The purpose of a study completed by the Center for Excellence and Teaching was to determine if e-learning has caused problems in higher education settings. To do so, a case study at E-College of Wales was conducted. The researchers wanted to examine two types of e-learning approaches. The first is an e-learning only approach to college. The second is a more blended combination of classes on campus as well as online. The hope was to understand what effect e-learning has on students, faculty, as well as management.
The researchers found that the first year of a student’s college career should be focused more on a blended learning approach in comparison to e-learning only. It was concluded that e-learning can be very disruptive to a student’s learning habits. Therefore, when universities are considering e-learning, they need to remember that a more blended approach should give students a better learning environment.
Another study was conducted by Bersin and Associates over a two year period that found the same results as the Center for Excellence and Teaching. They studied blended learning programs and interviewed over 30 different companies in order to find out if e-learning or blended approaches seemed to work the best. They found that the blended learning approach was the most cost effective and had the highest impact for learners.
You can find more information about the blended learning approach at the Encyclopedia of Educational Technology.
I have had a blended learning experience. One third of my classes have been online-only, one third in the classroom-only, and the other one third have been blended. I highly prefer the blended classes. The online classes are a close second, far ahead of the classroom-only classes.
ReplyDeleteI would like to pose the question: Why does the Center for Excellence and Teaching study not include a classroom only cohort? This control group is important. I question the validity and reliability of this study.
I do agree with Jessica that the Center for Excellence and Teaching did leave out a few things in the study. However, I think that with the changes and advancements in educational technology, a blended approach to learning will become the "norm." I think it will become much more popular due to scheduling conflicts and other situations outside of the classroom.
ReplyDeleteI also believe that it provides each learner with a more well-rounded educational curriculum. With the issues brought up in past blog entries, we have discussed providing a curriculum for all types of learners (those who don't like to speak up, those who do speak up and need the professor/student interaction, and even those with disabilities). I personally have had my own struggles with technology in our current class (I've never been able to get my microphone to work when we are online), but I have learned more by having to do other online assignments. For example, I am a student who needs the interaction, but I have had to learn to use Illuminate and how to communicate and receive that "interaction" throughout the semester. It's not my favorite learning method, but it has forced me to learn to utilize a new teaching style.
Overall, I think using a blended approach will allow teachers to utilize technology but at the same time reach out to a multitude of learners that you cannot always do when "trapped" inside a classroom.
A blended approach seems like a good idea as long as time required on line is substituted for some class attendance. What I am thinking is that if the student has to attend class and do a slew of on line work then it may tend to overload the student. Another factor is the technology. No all students can afford the latest and greatest technology that bastions of higher education are able and insist upon having. If a student is on older versions of software and the teacher uses the newest then there can be a problem that become prohibitive.
ReplyDeleteI agree that moving toward the “blended” or “hybrid” style of learning will become more the norm. I have seen this trend in my mater’s course work at the University of Virginia over the past few years. Most traditional face-to-face courses are required to have an online supplement to the coursework using Blackboard. The most common Blackboard feature used is the Discussion Board Tool.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with previous post that the study should compare the traditional face-to-face courses to the blended and completely online courses. Personally, I enjoy the face-to-face interaction that comes with the traditional “in-class” model. An additional study could look deeper to compare the rigor of course work between the different learning models. Finding a balance in the type and amount of course works no matter the platform seems to be evolving. There is no perfect formula to follow, but I would be interested to compare over-all trends with my personal experiences in the different delivery styles.
In closing, I do not believe EVERY course needs an online component; however, as previously stated I do see this becoming more of a trend.
Depending on what I was learning would determine if I wanted to use e-learning or the blended learning approach. I also prefer blended learning than to just classroom only classes myself, but there is the construction of the class that will probably make this blended learning process the most effective. From my experience with the our Ed Tech class, it has been very difficult for me when we are learning new applications in Elluminate. I feel as though I learn more when they are presented during the in class portion of the course. I don't know what it is maybe I need a bigger example to compare what I am doing to, or actual f2f interaction with the professor, it just doesn't work out well for me. I think that the blended learning can take into account those that learn through classroom interactions as well.
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ReplyDeleteThis semester is the first time that I have ever had any significant portion of my class-work online, and I have already noticed the importance of organization and technology quality. If online material is not constructed in the right way, it can be very confusing and almost make the learning process even more difficult than it already is without face-to-face communication. Also, while quality of technology was alluded to by Marianne, I do not feel that it can be stressed enough. My computer is a little old, but it is a very quality machine, and I still think that it might crash if I ever try to use Sumo Paint while on Elluminate again. I am thankful that I have the means to purchase a new computer if it ever goes the way of the dodo bird, but others might not be able to replace a broken machine. In the event that someone does not have a computer at all, then they would have to go to a computer. For some people, traveling to a computer for class wouldn't be much different from traveling to a classroom. To sum up, I feel that if you have organized online content and reliable technology, then blended learning is an option. To determine if it is the right option, one must look at his or her own learning style and, as Nina mentioned the class subject being offered.
ReplyDeleteI have read many articles on the effects of blended learning for our foundations course. I think that it is a great approach to higher education and especially training programs. Training that is strictly done in the classroom or strictly done online does not have the same positive benefits that a blended approach has. It allows the users a sense of flexibility along with structure, as much of an oxymoron as that sounds.
ReplyDeleteBlended learning is a great idea. I think that having some classes on online and having others face-to-face is very effective. It keeps students from getting bored of either attending class in person all the time or attending class on the computer all the time.
ReplyDeleteBlended learning also allows for students to have more flexibility. If some students have full time jobs blended learning can alleviate some of the stress that can occur by having to make it on-campus.
There is a nice combination of social interaction and flexibility associated with blended learning.
Everyone is bringing up great points, but I'm going to discuss the sentence in the blog stating, "The researchers found that the first year of a student’s college career should be focused more on a blended learning approach in comparison to e-learning only."
ReplyDeleteI hope this isn't going to far off on a tangent, but this comment concerns me as a professional that works with first-year students daily and studied the development of a first-year student in my Master's program at Syracuse University. This sentence states that blended learning is better then e-learning only. I agree. However, how is blended learning compared to classroom learning for a first year student? Many of my first-year advisees that are participating in a blended learning course meet with me and are very frustrated with the experience. Often, they're meeting with me during the first week to get out of the class and into a different class for the semester. I'm concerned with blended learning for first-year students because they have never had that experience before in High School. There are so many transitional concerns for first-year students - trying to figure out what academic rigor is in a college environment, re-learning how to study and succeed academically, and all of the social transitions. Can we wait on their transition from a traditional educational environment in the classroom to blended learning?
I believe that this transition would best happen in the sophomore year, after the student has a year under their belt to make all of the other academic transitions that college requires. If you haven't heard, there's something called the "Sophomore Slump" for second-year college students. This might be an ideal time to introduce the blended learning environment to combat the sophomore slump and reenergize them for academics and the ways in which we can learn.