Recipe for Learning Success
http://www.telr.ohio-state.edu/teachonline/continuum.htm#enhanced
Where do we draw the line?
0~30% (Enhanced) ~30~70% (Blended) ~70-100% (Online)
Evaluation of Evidence-Based Practices in Online Learning
http://www2.ed.gov/rschstat/eval/tech/evidence-based-practices/finalreport.pdf
A systematic search of the research literature from 1996 through July 2008 identified more than
a thousand empirical studies of online learning. Analysts screened these studies to find those that
(a) contrasted an online to a face-to-face condition, (b) measured student learning outcomes, (c)
used a rigorous research design, and (d) provided adequate information to calculate an effect
size. As a result of this screening, 50 independent effects were identified that could be subjected
to meta-analysis. The meta-analysis found that, on average, students in online learning
conditions performed modestly better than those receiving face-to-face instruction. The
difference between student outcomes for online and face-to-face classes—measured as the
difference between treatment and control means, divided by the pooled standard deviation—was
larger in those studies contrasting conditions that blended elements of online and face-to-face
instruction with conditions taught entirely face-to-face.
Clive Shepherd addresses a wide range of key questions about blended learning.
Blended learning is an active approach to the teaching and learning process that is liberating to faculty members, engaging for students and has been shown to provide superior learning outcomes. We will examine what ingredients go into a successful blended class. We will test out some of the blended learning approaches and modes. There will be opportunities to apply the practices to your own classes. The session will be hands-on, practical, and will give participants a plan for implementing a successful and exciting class experience.
Objectives:
Understanding
Key concepts in blending - why, how, vast range of varieties
How and why other faculty members implement blended approaches
How fuel prices and other considerations increase student interest in blended learning
Applying
Conceptually apply approaches to participant classes
Evaluating
Evaluate the 20 points of the Manifesto for Teaching Online and selectively consider what might apply
Creating
Create an individual action plan to incrementally re-design a class
Why this workshop is Power Point Less!
For the past half dozen years I have - whenever possible - avoided Power Point for presentations. The concept of developing a presentation that is not native to the Web, that is proprietary in form, and that does not easily promote broad sharing and participation is not consistent with our approach to teaching and learning in the 21st century. Instead, I have used presentation blogs, Google Sites, Prezi, SlideShare, and other Web-based, open tools. I believe that these model the practices we should encourage broadly.
A note of possible interest from professional training experiences that might be relevant in our classes:
Blended Course Completion Rates
Higher completion rates: Compared to an all elearning course, blended learning courses show higher completion rates. Students have higher likelihood of finishing a course which encompasses all aspects of a learning experience including content, discussions, assignments and evaluation mechanism and greater sense of accountability.
Increased reach/accessibility: Traditional classroom sessions require working professionals to be away from work for 2-3 days or longer at a time, which may not always work from the business perspective. In contrast, think of virtual classroom events such as webinars, which are inclusive of remote audiences. When followed up with recorded knowledge objects (ability to playback a recorded live event) and social collaboration, can extend the reach to those who could not attend at a specific time.
http://blog.instancy.com/2011/07/profiting-from-blended-elearning/
As we progress through the workshop, consider ways in which blended approaches may encourage and facilitate course completion (eg ameliorate skipped class sessions, engage learners, group peer encouragement, rotational blend to avoid class delivery conflicts, etc.).
Also of possible interest are these demographic data regarding social media/internet use:
http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1008877 http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1008646
Hybrid: This term emerged first to describe a new model that emerged shortly after the turn of the century - comprised of both online and on-campus class meetings.
Blended: As the hybrid experience progressed the term blended was adopted to recognize that best practices truly blended the delivery formats rather than abruptly moving from on-campus to online segments.
Inverted: The term inverted classroom began with an accounting professor who felt that the one-way nature of lectures was not the best use of class time - instead lectures belonged outside the classroom and exercises/activities should be in the classroom where the instructor could provide encouragement and help.
Flipped: The classroom flip arose as a term at the same time as the "guide on the side" came into popular use to describe the move from "sage on the stage" so that lecture materials would be moved outside the classroom, providing time and opportunity for more creative, interactive and active processes for in-class times.
Flex: The flex(ible) model is one that puts an emphasis on adaptive learning approaches, providing more support and offering more time for students to complete each model on the scaffold of the class.
Rotational: This applies to rotating in-class offerings to eliminate conflicts between degree-completion critical classes. On a programmatic level this can apply to a blended mix of classes among wholly online and wholly on-campus and blended classes.
Active: Active learning is inherent in most blended courses - both the online and the on-campus segments. It includes interaction, engagement, and activities rather than the one-way passive approaches of lectures, videos, and reading without follow-up activities.
eLearning Continuum
Online teaching spans a continuum from supplemental use of technology to enhance face-to-face learning, through a hybrid mix of face-to-face and online instruction, to fully online courses delivered to learners who may never meet in a classroom on campus.
