At its core, blended learning is learning that takes place partially in a face-to-face, in-person setting and partially in a virtual, online setting. Blended learning leans on the idea that both face-to-face and online learning offer significant benefits and advantages, and the teacher will draw upon the best practices and advantages of each option.
While the implementation of blended learning may look different from classroom to classroom, they all should include four basic components to be considered high-quality blended learning:
1. Face-to-Face Instruction and Learning: For some of the learning, students must learn offline and be in the same physical space as the teacher. This doesn’t mean that students can’t be engaged with tech at all. They could be referencing a digital textbook or taking notes, but the main engagement should be offline, with significant human-to-human interaction taking place.
2. Digital or Online Instruction and Learning: To be considered blended learning, part of the experience also needs to be facilitated primarily through an online or digital channel. This could be facilitated through a video, a digital text, or an interactive website. These digital experiences can take place either inside or outside of the classroom’s physical space.
3. An Integration of the Face-to-Face and Online Learning Work: While sometimes overlooked, this is a very important part of the equation. For blended learning to really work, the face-to-face and online parts of the lesson need to work together and support the achievement of a common academic objective. One modality should build on the other, thereby strengthening the overall learning.
For instance, a student might participate in a flipped lesson, where they watch a video to learn content. Then, the students might apply the skills learned in the video by engaging with other students in an offline environment. Sometimes, it works the other way around, with the teacher facilitating a face-to-face learning experience that sets up the online work. In either case, if the two parts are not tied together, then learning isn’t really “blended.”
4. Student Control of the Pace, Place, Path and/or Time of the Learning: Part of what makes blended learning powerful and effective is that some degree of control over the learning gets transferred from the teacher to the student. Students become more empowered, and they have increased ownership of their learning. Specifically, in high-quality blended learning, students should control one or more of the following elements of learning:
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- Pace: Students choose how fast to move through the content. This doesn’t mean that there is no due date, but it does mean that students have flexibility for how long they spend on certain components of the learning before moving on. Students who are advanced don’t need to wait for others, and students who need a little more time can take it. Varied pace can be a great way to differentiate in a blended classroom.
- Place: Students decide where they will complete their lessons. When students are not in their physical classrooms, they can complete their digital work anywhere they have access to the internet. Inside a traditional classroom, teachers can employ flexible seating or allow students to choose the location within the classroom where they learn best.
- Path: Students choose how they will learn the content. This may take a bit more planning on the teacher’s part, but it allows students to truly learn in the way that works best for them. Sometimes, this means choosing to work alone or with a partner. Other times, it means choosing the medium for the content, such as text, video, or audio. Still, at other times, students may be allowed to develop their own learning path via the inquiry process. One popular method for differentiating learning paths is to offer a choice board, where students then choose one learning activity from each column. This ensures that they complete the necessary components of the lesson while also giving them choice.
- Time: Students decide when they will complete their lessons. Again, this does not mean that there are no deadlines, but it does mean that students can choose when to do their work within the time frame allotted, as long as it’s finished by the due date. For instance, a teacher might assign five learning tasks to be completed during the week and then let students choose which day to work on which item. Students have flexibility as long as they get everything done by the end of the week.
Integrating successful blended learning often means finding that sweet spot on the continuum between all tech and no tech. It means leveraging the benefits of both online and offline environments and strategically designing learning experiences that maximize each learning opportunity. When blended learning is done well, there are many benefits for students, as teachers are able to:
- Leverage advantages of both the online and offline environments.
- Empower students with more control over pace, place, path, and time.
- Give students greater ownership over their learning.
- Enhance personalized learning.
- Provide more timely feedback.
- Extend additional opportunities for working one-on-one with students.
- Help students with developing life skills and becoming more empowered learners.
AVID Connections
This resource connects with the following components of the AVID College and Career Readiness Framework:
- Instruction
- Student Agency
- Break Down Barriers
- Align the Work
Extend Your Learning
- What Is Blended Learning? (Blended Learning Universe)
- Research Topic: Blended Learning (Clayton Christensen Institute)
- Dr. Catlin Tucker (official website)