September 2008
:: Learning Technologies
a monthly newsletter about learning, teaching, & technology
from the Reinert Center for Teaching Excellence

: Blended Courses--Fad or the Future?

When considering non-traditional ways of course delivery, we most often think of fully online courses, which have proven to be effective in reaching learners who have geographic or personal situations that prevent them from physically coming to campus. When they first start teaching online, many faculty are surprised to see traditional undergraduates who live on campus enrolled in an online section. However, It's not at all uncommon for today's "traditional" student to have a mix of face to face and online courses. A growing body of research indicates that it's also not uncommon for traditional undergraduates to be enrolled as residential students at their primary institution, while at the same time taking online courses at other institutions. Carol Twig, Executive Director of the Center for Academic Transformation at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute discusses this phenomenon in The Impact of the Changing Economy on Four Year Institutions: The Importance of the Internet, a chapter in The Knowledge Economy and Post Secondary Education.(Follow the link in the Resource section.)

So how can a professor offer an effective course, while dealing with competition from other institutions, students working more hours than ever, childcare issues, rising gas prices, and pressures to incorporate technology into the classroom? Blended learning might be the answer. (Hybrid courses are another term for blended learning.) Blending is a combination of face to face and online experiences. It can happen at a programmatic level or a course level. For example, in a blended master's program, students might find some courses offered only face-to-face, some courses offered online fully online, and some courses having some sessions online and some face to face.

Blending at the course level means that some meetings would be face to face, and some work would be done online, replacing face to face meetings. It really is the best of both worlds in that blending offers the students some flexibility around travel, childcare, and work issues, while allowing the department or individual professor to determine which courses or course activities would work well online and which they prefer to keep in the traditional classroom.

Planning and organization are key to developing a blended course or program. Analyzing learning goals and activities to determine exactly what should go online and what would work best face to face takes time and buy-in on all levels from administrator to instructor to student. This fall, we'll be exploring these and other issues surrounding the world of blended learning. In the meantime, we encourage you to explore the studies, and Chronicle conversation listed in the Resource Section.

Are you teaching a hybrid or blended course? We'd love to feature your experience in an upcoming newsletter. Contact Sandy Gambill at 977-7202 if you'd like to share your expertise.

Resources
The Knowledge Economy and Postsecondary Education: Report of a Workshop

Hybrid Courses: Obstacles and Solutions for Faculty and Students

Is Blended Learning Effective? a study from University Missouri Columbia

University of Houston: Hybrid Courses More Effective for Students

A current Chronicle of Higher Education discussion on Teaching Hybrid Courses

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