The Trials and Accomplishments of a Full Time Dental Hygiene Faculty Member

In August 2000 I decided to teach dental hygiene. I had worked as a full time private dental hygienist for 8 years. Upon moving to Roanoke Virginia, I met a weak job market. While part time was attainable, I continued to research additional job opportunities. Much to my surprise, Virginia Western Community College had a dental hygiene program and a part time position was open. I took the opportunity. 

I quickly discovered that the Virginia Western Community College Department of Dental Hygiene was not your traditional program. It was a joint venture program that taught students on site and broadcasted to Danville Community College and Lord Fairfax Community College on an ongoing alternating cycle.

            Educating students in front of me and distantly on the same day and time each week intrigued me. Broadcasting offered the ability to communicate with distant site students in present time.  They could hear and see me and I could hear and see them in an assigned classroom on their campus. Classmates from both sites could communicate with each other as well.

Training with Broadcasting Technology

A few days prior to teaching my first class, I thankfully received a brief overview from the program head and a detailed overview on classroom equipment from VWCC IT support. After some practice, I confidently entered the traditional classroom, turned on the computer, four screens/monitors, dialed the IP address of the distant site classroom and broadcasted through the VCCS. I was ready to go, or so I thought.

I had been informed of the delay of transmission with broadcasting. However, it took awhile for students and I to get used to the three-second-lag time to communicate. This led into a snails pace style of teaching with constant repetitive statements and inquiries to and from students.  I had to adapt.

Uncharted Territory

I must preface my first classroom teaching experience with some background information on how I earned my BSDH degree. I was a student that sat in an auditorium sized lecture hall filled with dental hygiene, nursing, premed, and pharmacy students. Our university professors stood upon stages and utilized chalk on chalkboards or projected notes via a micro projector. The following were some styles of learning that students utilized then: sitting and listening to the professor, utilizing a pocket microphone recorder to record the lecture, or writing notes with a pencil and paper that they brought to class. Upon taking the education track within the Bachelor of Science Dental Hygiene Degree, I taught first year dental students on the warning signs of child abuse. I utilized the same methods my professors utilized. I stood before the class and wrote notes with chalk while presenting important topic points to students that took notes and made very little inquiries.

Needless to say, my first classroom teaching experience was eye opening. I began lecture with an immediate student inquiry. “Where are the PowerPoint handouts for this lecture?” I translated this inquiry as a request for a topic outline. I was wrong. Students expected to see and have all notes provided in a handout.

Training on PowerPoint

Virginia Western Community College offered PowerPoint faculty training that was very beneficial. While I embraced the utilization of PowerPoint, I quickly learned the limitations on time. Time for creation, time to get handouts copied for students, time for the mail to deliver the copies to distant site students, etc. I adapted to the time constraints and students were pleased to receive their PowerPoint handouts. While I was happy to accommodate the students, something bothered me.  The amount of paper and printing necessary to create these handouts was staggering. I kept trying to think of ways to decrease the amount of information on the PowerPoint handouts.  I later. Overall, all was going well until our distant site students did not receive their PowerPoint handouts, materials or Exams.

Lack of Support

Distant site faculty was not always available to monitor or support the classroom setting. Mailed PowerPoint handouts had to be distributed. Students needed the material to take notes. Someone needed to administer mailed Exams. Someone was needed to monitor for cheating. Who would re-collect the Exams and mail back to VWCC for evaluation?  At one point, individuals unrelated to dental hygiene were hired to oversee the classroom setting. This did not go well. Issues with student conduct surfaced.

I then tried to e-mail PowerPoint handouts and Exams to specific individuals at the distant sites. Again, items were not always administered or duplicated in a specified or requested way. Some materials were reviewed with the distant site students and not with local students. While I know that everyone involved was looking at the betterment of the students, the trials in communication continued for years.

Something’s Got To Give

Student learning was being affected. All factors were jeopardizing student’s potential of success in passing the national board, clinical boards and ultimately earning their degree. Something had to give. Ultimately resources and funds for equipment improvement were found and installed, IT support and faculty were hired and duties were defined. Resolving these factors was necessary.

            While improved, we faced additional roadblocks such as loss of electricity, loss of broadcast connection, loss of broadcast sound feed, and closing of schools for inclement weather.  Educating our students within a set 2-year cycle is not adaptable. When not in the classroom, our students are in the clinical setting.  Accreditation standards set weekly minimum hours for patient treatment. Clinic times are not flexible. For example, in the event of a lost broadcast connection I had to continue with the lecture and stop at a set time regardless of reconnection.  If not, students would be late for clinic and patient care lost.

The technology experts established that the disruptions in broadcasting were due to poor connections/weak band transmissions. To address the lost broadcast connections, the VCCS began to record lectures. Students could access the lecture recording via a link.  Our program head allowed student access when applicable. Students could view the missed lecture in the event of a lost broadcast connection, lost class time due to an illness or outside obligation. This was truly beneficial.

Something More

Upon attending a New Horizons workshop, I heard about the use of Blackboard. Soon after, our health science dean confirmed that faculty would be required to have an online course. I followed suit and pursued Blackboard training at VWCC.  After a great overview, I decided that Blackboard was the medium that I needed. After some trial and error, I recognized that I could resolve many concerns that kept bubbling to the surface. The following items could be accessible to all students in Blackboard: PowerPoint handouts, quizzes, etc. I no longer had to send items to duplication for printing. I no longer had to get materials in the mail and rely on someone else to distribute to distant site students.  Students could access these materials from anywhere as long as they could access my online Blackboard course.

I found an answer on how to stop the insane printing process as well. I encouraged students to not print the provided PowerPoint handouts. Rather, attend classroom lecture and then look back to review. In addition, students could take quizzes and get instant evaluation feedback within the grade book. I was slowly coming to peace with distance teaching/learning.

I Will Survive

Blackboard continued to work well. However, disruption in broadcasting due to poor connections/weak band transmissions or equipment failure continued to affect the program. Alternative solutions continued to be brought forth and I attended an overview  session on Panopto Lecture Capture. Could this be the ticket?

I became part of a beta team that utilized the technology and provided feedback on use to a committee. It was what we needed! Panopto Lecture Capture could be utilized in the classroom or anywhere with a device that had a camera and a microphone. While the VCCS was recording our lectures, the recordings were limited to one screen in the classroom. Students could only access with permission and the recordings could not be paused. Nor, could students rewind or fast forward. Once open, students were committed to a 2-hour lecture recording.

With Panopto Lecture Capture, students could access the recording within Blackboard. Students could see me and the PowerPoint or Elmo projection at the same time.  Unlike the VCCS recordings, students could rewind, fast forward and pause recordings. They were not bound to a 2-hour lecture recording. They could locate a topic and review it in a brief amount of time.

This tool has helped our program in so many ways. Now, lost time in teaching has been kept to a minimum. There are no disruptions in the sequencing success of the classroom or clinic program schedule. We can continue with lectures regardless of inclement weather or equipment failure. We record faculty meetings for faculty that miss meetings. Skies the limit.

Where I Teach Today

Multiple events have influenced the future of hybrid teaching/learning in our program of study. Resilience and dedication are two words that I associate with my 14 years of teaching hybrid dental hygiene courses.  I’m proud to say that I have met and will continue to meet all of the future challenges that our program and I may face in education.

Based on our current technology resources and methods, I feel that our joint venture program is a quality program that offers educated and competent individuals into the dental field. We are not only graduating students, but we are placing healthcare professionals into our communities.  Ultimately, these students become our colleagues and perhaps future dental hygiene educators.