception that online classes are more difficult (Harris & Martin, 2012). Students choose online courses over face-to-face mode due to reasons including the flexibility of online courses that let students study in their schedule, ability to study without commuting to a campus, ability to study while keeping a job or meeting family obligations, and time conflicts with in-person classes (Harris & Martin, 2012).
However, properly planned online learning courses differ from courses transitioned to online courses (Hodges et al. 2020). The “emergency remote learning” courses that transitioned to online modality during this pandemic lack quality or effective online learning compared to the properly planned counterparts. Effective online learning is a byproduct of cautious design and planning of instruction with the application of an organized model for designing and developing instruction (Branch & Dousay, 2015).
Key Terms in this Chapter
Business Education: Business education involves teaching students the fundamentals, theories, and processes of business. Education in this field occurs at several levels, including secondary education and higher education or university education.
Face-to-Face Delivery: Instructor and students are present in the classroom/laboratory each class meeting according to the course schedule indicated days, times and locations.
Online Teaching: Learners and the instructor do not meet at a specific time or day (i.e., asynchronous/not in real time). Instruction is available online, where students find content, assignments, schedules, and structured opportunities for students to interact with peers online.
Hybrid Teaching: Instruction is delivered as a combination of online and some mandatory scheduled in person meeting times on campus.
Flipped Class: Students review materials (e.g., recorded lectures, topic-related videos, readings) prior to the face-to-face meeting. During the face-to-face time, students are engaged in learning activities directed by the instructor.
Transparency in Learning and Teaching (TILT): Represents a pedagogical strategy encompassing a three stage-dimension framework consisting of (1) purpose—why we assign specific work to our students, (2) task—what we want them to do, and (3) criteria—how do we want to evaluate them. The instructors are required to make small adjustments to their course activities to significantly improve the entire learning processes of their students resulting in better student performances, graduation completion, and retention rates.
Delivery Modality: The way in which educational content is conveyed from instructor to students. There are three primary course delivery methods: Face-to-face delivery, hybrid delivery, and online delivery.
Instructional Design: Creation of learning experiences and materials in a manner that results in the acquisition and application of knowledge and skills. The discipline follows a system of assessing needs, designing a process, developing materials, and evaluating their effectiveness.