EDU 653
Higher Order Web-Mediated Learning - Week 3
Embedded Files
Week 3 - Boolean Research & Memo Writing Based on Research
Week 3 - Boolean Research & Memo Writing Based on Research
Topic - Professional Development / Improving Online Conferences
Topic - Professional Development / Improving Online Conferences
Pre-Reflection
This week's topic is on something I have dearly missed since the pandemic began - Professional Development. For the sake of narrowing down this week's topic a bit, I will focus my research specifically on conferences (as opposed to online courses).
Personally, I love conferences, but I hate online conferences. I think they're absolutely horrible. When I think about the value I get from a conference, most of it is not in the sessions, themselves, but rather, the people you meet. Sure, there's the occasional session that blows you away, but that's rare. And the ability to make those connections is missing from online conferences.
In terms of how I will be researching this week, I think I've used boolean search terms in the past, but not recently, and it's definitely not something I actively do while researching. So I'm curious to see how adding these search terms will support my research.
Initial Driving Questions & Thoughts
What makes good PD?
Takeaways that you can use immediately
Leaving feeling inspired
Networking
Is online PD as valuable as F2F PD?
Difficult to network
Easier to access
What is lacking from online PD that you get in person?
Food and socialising
Physical activity
Networking
More hands-on learning (possibly)
What benefits might there be in online PD that you don't get with F2F PD?
Global accessibility
Sources & Relevant Notes
brands get enhanced visibility with in person conferences
easier to share ideas
role of every conference is to facilitate learning, sharing and inspiration
"the most influential learning, sharing and inspiration plays out between people, not on a screen"
a lot of communication is nonverbal, (posture, facial expressions, etc.) actual words, accounts for just 7%
networking is crucial
"successful managers spend 70% more time networking than their less successful counterparts."
conferences are a perfect environment for networking and forging relationships
"conferences give people the ability to spark new ideas – ideas that they can take back to their colleagues and their bosses and begin to properly realise"
63% of people say that the ideal time for a virtual round table discussion is between 60 and 90 minutes
41% of event organizers use Zoom for their small virtual events
The ideal audience size for a virtual round table discussion is between 8 and 10 people
The most popular type of virtual event is small gatherings. This is followed by networking events and round table discussions
Audience engagement is the largest challenge when it comes to virtual events. The next biggest challenge is interaction.
38% of marketers say they run into technical problems when hosting virtual events.
The average no-show percentage of virtual events is 35%. This is slightly higher than in-person events.
80% of people join virtual events for educational purposes. The next biggest reason for joining virtual events is networking.
The biggest annoyance of virtual events is a bad connection. The second-largest frustration comes from bad microphones.
81.8% of virtual event organizers use event polling to improve interaction.
61% of marketers use videos as an interactive element to keep people engaged.
63% of event organizers opt for a semi-live approach to sessions, meaning sessions are pre-recorded but there is a live Q&A.
59% of event organizers have gamification strategies to improve audience engagement
45% of event organizers opt for shorter multi-day events to combat virtual event fatigue.
advantages to virtual conferences:
no need to travel
take less time to plan
less expensive to produce
people need face-to-face interactions
"Not only are face-to-face events fun to go to, but they provide countless opportunities to connect with others in a way that cannot be achieved online"
difficult to capture audience's attention while at home
easier to improvise with in-person events
bad connection is the biggest annoyance of event coordinators
in person is "an experience"
having options for mixed environment of in-person and virtual is a bonus
becomes more challenging
ensure attendees can connect with one another
incorporate pre-edited content
offer all content as videos-on-demand after the conference
high fee
can't sit for that long
no sense of place, "home base", primary meeting area
can't listen to speaker and read chat simultaneously
not getting money's worth
can't talk to speaker after their talk
doesn't feel like a conference, just watching content
missing serendipitous connections
can't see/find familiar people
no connected social events or happy hours
Common Themes For Notes
Networking
Logistics
Engagement
Technical
People
Synthesised/Color-Coded Notes By Common Themes
brands get enhanced visibility with in person conferences
easier to share ideas
role of every conference is to facilitate learning, sharing and inspiration
"the most influential learning, sharing and inspiration plays out between people, not on a screen"
a lot of communication is nonverbal, (posture, facial expressions, etc.) actual words, accounts for just 7%
networking is crucial
"successful managers spend 70% more time networking than their less successful counterparts."
conferences are a perfect environment for networking and forging relationships
"conferences give people the ability to spark new ideas – ideas that they can take back to their colleagues and their bosses and begin to properly realise"
63% of people say that the ideal time for a virtual round table discussion is between 60 and 90 minutes
41% of event organizers use Zoom for their small virtual events
The ideal audience size for a virtual round table discussion is between 8 and 10 people
The most popular type of virtual event is small gatherings. This is followed by networking events and round table discussions
Audience engagement is the largest challenge when it comes to virtual events. The next biggest challenge is interaction.