Most often in preparing to blend, we begin with the end! (with the learning outcomes)
What are the learning outcomes we seek?
How can we best reach those outcomes?
When, where, in what environment, with whom, using what tools.... ?
For example - a capstone class may be something like this:
On-campus meeting to make acquaintances and break the ice
Online article critiques
Online group special topic / project work
Online research of final paper
Face-to-face meeting at the annual professional conference (eg American Historical Assn. or American Psychological Assn.) where students attend sessions with the faculty member and hold face-to-face discussions and present their final papers
Some Common Blended Program Models
Rotation Model In class then out of class
Self Blend Model Blended program comprised of online classes and on-campus classes
Bookend Model Begin with on-campus to establish parameters and introductions, go online, back to on-campus for midterm, back online, closing sessions and final on-campus
Flex Program Model All of the curriculum is available online - on-campus sessions are also available on a flexible basis when students (or the instructor) deems desireable
As Michael Horn reminds us - forget best practices; determine what works for you in your unique situation:
http://thejournal.com/articles/2012/03/01/forget-about-blended-learning-best-practices.aspx
Applying to your course:
Examine your list of learning objectives; which are cognitive - which are active - which are higher order? http://www.odu.edu/educ/roverbau/Bloom/blooms_taxonomy.htm
What portions of your class are now one-way; that is in which you lecture or demonstrate? (can this be done outside?)
What portions of your class are now active; that is students are doing things either individually or as a group? (eg lab)
What activities may be designed that would encourage higher levels of competency in the top four Bloom categories?
What can we expect of the online portions of the blend? What happens to deep thinking, reflection, discussion, active learning?
The National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) asked those questions in 2008:
http://nsse.iub.edu/nSSe_2008_results/ pp. 15-16
NSSE 2008
Controlling for student and institutional characteristics, the
percent of first-year courses primarily delivered online was
positively related to active and collaborative learning. Though
this result seems counterintuitive, the online setting may offer
more opportunities for collaboration and faculty who teach
online courses may be more intentional about fostering active
learning experiences, such as asking questions or participating
in discussions. For both first-year students and seniors, the
percent of courses delivered primarily online was significantly
related to level of academic challenge. Online courses seem to
stimulate more intellectual challenge and educational gains.
This suggests that integrating technology-enhanced courses
into the curriculum for all students might have some salutary
benefits. On the other hand, it is also possible that faculty who
are incorporating new technologies are inherently more inclined
to provide engaging experiences for their students, regardless
of how content is delivered.
Advantages and Challenges of Blended Learning
As we begin, let's take an inventory of what we perceive may be the advantages and the challenges of blended learning. Here's a beginning - please come up with one or two advantages and challenges:
Advantages:
Putting lectures online enables students to view them at their own pace, at their chosen time and place
Incorporating online segments into the class encourages "active" learning among students
.......
Challenges:
Determining what parts of the class can best be taught online and those that are best face-to-face
Monitoring outside work and keeping in touch with students without weekly meetings on campus
Best Practices in Online Teaching - Pulling It All Together - Teaching Blended Learning Courses
by: Larry Ragan.
Blended Learning Formats
One of the initial questions that arise when first considering teaching in a blended format is what the exact make-up of the course should be; in other words, how much time should be spend in each of the two modes of instruction. The short answer is that there is not a single “right” ratio of face-to-face and online time. Each course is a unique case.
Blended courses show enormous variety in how the face-to-face ratio to online time is distributed. For example, some instructors might choose to replace one class per week with online assignments. Others might meet with their students in class for several weeks and then suspended class meetings for several weeks as the students worked independently or in teams on online assignments. What’s right for your course will be a decision you’ll make after considering your course objectives, and weighing the benefits of each of the instructional modalities for reaching those objectives.
The courses described above, which move some instruction online and have a resulting reduction in the amount of time spend in a face to face classroom setting, follow the “replacement” model: the time previously spent in class has been shifted to online instructional time. It is possible to add online content to a face-to-face course without replacing any classroom time. Consider a situation in which a math instructor provides online practice problems to students, allowing them to work on problems at their convenience. This example could be seen as a “web-enhanced” course, because the online materials are supplemental to the face-to-face instruction. For the most part, blended learning courses aim to replace face-to-face time.
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.
What do you see as appealing to you as a faculty member? For example, I appreciate:
The online portion gives me freedom to work with students who need my help
The online portion gives me freedom to attend conferences and make presentations while I continue to teach online
What do you see as appealing to your students? For example, they might appreciate:
Using social media to discuss topics for a group project
Meeting at their own place and time - perhaps at the student union or a local pub in the evening - rather than 9 am in the classroom
Gasoline savings for commuter students (an average class may meet 45 times a semester- average commute may be 20 miles each way - reduce by 30 trips to campus times 40 miles round trip = 1,200 miles / 20 mpg = 60 gallons * $5.00/gallon = $300 savings in gasoline)
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
Student Expectations
Blended learning students require a greater ability to regulate their work and manage their own time. This is because they have fewer in-class meetings, and thus may not realize that they are falling behind in the course. Many blended instructors report significant problems with students not taking responsibility for their courses and with students' poor time management skills.
