675 COVID-19 Instruction Style (In-Person, Virtual, Hybrid), School Start Times, and Sleep in a Large Nationwide Sample of Adolescents

Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic significantly disrupted how and when adolescents attended school. This analysis used data from the Nationwide Education and Sleep in TEens During COVID (NESTED) study to examine the association of instructional format (in-person, virtual, hybrid), school start times, and sleep in a large diverse sample of adolescents from across the U.S. Methods In October/November 2020, 5346 nationally representative students (grades 6–12, 49.8% female, 30.6% non-White) completed online surveys. For each weekday, participants identified if they attended school in person (IP), online-scheduled synchronous classes (O/S), online-no scheduled classes (asynchronous, O/A), or no school. Students reported school start times for IP or O/S days, and bedtimes (BT) and wake times (WT) for each applicable school type and weekends/no school days (WE). Sleep opportunity (SlpOpp, total sleep time proxy) was calculated from BT and WT. Night-to-night sleep variability was calculated with mean square successive differences. Results Significant differences for teens’ sleep across instructional formats were found for all three sleep variables. With scheduled instructional formats (IP and O/S), students reported earlier BT (IP=10:54pm, O/S=11:24pm, O/A=11:36pm, WE=12:30am), earlier WT (IP=6:18am, O/S=7:36am, O/A=8:48am, WE=9:36am), and shorter SlpOpp (IP=7.4h, O/S=8.2h, O/A=9.2h, WE=9.2h). Small differences in BT, but large differences in WT were found, based on school start times, with significantly later wake times associated with later start times. Students also reported later WT on O/S days vs. IP days, even with the same start times. Overall, more students reported obtaining sufficient SlpOpp (>8h) for O/S vs. IP format (IP=40.0%, O/S=58.8%); when school started at/after 8:30am, sufficient SlpOpp was even more common (IP=52.7%, O/S=72.7%). Greater night-to-night variability was found for WT and SlpOpp for students with hybrid schedules with >1 day IP and >1 day online vs virtual schedules (O/S and O/A only), with no differences in BT variability reported between groups. Conclusion This large study of diverse adolescents from across the U.S. found scheduled school start times were associated with early wake times and shorter sleep opportunity, with greatest variability for hybrid instruction. Study results may be useful for educators and policy makers who are considering what education will look like post-pandemic. Support (if any):

238 Adolescent Sleep Variability, Social Jetlag, and Mental Health during COVID-19: Findings from a Large Nationwide Study

Introduction Adolescents are vulnerable to short, insufficient sleep stemming from a combined preference for late bedtimes and early school start times, and also circadian disruptions from frequent shifts in sleep schedules (i.e., social jetlag). These sleep disruptions are associated with poor mental health. The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted education nationwide, including changes in instructional formats and school schedules. With data from the Nationwide Education and Sleep in TEens During COVID (NESTED) study, we examined whether sleep variability and social jetlag (SJL) during the pandemic associate with mental health. Methods Analyses included online survey data from 4767 students (grades 6-12, 46% female, 36% non-White, 87% high school). For each weekday, participants identified if they attended school in person (IP), online-scheduled synchronous classes (O/S), online-no scheduled classes (asynchronous, O/A), or no school. Students reported bedtimes (BT) and wake times (WT) for each instructional format and for weekends/no school days. Sleep opportunity (SlpOpp) was calculated from BT and WT. Weekday night-to-night SlpOpp variability was calculated with mean square successive differences. SJL was calculated as the difference between the average sleep midpoint on free days (O/A, no school, weekends) versus scheduled days (IP, O/S). Participants also completed the PROMIS Pediatric Anxiety and Depressive Symptoms Short Form. Data were analyzed with hierarchical linear regressions controlling for average SlpOpp, gender, and school-level (middle vs high school). Results Mean reported symptoms of anxiety (60.0 ±9.1; 14%≧70) and depression (63.4 ±10.2; 22%≧70) fell in the at-risk range. Shorter average SlpOpp (mean=8.3±1.2hrs) was correlated with higher anxiety (r=-.10) and depression (r=-.11; p’s<.001) T-scores. Greater SlpOpp variability was associated with higher anxiety (B=.71 [95%CI=.41-1.01, p<.001) and depression (B=.67 [.33-1.00], p<.001) T-scores. Greater SJL (mean=1.8±1.2hrs; 94% showed a delay in midpoint) was associated with higher anxiety (B=.36 [.12-.60], p<.001) and depression (B=.77 [.50-1.03], p<.001) T-scores. Conclusion In the context of system-wide education changes during COVID-19, students on average reported at-risk levels of anxiety and depression symptoms which were associated with greater variability in sleep opportunity across school days and greater social jetlag. Our findings suggest educators and policymakers should consider these sleep-mental health associations when developing instructional formats and school schedules during and post-pandemic. Support (if any) T32MH019927(P.W.)

