A Best Practices Guide for Blended Learning

Moving Your Classroom to a New Level:

A Best Practices Guide for Blended Learning

Introduction

So you are thinking about moving from a face-to-face training format to a blended training format.  Be advised that not all classroom activities easily transfer over to online activities.  Use these tips to help guide you through the transition of moving to a blended learning model.

10 Tips for Success

1.  Pick your model- There are several blended models choose from.  Each has its own characteristics depending on the type of students you will have in your course.  Select this link to learn more about the different models. 

2.  Start from scratch- Activities used in the classroom may not transfer well to the online environment.  A blended approach needs a new viewpoint.  The focus of instruction shifts to visual presentations, engaged learners, and careful timing of presentations of information (Simonson, Smaldino, & Zvacek, 2015).  When revising instructional materials, consider ways to illustrate key concepts using visual representations (e.g., tables, figures) (Simonson et al., 2015).

3.  Design to meet outcomes- There are a lot of Web 2.0 tools available.  However, do not use a tool just because it offers many bells and whistles.  Keep in mind that students are better able to focus on essential material when extraneous material is eliminated from a multimedia presentation (Mayer, 2007).  Along with that, visual text and graphics are the most popular tools in online learning (Kim and Gilman, 2008).  Whatever tools or applications are used, make sure that they are aligned with the course objectives and goals.  If there is any doubt, see the next tip; Get help.  

4.  Get help- Models for classroom instructional delivery and models for online delivery are vastly different (Moller, Foshay, and Huett, 2008).  An instructional designer can be a great asset in helping to create an effective online course.  Instructional designers can create a clear framework outlining the goals, delivery, and structure of the e-leaning program with clear benchmarks for success (Moller et al., 2008).  Inform the instructional designer of what you are trying to achieve and they can provide ideas and solutions to your needs.  

5.  Know your role- In this blended environment you will operate as a facilitator.  The learners will be responsible for their learning but in this new role, you will still need to guide them and be available for support.  Your online presence is essential and can be demonstrated through your interaction with the students as well as promoting student-to-student interactions.   

6.  Prepare the learners- This may be the first time the student has participated in a blended learning course so you may want to provide an orientation and rationale for using this approach (Malamed, n.d.).  The orientation can be useful in informing the students of the types of applications and tools they will be required to use.

7.  Collaboration- In order to create deeper learning for students, it is important that they are interacting and communicating with each other.  Consider using a discussion forum where students can respond to a topic you have selected that is relevant to the current lesson.  Discussions encourage active learning, opportunity for reflection, and interaction with fellow students (TravelinEdMan, 2010).  The responses may generate interesting threads and you can also see if they are grasping the new information.  Blogs and wikis are also great ways for students to communicate and demonstrate their knowledge of concepts.  You may consider using those tools if they are appropriate for your course.

8.  Set expectations- At the start of the course/training, set rules, guidelines, and standards and ensure you enforce them.  Give students due dates for assignments as well as any discussion posts.  All assignments should have a rubric explaining the criteria and specific expectations.  When students know when assignments are due and the expectations, they can better balance their personal time and other responsibilities (Simonson et al., 2015).

9.  Technical issues- Students will encounter technical problems.  Students should be provided

information on who to contact in case of a technical issue.  However, as the instructor, you should be able to help students solve basic problems.  In order to eliminate confusion, provide students with a plan in case they have a technical problem as well as an alternative means of communication (e.g., phone, email) (Simonson et al., 2015).

10.  Evaluate the program- When the course is finally launched and materials are available online, they should be readily accessible for the student.  It is frustrating for students who begin an online course only to find that they cannot access what they need (Simonson et al., 2015).  The Quality Matters rubric is a great tool for evaluating online and hybrid/blended course designs (Woods, 2014).  

References

Malamed, C. (n.d.). Best practices in blended learning. The eLearning Coach. Retrieved from http://theelearningcoach.com/elearning2-0/best-practices-in-blended-learning/

Mayer, R. E. (2007). Five features of effective multimedia messages: An evidence-based approach. In Fiore, S. M., & Salas, E. (Eds.). Toward a science of distributed learning (pp. 171–184). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.

Moller, L., Foshay, W., & Huett, J. (2008). The evolution of distance education: Implications for instructional design on the potential of the web (Part 2: Higher education). TechTrends, 52(4), 66–70. Retrieved from http://eds.b.ebscohost.com.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=6a0d2a18-2e6f-440d-9da0-272ceda3dd91%40sessionmgr101&vid=14&hid=117

Quality Matters Rubric. (2013).  Standards from the QM Higher Education Rubric, Fifth ed. Retrieved from http://www.tamut.edu/Academics/Dept_of_Learning_Technologies/PDFs/QM%20Standards%20with%20Point%20Values%20Fifth%20Edition.pdf

Schrock, K. (n.d.). Online tools and Web 2.0 applications. Kathy Schrock’s guide to everything. Retrieved from http://www.schrockguide.net/online-tools.html

Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., & Zvacek, S. (2015). Teaching and learning at a distance: Foundations of distance education (6^th ed.). Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing, Inc.

Thompson, J. (February, 2016). 6 Blended learning models: When blended learning is what’s up for successful students. eLearning Industry. Retrieved from

TravelinEdMan. (2010, July 31). 3. Managing an online course: discussion forums. [Video File].  Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uTpEVLxbcvQ

Woods Jr, D. R.  (2014). Applying the Quality Matters (QM)(TM) Rubric to improve online business course materials. Research in Higher Education Journal, 23, 1–10. Retrieved from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1064131.pdf