38% of marketers say they run into technical problems when hosting virtual events.
The average no-show percentage of virtual events is 35%. This is slightly higher than in-person events.
80% of people join virtual events for educational purposes. The next biggest reason for joining virtual events is networking.
The biggest annoyance of virtual events is a bad connection. The second-largest frustration comes from bad microphones.
81.8% of virtual event organizers use event polling to improve interaction.
61% of marketers use videos as an interactive element to keep people engaged.
63% of event organizers opt for a semi-live approach to sessions, meaning sessions are pre-recorded but there is a live Q&A.
59% of event organizers have gamification strategies to improve audience engagement
45% of event organizers opt for shorter multi-day events to combat virtual event fatigue.
advantages to virtual conferences:
no need to travel
take less time to plan
less expensive to produce
people need face-to-face interactions
"Not only are face-to-face events fun to go to, but they provide countless opportunities to connect with others in a way that cannot be achieved online"
difficult to capture audience's attention while at home
easier to improvise with in-person events
bad connection is the biggest annoyance of event coordinators
in person is "an experience"
having options for mixed environment of in-person and virtual is a bonus
becomes more challenging with multiple options
ensure attendees can connect with one another
incorporate pre-edited video content that is engaging and interesting
offer all content as videos-on-demand after the conference
high fee
can't sit for that long
no sense of place, "home base", primary meeting area
can't listen to speaker and read chat simultaneously
not getting money's worth
can't talk to speaker after their talk
doesn't feel like a conference, just watching content
missing serendipitous connections
can't see/find familiar people
no connected social events or happy hours
Rearranged Notes To Match Colors
Networking
80% of people join virtual events for educational purposes. The next biggest reason for joining virtual events is networking.
networking is crucial
"successful managers spend 70% more time networking than their less successful counterparts."
conferences are a perfect environment for networking and forging relationships
can't talk to speaker after their talk
missing serendipitous connections
can't see/find familiar people
no connected social events or happy hours
ensure attendees can connect with one another
Logistics
63% of people say that the ideal time for a virtual round table discussion is between 60 and 90 minutes
41% of event organizers use Zoom for their small virtual events
having options for mixed environment of in-person and virtual is a bonus
becomes more challenging with multiple options
offer all content as videos-on-demand after the conference
advantages to virtual conferences:
no need to travel
take less time to plan
less expensive to produce
easier to improvise with in-person events
bad connection is the biggest annoyance of event coordinators
Engagement
The ideal audience size for a virtual round table discussion is between 8 and 10 people
The most popular type of virtual event is small gatherings. This is followed by networking events and round table discussions
Audience engagement is the largest challenge when it comes to virtual events. The next biggest challenge is interaction.
81.8% of virtual event organisers use event polling to improve interaction.
61% of marketers use videos as an interactive element to keep people engaged.
63% of event organisers opt for a semi-live approach to sessions, meaning sessions are pre-recorded but there is a live Q&A.
59% of event organisers have gamification strategies to improve audience engagement
45% of event organisers opt for shorter multi-day events to combat virtual event fatigue.
incorporate pre-edited video content that is engaging and interesting
doesn't feel like a conference, just watching content
can't listen to speaker and read chat simultaneously
difficult to capture audience's attention while at home
Technical
The biggest annoyance of virtual events is a bad connection. The second-largest frustration comes from bad microphones.
38% of marketers say they run into technical problems when hosting virtual events.
People
The average no-show percentage of virtual events is 35%. This is slightly higher than in-person events.
easier to share ideas
"the most influential learning, sharing and inspiration plays out between people, not on a screen"
a lot of communication is nonverbal, (posture, facial expressions, etc.) actual words, accounts for just 7%
"conferences give people the ability to spark new ideas – ideas that they can take back to their colleagues and their bosses and begin to properly realise"
people need face-to-face interactions
"Not only are face-to-face events fun to go to, but they provide countless opportunities to connect with others in a way that cannot be achieved online"
in person is "an experience"
high fee
can't sit for that long
no sense of place, "home base", primary meeting area
not getting money's worth
Research Strategies Used
I tried incorporating the following boolean search modifications:
AND
online AND professional development
quotations with AND:
"virtual conference" AND "improving"
the minus symbol
online conferences -covid
I found interesting results when I combined the quotations with AND boolean functions.
I chose to search with "-covid" to see what I could find that was pre-covid, but I don't think I found anything relevant
PD Facilitation Plan Mock Memo
DATE: Friday November 12th, 2021
TO: Administrative Staff
FROM: Levent Erdoğan
SUBJECT: Professional Development Plan
Dear Administrative Team,
I am excited to be writing you today to share my Professional Development plan for the faculty in our district. From my research, I have found a significant amount of information that will help support a plan to offer a conference for our faculty, which I recommend should be a combination of face-to-face sessions, digital video and webinar/online formats.
