4.5 Teaching blended learning courses  (Page 2/3)

The growth of blended learning

The blended approach to instruction has seen a steady increase in the past years, and survey data indicates that administrators in higher education expect that trend to continue. According to the Handbook of Blended Learning, a majority of respondents in a 2006 survey expect a dramatic rise in the use of blended learning as an instructional format, eventually encompassing 40% of course offerings within the next 6 years.

Research from the University of Central Florida has indicated that faculty and student satisfaction with BL is high, and that the majority of both students and instructors would be willing to participate in future blended courses based on their past experiences with the format.

The appeal of blended learning

Why has a blended approach been welcomed by faculty and students?

From a pedagogical perspective, blended learning’s aim to join the best of classroom face-to-face learning experiences with the best of online learning experiences allows for:

• An increase is learning outcome measures and lowering of attrition rates vs. fully online courses (Dziuban, Hartman&Moskal, 2004).
• An opportunity for students to practice technology skills in navigating online course materials and possibility creating digital content for assignments.
• An increase in student-instructor and student-student interaction through the use of course communication tools like discussion forums.
• The ability to reserve face-to-face time for interactive activities, such as higher-level discussions, small group work, debates, demonstrations, or lab activities.

From a student perspective, the appeal of blended learning includes:

• Flexibility of schedule: learn any-time, anywhere.
• Control: students have some level of control over the pacing of their learning. Difficult concepts can be reviewed as often as necessary.
• Convenience of an online class with many of the social aspects of a face-to-face class.

Teaching in a blended learning format: what to be aware of?

When choosing to explore blended learning as a course format, there are several dimensions to course planning and development that should be considered:

Technology

Just like online courses, hybrid/blended courses are dependent on several technologies to function. These can include:

• learning management systems
• digital libraries
• mobile technologies
• streaming audio and/or video media
• reusable learning objects and materials

Integration

Online materials are central to a blended course's success, and the students' work online must be relevant to the in-class activities. Aycock, Garnham,&Kaleta (2002) at the University of Wisconsin’s blended learning effort revealed the importance of integration:

“The project's participants emphasized this point repeatedly. When asked, 'What would I do differently?' they were united in their response: 'I'd devote more attention to integrating what was going on in the classroom with the online work.' This was true even though the project's faculty development sessions repeatedly emphasized the importance of connecting in-class material with out-of-class assignments. One instructor responded emphatically, 'Integrate online with face-to-face, so there aren't two separate courses.' We found it impossible to stress integrating face-to-face and online learning too much."