Psychological Microclimate of Student Groups, Studying in Different Instructional Formats

The article discusses psychological microclimate of a student group under different instructional formats (teaching and learning face-to-face, online, or blended). The main objective of the study was to explore factors that contribute the microclimate formation in connection with the changes that the formal postsecondary education undergoes because of the COVID-19 pandemic. One hundred and sixty-six students of several higher education institutions in Rostov-on-Don, Russia took part in the study. To fulfill the study objective, data about various individual characteristics of participating students and their subjective rating of the psychological microclimate in the respective student groups were collected by means of psychological testing and subjected first to the ANOVA and then to the multiple regression analyses. ANOVA revealed no statistically significant differences across instructional formats either in the microclimate scores or in the respondents’ psychological characteristics. The follow-up multiple regression analysis explored models of joint contribution of the predictor variables to the formation of the microclimate in student groups. Specifically, it found that the relationship between the microclimate and emotional tone is negative, whereas generosity and leadership inclinations are positive predictors of the psychological microclimate in student groups. Better understanding what factors determine dynamic interactions among students in various instructional formats could be instrumental in optimizing microclimate in students group, undoubtedly affected by rather dramatic changes in all aspects of our social lives, caused by the current epidemiological situation in the world. Psychological microclimate in a group is, in turn, capable of seriously impacting on students’ learning performance and psychological wellbeing.

Characterizing student engagement with hands-on, problem-based, and lecture activities in an introductory college course

This study examines the interest, motivation, and behavioral engagement of college students in an introductory course relative to three instructional formats used in the course: hands-on, problem-based laboratory stations; problem-based written case studies; and video lectures. Groups of five to seven students were assigned learning activities as treatments in a Latin Square design consisting of three experimental periods. At the beginning of selected laboratory sessions, students completed 10 minutes of the experimental activity immediately followed by a questionnaire. Students rated hands-on, problem-based laboratory stations as more challenging, novel, and attention-grabbing than they rated case studies or video lectures. Interest, intrinsic motivation, and behavioral engagement were greatest for groups completing laboratory stations followed by those completing case studies and lectures, respectively. Overall, the greater situational interest experienced during laboratory stations and case studies indicates that these activities can be leveraged to create learning environments that promote interest, engagement, and achievement.

Assessing L2 listening in CALL and listening strategy use

This longitudinal study examines students’ learning strategies of 222 Spanish intermediate learners when taking several listening tests. It also examines the effect of different instructional formats (online-hybrid vs. face2face-blended) on the learners’ strategy use. There were four versions of the same text: an audio format, a video format, a redundancy-enhanced version in audio format, and a redundancy-enhanced version in video format. A pseudo-cross over design was utilized for this study with four listening tests used with each group. Participants completed a questionnaire immediately after each listening test to learn about learners’ strategies before, during and after listening in order to elicit information about the particular strategies that learners used to complete each listening test. Results indicated that there was a listening comprehension strategy development over time without explicit instruction, but participants from different instructional formats developed different strategies. There was a statistically significant difference for intermediate-low learners when perceiving the use of cognitive and metacognitive strategies, but the effect of redundancy does not seem to have an impact. Intermediate-mid learners did not perceive a difference with the use of strategies when completing listening tests with or without redundancy.

Supporting Learners in the Classroom

To facilitate learning in the classroom, an instructor must use techniques to differentiate and manage instruction while balancing the type and amount of instructional support necessary to help learners achieve their goals. A major set of considerations for an instructor or facilitator in the classroom has to do with determining (1) the appropriate philosophy of teaching and learning for a given body of knowledge or set of tasks, (2) how to optimize the learning environment to make it conducive to learning, and (3) the amount of support or scaffolding that will be required within educational contexts. This perspective piece is intended for pre-service teachers; however, the main ideas surrounding the 3CE model of classroom facilitation can be used by any instructional leader in various instructional formats (online, face-to face, or blended).

Wandering Eyes: Eye Movements During Mind-wandering in Video Lectures

Video lectures are increasingly prevalent, but they present challenges to learners. Students' minds often wander, yet we know little about how mind-wandering affects attention during video lectures. This paper presents two studies that examined eye movement patterns of mind-wandering during video lectures. In the studies, mind-wandering reports were collected by either self-caught reports or thought probes. Results were similar across the studies: mind-wandering was associated with an increased allocation of fixations to the instructor's image. For fixations on the slides, the average duration increased but the dispersion decreased. Moreover, preliminary evidence suggested that fixation duration and dispersion can diminish soon after self-caught reports of mind-wandering. Overall, these findings help advance our understanding of how learners' attention is affected during mind-wandering and may facilitate efforts in objectively identifying mind-wandering. Future research is needed to determine if these findings can extend to other instructional formats.