Converting Erasers into Bicycle Riders

Pencil Metaphor

Part of supporting online education is helping lecturers learn how to use technology. It's helpful to understand the comfort level of the lecturer with technology.

If you're not familiar with the Pencil Metaphor, check out these blog posts:​

• The Sharp End by Steve Wheeler
• 6 Ways Teachers Respond To Education Technology by Teach Thought Staff
• PENCIL METAPHOR FOR OER by Willem van Valkenburg
• Are open textbooks the end game? by Rajiv Jhangiani
• (For German speakers, see Die Bleistift-Metapher – "The Pencil Metaphor“ ins Deutsche übersetzt by Sonja Borski)

The first half (tip of the pencil) who need little support lead the way in online education in their field and their peers look up to them for best practices. The middle of the pencil, the wood, are the normal group that we (academic staff) support with webinars and trainings, sometimes to showcase the first 2 groups (Leaders and Sharp ones).

Photo by Mark Fletcher-Brown on Unsplash

​In 2006 I started supporting online education as a student worker on a helpdesk. Since then I've taught online and supported online education in some capacity. Some lecturers were leaders or early adapters and needed little help, but rather the spotlight to showcase their example for their peers. Some lecturers needed support like the "wood". Some lecturers made it clear that they would never teach online unless there wasn't an option. Well.... here we are. What do we do with the "Erasers"? Now what? This group didn't want to be here in the online education realm.
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Let's look back at the pencil. In 2020, almost everyone on the pencil was shoved forward at least one notch, depending on the course. For example, here at TU Delft, there are still courses that need access to a lab, thus the course may have shifted from in person to blended rather than fully shifting online.

Who Wants to Be an Eraser?

Looking at the metaphor, who really wants to be an eraser...during a pandemic...as an expert in their field?

Perhaps this is why some experts didn't grab on to online teaching earlier. Not being an expert in online teaching, but being an expert teacher might feel uncomfortable.

How do we motivate an expert to join the pack of their peers teaching online? Let's go Dutch and talk about the bicycle. Besides, a bicycle lasts longer in life and is more fun than a pencil.

Learning to Ride a Bicycle Dutch Style

Children aren't born riding a bicycle (although one does wonder seeing the Dutch attachment to bikes).

​Children learn to ride a bike by seeing others and by trying it. A parent doesn't try to get a child to start on a racing bike with special shoes that lock in place. They start with a basic bike that fits their child.

To learn, it's best to be in motion, then focus on learning to pedal and balance. In some ways, this can be similar for lecturers in 2020 who were thrown into online education and part of the year was focusing on balancing it all.

Once a child can balance the bike, they take off but still don't ride fast up hill, for the Netherlands over bridges.

Photo by Anastasia Dulgier on Unsplash

Dutch parents ride next to their child with their hand on the child's back, guiding them up the hill until the child is comfortable to ride up the hill and at the speed of the pack. Similarly, lecturers less comfortable with teaching online may need more support initially until they are comfortable, but at some point, the support is no longer needed or minimally needed. On the pencil metaphor, they become "wood", if we talk about the bicycle, they join the pack.

Build Confidence

When I support a lecturer who is new to online education, I ask them first what they use now, what they are comfortable doing, and what they want help with. After I understand their goal and their comfort level, then I explain what tools are supported. Within time, the lecturer feels the success of what they design online, and they come back ready to add more to their course and make their online course more engaging.

The First Bike Ride

When my son first rode a bike by our apartment on a canal and he realized he could bike on his own, he immediately sensed this new feeling of freedom. He yelled "I'm going to the ice cream store" and biked off with me trailing behind. He had his first accident, got up and tried again. We made it to the ice cream shop and he picked out his prize.

For new online lecturers, once they get past the basics and feel freedom in online teaching, they reach for their vision. As someone who supports online education, I enjoy seeing lecturers feel comfortable with online teaching in their own way, similar to a child who can bike up the hill and get their ice cream. Soon, they become confident and do amazing things.

Photo by Fallon Michael on Unsplash

The Next Level - Suit and Tie

When I first moved to the Netherlands, I quickly adapted to the bike riding life. (If you're unfamiliar with cycling in the Netherlands, check out the article: How I Learned to Cycle Like a Dutchman by Dan Kois.)

For work though, I biked in normal clothes and then changed at work. A few months into living here, my supervisor announced the next borrel (Friday drinks after work once a month). When I arrived I changed my shoes. My supervisor had a suit and tie on with nice shoes. He biked in that. Not being one to be out-done, I quickly adapted further and learned to bike in heels and my work clothes.

By observing and interacting with peers and supervisors, we adapt. Riding a bicycle is a life-long skill, as is online teaching.