Hybrid Teaching and the Hybridization of Education: Thai University Teachers’ Perspectives, Practices, Challenges

Abstract

While most of the literature on education during the COVID19 pandemic concentrated on full online synchronous and asynchronous teaching, studies on hybrid teaching and teachers’ teaching practices and experiences during this unprecedented time are limited. This study examines English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers’ hybrid teaching practices, challenges, and perspectives in a university in Thailand. Using an open-ended questionnaire and a follow-up individual, online interview, findings revealed that hybrid teaching is perceived as a synchronous online and onsite teaching, where online students were connected through an online platform, and onsite students attended the class physically in the classroom. Moreover, class time, other online platforms for language reinforcement activities, and technical tools such as multimedia projectors were significant in facilitating hybrid teaching. However, teachers also encountered issues like conducting language assessments, making hybrid teaching student-student interactive, and presenting lesson explanations and examples to online students. Limitations and implications are discussed.

Keywords

• asynchronous teaching
• class time
• covid19 pandemic
• hybrid teaching
• online synchronous