In this post, we explain how tags work on the Edinburgh Hybrid Teaching Exchange and the process for their selection in the cataloguing of the content on the site.
Tags along with categories are an essential part of the organisation of information on the Edinburgh Hybrid Teaching Exchange. Tags are pre-defined taxonomies that provide multiple points of access, help users navigate the site and provide an interactive connection between material.
We have integrated the Hybrid Teaching Terminology issued by the Adaptation and Renewal Team into our catalogue of tags. In addition, we are taking a participatory approach to the creation of new tags to ensure that we maximise associations and connections and minimise the risk of being reductive. More specifically, we have created our tags in part by drawing from discussion sessions and conversations around hybrid teaching on courses run by IAD over the summer.
Our approach aims as much as possible to adopt the original language used by staff in their questions or concerns about hybrid teaching rather than translating these concerns into a predetermined terminology. We will also continue to work with staff and invite contributions for tags so as to ground our descriptions in the experiences and contexts of teaching and learning in a hybrid environment.
The goal is to support the Edinburgh Hybrid Teaching Exchange as a platform for conversation and engagement with the transition to hybrid teaching and all its implications. The result will be a continually expanding and simplified approach to accessing information and resources on the site reflecting our community’s needs, challenges, and opportunities.
Below are examples of some of the tags used on the site. These may change as we learn from staff and student experience of learning and teaching in hybrid.
| Presence | Engagement | Curriculum | Activities |
| Asynchronous | Equity | Alternatives | Assessment |
| Class Sizes | Community | Collaboration | Learner Journeys |
| Active | Peer | Synchronous | Practicals |
| Workshops | Live seminars | Feedback | Lab-sessions |
| Studio-based-learning | Co-presence* | Effective-dialogue | Synchronous |
| Tutorials | Mini-lectures | On-campus | Post-Graduate |
| Fieldwork/trips | Work Placements | Belonging | Equality/Diversity/Inclusion |
| In-person | Academic Support | Digital | Live |
| Pre-recorded | Co-creation | Communication | Course Design |
| Disciplinary | Inter-disciplinary | Hybrid teaching | Technology |
| Outdoor Learning | Pedagogy | Peer Support | Social Distancing |
| Student Experience |
* Co-presence: Interaction with both digitally engaged and in-person students.
By Joe Arton, Academic Developer at the Institute for Academic Development.
Image Credit: University of Edinburgh Collections, Lyell, Charles, Catalogue No. 0031301.