In addition, some instructors have found that students occasionally assume that online and blended courses are inherently “easier” than traditional face-to-face courses. This can create problems when the rigors of the course surpass the expectations of some students. Again, a well-constructed syllabus can provide the essential details on what exactly is expected of students, thereby mitigating possible confusion on the part of students.
http://cnx.org/content/m15048/latest/
EDUCAUSE Resources
7 Things You Should Know about THE HyFlex COURSE MODEL
http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ELI7066.pdf
142 EDUCAUSE Reources on Hybrid or Blended Learning
http://www.educause.edu/Resources/Browse/HybridorBlendedLearning/33312
Designing Blended Learning Space to the Student Experience (EDUCAUSE)
http://www.educause.edu/learningspacesch11
Sebastian Thrun Announces Udacity
How can we apply some of what Sebastian Thrun says to blended learning?
Can the blend make the class more accessible to those with job, family and other commitments?
Can the blend help to make the class less of a "weeder" and more of a cultivator of learning?
What techniques can blending employ to enable the slow bicycle learner to succeed?
Can combining the outside-the-classroom with the in-class experience make the class more personal?
Bridging the blend:
When do we stop "telling" students about things and release them to "do" things? Is there learning in failure, trying again, and succeeding? How effective is this as a learning strategy?
This little two-minute video from the founder of MIT Media Labs gives us an example - a blended learning example.
And, where is this done? Is it inside the classroom or outside? Is it done with the help of the instructor or as a team of students?
(or all of the above)
Blending outside the box - one example:
Let's say you have a colleague who teaches in Maine or Canada or Australia. This person is an expert in one aspect of the class you teach. A blend may be to schedule a "Collaborate" or "Adobe Connect" or even "Skype" session with the colleague. You discuss the topic with students asking questions via chat window - the session is scheduled at your/your colleague's convenience. Students join from the dorm, home or work. The session is recorded for those who cannot make the alternative meeting time. With a promise to reciprocate, you invite your colleague to join your discussion board for a week while the students examine that topic.
How might this work in one of your classes?
Online Learning Manifesto - University of Edinburgh
A manifesto for teaching online from Jen Ross on Vimeo.
Choose one of these points, identify two or three examples, and briefly (one minute) report on how this might best impact the development of a blended class:
Distance is a positive principle, not a deficit. Online can be the privileged mode.
The possibility of the ‘online version’ is overstated. The best online courses are born digital.
By redefining connection we find we can make eye contact online.
‘Best practice’ is a totalising term blind to context – there are many ways to get it right.
Every course design is philosophy and belief in action.
The aesthetics of online course design are too readily neglected: courses that are fair of (inter)face are better places to teach and learn in.
Online courses are prone to cultures of surveillance: our visibility to each other is a pedagogical and ethical issue.
Text is being toppled as the only mode that matters in academic writing.
Visual and hypertextual representations allow arguments to emerge, rather than be stated.
New forms of writing make assessors work harder: they remind us that assessment is an act of interpretation.
Feedback can be digested, worked with, created from. In the absence of this, it is just ‘response’.
Assessment strategies can be designed to allow for the possibility of resistance.
A routine of plagiarism detection structures-in a relation of distrust.
Assessment is a creative crisis as much as it is a statement of knowledge.
Place is differently, not less, important online.
Closed online spaces limit the educational power of the network.
Online spaces can be permeable and flexible, letting networks and flows replace boundaries.
Course processes are held in a tension between randomness and intentionality.
Online teaching should not be downgraded into ‘facilitation’.
Community and contact drive good online learning.
How can we "keep up" with the changes, the trends, the research in this field?
http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/onlinelearning/blogger.html
http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/blogger.html
Some perceptions from faculty members "down under" -
Discussion - How do these perspectives from Australia relate to UTSA?
We will address design approaches in our afternoon workshop! https://sites.google.com/site/blendedlearningdesign/
Next Steps:
Review materials from the afternoon workshop to consider course design approaches and principles
Review the learning outcomes in your class
Contact the Teaching and Learning Center http://utsa.edu/tlc/Faculty/index.html to begin discussing re-design
Tailor your changes to best meet learning objectives; re-consider the way your deliver learning opportunities
Consider rolling out changes incrementally over two or more semesters
Work with the TLC to establish ways you can collect student input to help assess the changes
Follow the literature through the blogs to keep updated on opportunities and new possibilities
Contact information:
Ray Schroeder
UPCEA Innovation Fellow
Associate Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs
University of Illinois Springfield
One University Plaza
Springfield, IL 62703
http://sites.google.com/site/rayschroeder
217-206-7531
