Blended learning is now widely used as the preferred mode of delivery for many higher education institutions in responding to the needs of their students. The latter wanting more flexibility and convenience in their studies to complement their work schedules and family commitments. However, students pursuing "blended" courses for the first time need to be oriented to the blended mode of programme delivery. Is there a model for developing such an orientation for higher education students?
Hi Debra,
When I was at graduate school well over 30 years ago, a professor started a course in blended learning as an elective. He advertised it and I signed up as a drama, literacy person. In the course were engineers, mathematicians, designers, photographers; a wonderful mix of talents. The professor then presented us with real problems needed in the society and we elected to group ourselves based on our expertise and interest. I was on a team that was asked to devise media for young and very sick children going through a heart monitoring test where they had to be still for 4 hours but not overly stimulated. It was ultimately the greatest learning experience of my life. The media we created was operated by a child's foot and was used for many years at the local hospital.
There was the model you seek. An authentic problem, a mixed group of talents, choice and engagement!
Blended or integrated teaching and learning where you use modelling, project based in all engineering courses, problem based in humanities and Business studies and take a tour of norm reference and criterion reference assessments.
Hi Debra,
I haven't done any formal research, but anecdotally (based on my experience) a key component of a successful first year experience for students occurs at Orientation. I run the Orientation program for a large Bachelor of Education (Primary) degree and have noticed in past years that student experience of a modern blended learning university did not match their initial expectations of what uni would be like. Consequently, I spend a significant amount of time at orientation and in initial lectures, explaining and demonstrating that their university learning will be characterised by a mixture of face to face, blended and solely online courses. Initial feedback indicates that this softens the blow a little for the first year students. Hope this helps, Kevin.
Hi Debra - most of the theses my students have dpne are case studies within the schooling rather than the higher education context but I will keep my eye out for ones that come in from colleagues students in higher education research to our committee of assessors and forward you their details.
I do not have any research on a model as I was a pioneer*. I “followed my nose” and just did it. My blended teaching evolved naturally and incrementally. Here is the history, which I present as my responses to pressures. The pressures are “I should be doing this better (didactically, economically or administratively)”. I present the historic model as me being steered (oriented) into blended learning. In fact, I like to think that I was actually brainwashing (orienting) the students into accepting blended learning. The following is an over-simplified and merged account (I taught several subjects, and what I learned from one class I applied immediately in the others). My induction model would be to incrementally “pretend” to students that we were responding to their pressures, but actually doing what we thought was best anyway!
1. The students wanted copies of the slides.
2. I converted the inherited overhead slides to HTML and printed them.
3. The students now wanted my lecture notes.
4. I expanded the notes to become a mini textbook and I data-projected it (Using Firefox, not Powerpoint).
5. The students now wanted my mini textbook.
6. For the students I printed them a black-and-white mini textbook.
7. The admin staff now wanted to reduce costs, and the students wanted colour, so I made and distributed CD-ROMS of the mini textbook.
8. I wanted no assignments to get sneaked past the admin staff, and nobody to be pressurised to take late entries. WebCT / Blackboard came along and so I was able to use it to accept student assignments up to my deadline with no late entries. At last I could go fairly through all assignments, marking section by section. Our computer lab ran induction courses for the students on how they were to use Blackboard.
9. The students now wanted immediate feedback. When a student asked a question (only acceptable after class or via Blackboard), I would answer the student, and if it was of general interest, I would class it as a Frequently Asked Question (even though it was only posed by one student). I would post the “FAQs” for the benefit of all, unless the student specifically labelled the question “Confidential”. I was on-line a lot and gave replies promptly. I did not hold “office hours”. Students were not to come to my office, because then other students would not benefit.
10. Students sat stone-faced in the lecture theatre because they had read the lectures beforehand or knew that they could. My material was so extensive that some students did not even need to come to lectures. I had stopped producing CD-ROMs, as the students could now download all material from Blackboard onto their precious little memory sticks. I was now delivering material 2 ways: Traditional lecture, and Blackboard. Blended learning had arrived thanks to me and I retired. In theory, the classes could now become distance education classes.
*My Pre-Blackboard paper is in RG and is linked below.
Conference Paper Why not use digital media exclusively?
Folks and especially Ian, thank you for sharing your pioneering experiences and models with me, so I can learn from them. You've most helpful.
Many thanks,
Debra
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