Blend Learning with These 4 Essential Ingredients

Throughout my time in educational technology and more specifically, blended learning, I have often had occasion to ask fellow educators about their understanding of blended learning. Nearly all of them accurately assert that it is the combination of face-to-face and online instruction. However, for many educators, that is the extent of their knowledge about blended learning. I can hardly fault them for this lack of understanding since there are about as many definitions for blended learning as there are days of the week. The truth is blended learning is a very complex instructional strategy that stretches far beyond just the use of technology. Despite the many definitions of blended learning, most experts agree that the following elements are essential to true blended. 1.       Real-time Data – This is one of the greatest advantages to using technology. Most educational software today provides students and teachers with instant reports on how well a student understands a concept. Studies have shown that quicker feedback to students leads to higher student achievement. Teachers are able to use the valuable information from software reports to address specific areas of need for each student. Another benefit for teachers is that grading papers is not necessary to assess student understanding.

2.       Personalization – For years we have known in education that a more personalized approach to learning is essential to the success of all students. Technology has increased our ability to provide a more personalized learning experience for students like never before. Technology can serve to pinpoint specific areas of need for each student. An example of this would be an assessment on adding fractions. If a student does not pass the assessment, where is the misunderstanding? Is it that the student does not understand fractions or that they do not understand addition? With accurate data to provide teachers information on each student’s specific strengths and areas of need, teachers can adjust instruction to work with smaller groups focused on the specific needs of those students.

3.       Student Choice – Students should have some control over the pace, place, and/or path of their learning. This is sometimes a difficult one for teachers to embrace. But consider your own learning experiences. We all tend to become more engaged in activities where we have some choice as to how we learn it. A teacher once told me that she gave a writing assignment where she allowed students to choose their own topic. As a result, she read many enthusiastic essays about video games. She was a bit uneasy about this until I reminded her that the standard being assessed involved developing informative writing. The important part was the type of writing, not the topic. By allowing students some flexibility to choose how they would demonstrate their understanding of informative writing, they became much more engaged in the activity.

4.       Mastery-based – I am not going to argue for or against standards-based grading here. Most educators can agree, though, that mastery of content is the primary goal of education. Quite simply, we expect students to learn the material. Again, the use of educational technology can be tremendously helpful in providing remediation and specific emphasis on the areas where students require additional help. In many subjects it is imperative that students master content in one area before proceeding to the next. When teachers have the capacity to determine where student learning gaps exist, it becomes much easier to address these gaps before moving forward. Blended learning makes this possible.

Ultimately, blended learning is not a buzzword or a gimmick. It is an instructional strategy that, when properly executed, can enhance learning for all students.