Covid-19 and Safety Precautions
As we are now able to return to work, we should begin to phase-in a F2F model, as research has shown that face-to-face conferences are more engaging for attendees, (Prado, n.d.). However, with social distancing in mind, and the possibility of faculty feeling uncertain about large gatherings, I feel offering a hybrid model would be best, where we offer a F2F venue to accommodate approximately half of the size of our faculty in person and set up an online platform where these sessions can be synchronously attended throughout the event to provide an equitable experience for all attendees.
With our full faculty in our district at about 800 persons, we will be looking for a venue that can accommodate approximately 400 participants for the in-person conference. Attendees will need to be fully vaccinated to attend the in-person conference and of our faculty who are not fully vaccinated by the sign-up deadline will not be permitted to join the in-person cohort for this event. In addition to these precautions, mask wearing will be mandatory at all times, unless in designated socially distanced eating areas.
Logistics
With less people in person, this may actually allow us to save money, however, it will come with additional technical challenges that will need to be addressed, (Virtual events vs hybrid, 2021). Whether online or in person, an important part of attendee satisfaction is the ability to network and connect with peers (10 attendee complaints, n.d.), therefore, I suggest we consider adding sessions that enable participants to connect in a less formal manner. For participants in person, having a "home base" or main meeting hall where people can congregate during breaks and lunch, as well as offering a post conference happy hour social gathering, where people can meet and chat about their day will be crucial for the satisfaction of in-person attendees.
For our online participants, I recommend we include informal post-keynote discussions and/or Q&A's sessions, virtual happy-hour rooms with games and prizes, or other similar sessions that allow online participants to connect with others. In addition to this, research has shown that integrating some form of gamification throughout the day, possibly something where both online and in-person attendees can simultaneously interact with, would be beneficial for engagement through the day, (Wolff, 2021). Another element that may boost engagement will be the use of well edited pre-made videos, as there is evidence to suggest that engaging video content will help increase audience engagement, especially in the case of our online participants, (Wolff, 2021; Unknown, n.d.).
Content & Presentations
Along with multiple keynotes, I suggest we open up the option for our own faculty to present. In addition to this, I think it would be wise to survey our faculty to see what themes or topics they would benefit from most.
Recorded Content
As a bonus to having this conference online, we will be able to record all broadcasts to save and share with staff who weren't able to attend, or those who would like to rewatch any of these sessions at a later time, which is something that wouldn't be available to us if we were only providing an in-person event.
I hope from these suggestions we are able to develop a clearer path for an upcoming conference for this district's faculty this year. Thank you for the opportunity to develop this plan for our district
Sincerely,
Levent Erdogan
Sources:
Prado, P. (n.d.). 5 reasons why virtual events will not replace face-to-face events. Aventri. Retrieved November 12, 2021,
from https://www.aventri.com/blog/reasons-why-virtual-events-will-not-replace-face-to-face-events.
Unknown. (n.d.). 10 attendee complaints about virtual conferences-and how to prevent them. WBT Systems. Retrieved November 12, 2021,
from https://www.wbtsystems.com/learning-hub/blogs/attendee-complaints-about-virtual-conferences.
Unknown. (n.d.). A complete guide for Successful Virtual Conferences or events. tvtt. Retrieved November 12, 2021,
from https://www.thevirtualtrainingteam.com/virtual-conference.
Unknown. (2021, May 4). Virtual events vs hybrid events vs face-to-face. Virtway Events. Retrieved November 12, 2021,
from https://www.virtwayevents.com/blog/face-to-face-virtual-hybrid-events/.
Wolff, R. (2021, June 29). 60 incredible virtual event statistics! (2021 research). Markletic. Retrieved November 12, 2021,
from https://www.markletic.com/blog/virtual-event-statistics/#virtual-event-engagement.
Post Fact Check Thoughts
The main idea that I wanted to fact check in this memo was the idea that having a hybrid model could save money. During my research, I specifically found that only-ONLY conferences would save money, however, I didn't find anything that directly relates to a hybrid event. I was of two minds on this, and thought that potentially since there are less people, the venue could be smaller, there is less food that needs to be purchased, less alcohol provided during happy hour, less buses needed to be rented if transportation is needed, etc. etc. And then my other thought were, "what about renting the camera gear, hiring technicians and camera crew, and paying for an online platform subscription?" So I wanted to look for this answer.
In a normal Google search, I initially found a site titled Hybrid Events Are the Future, which mentions it only briefly, and seems like it is a site that leads the reader to sign up to a service. So it wouldn't pass my CRAAP test. Next, I tried a Google Scholar search with the following search: "hybrid" AND "event" OR "conference" AND "cheaper" which was unsuccessful, and generally unsuccessful in Google Scholar overall. I went back to a normal Google search and continued, however, came across A LOT of sites in relation to things one would need to know to plan a hybrid event, then a link to a product or service that the site offered.
As a result, I changed the wording of my memo to reflect that it "may" save us money, and eliminated the direct source, and wording that may create a firm expectation of a cheaper event when being created as a hybrid.
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