Hybridization and interactivity

Initial situation

The training was set up with the objective of allowing professionally active people to follow a training course at their own pace and offering a great deal of freedom in their work organization. The target audience of the training is therefore very diverse (teachers, museum volunteers, etc.) in terms of their activities as well as their sensitivity and age. There was therefore a desire on the part of those in charge of the training to offer a flexible and adaptable training to respond to the heterogeneity of the learning public.

After the first edition of the first CAS module in 2011, those in charge of the courses noted from the students’ evaluations that the latter complained about not having enough guidelines for the end-of-module work. It was therefore necessary to find a solution that would both meet the expectations of the students in terms of guidelines and maintain a training program that was flexible enough to accommodate their diversity.

Project implementation

The project is based on the design of the course, which is structured in a hybrid format, alternating between one day of classroom training and six weeks of distance learning.

The CAS is composed of 3 modules of 12 weeks each, spread over a cycle of 3 semesters for a total of 12 ECTS credits. Each module consists of 3 days of face-to-face teaching and 12 weeks of distance learning including courses, activities, documentary resources, group work and personalized tutoring. A significant amount of personal and collaborative work is required from each participant. Each module is evaluated by assignments to be handed in during the 12-week course and a final written or oral assignment (4 credits per module).

The objectives of the continuing education certificate “Classical Archaeology: An Introduction” are to introduce participants to the so-called classical cultures (Greek and Roman antiquity) and to understand the influence of classical archaeology on daily life and European thought from the 16th century onwardsème . It also provides basic knowledge of the material culture of Greek and Roman civilizations, as well as observation, description and analysis skills that are transferable to professional practice.

The training begins with a one-day meeting in Geneva to create a group cohesion. A coffee break is planned to encourage socialization and exchanges during the first meetings. This welcome allows the participants to get to know each other and to discover the tools that will be used during the training. One of the activities of this day is to connect to Moodle, form pairs and exchange on the Moodle forum provided for this purpose. The learners become familiar with the tools, which will reduce their resistance during the distance learning periods.

This day is followed by 6 weeks of distance learning with various activities. Learners have individual and group assignments. The activity is very varied: written work to be handed in individually, joint writing on a theme, viewing videos of teacher presentations and answering quizzes, group comments on the work of other groups, readings, series of questions and debates on the forum, and also the writing of a chapter on the biography of various characters and their contribution to archaeology in the form of a wiki. This type of varied activities are set up for all the periods at a distance, encouraging the participation and the commitment of the participants while leaving them free to organize the activities according to their agendas.

After the first period of distance learning, a second day of face-to-face classes is organized and is devoted to courses that are given in person by the teachers of the discipline and external experts. Museum visits also take place. Work on the collections is initiated in groups. Participants are asked to form pairs and choose an object to present to the others. For the second distance session, in addition to activities similar to the first phase, the groups will have to prepare presentations on specific themes that they have chosen.

The final day of the classroom session includes presentations in the morning and visits to archaeological collections or exhibitions in the afternoon. Learners choose the theme of their final paper.

The evaluation of the course is based on a continuous evaluation of all the work and a final exam for each module. Throughout the course, learners have exercises, presentations, and assignments with detailed feedback. There are no grades given for these assignments, but a simple validation (validated, not validated). The first two modules are also evaluated by a 20-page written report as a final assignment. The teachers help to construct the plan and provide bibliographic support. The last module is evaluated by an oral exam (as final work) in the form of a discussion of what has been seen throughout the course.

The course combines knowledge and new learning technologies. It provides access to archaeological resources, guided tours and lectures. It encourages individual learning and favors dynamic interactions between participants and speakers.

Thoughts and advice

Since the training has the particularity of welcoming a very heterogeneous public who already have professional commitments, there is always a significant risk that learners will drop out. This dropout is not related to the format, which on the contrary offers great organizational flexibility, but rather to the workload, which is estimated at about ten hours per week. Depending on the students’ personal obligations, this can be very heavy. As a result, teachers advise that they should regularly show that they are present and available to answer questions. Support for learners is essential and must be sufficient to maintain motivation. Teachers should therefore send regular messages of encouragement, respond quickly on the forums to keep the momentum going, inform about new activities, and follow up on a weekly basis. The goal is to keep participants engaged and motivated.

The choice of tools is also an important element. For example, in the classroom, an application is used to show the 3D reconstruction of Rome that was made by an American teacher. Thanks to this representation, learners can choose a monument in Rome and walk around the site in a virtual space. It is important to be able to present tools that are now part of archaeology and sites where 3D modeled statues are very useful digital tools.

One of the additional recommendations is to form the working groups during the face-to-face days. Indeed, the teachers were sometimes confronted with individualistic behavior on the part of the students and the formation of the groups was therefore very complicated when it was necessary to let the learners choose their pair or group alone. The face-to-face days allow to generate meetings and facilitate contacts. The discussions also help to avoid conflicts over the choice of topics and themes for the work. In the perspective of mobilizing collective creation, it is also a question of doing everything possible to maintain exchanges and dynamism so that the final production is common. The construction of the training should engage the creation of productions available at the end of the training and thus mobilize towards a common goal.

Student feedback

“Perhaps more developed feedback when the work is returned. ” “Thank you for all the patience in answering our many questions. This is a very interesting topic and we now have a solid foundation. ” “Relevant and accurate feedback from teachers on all of our work. ” “More consistency and regularity in the amount of work required in each part of the course. Clearer instructions and directions should be given before beginning the first written assignment. ”