How is Blended Learning a game-changer in Learning & Development?
It almost sounds vintage when remembering that learning was only found in classrooms filled with rows of chunky desktop computers. Smartphones, tablets and new development in the ICT area have made learning accessible to practically anyone, anywhere.
A vast number of companies, from worldwide enterprises and nonprofits to different organisations in the academic field, have discovered the benefits of eLearning. Blended learning brings together the best of face-to-face learning with the most notorious experience through online instruction to create a student-centred approach to teaching and learning. This has lead companies to replace their outdated on-site, instruction-led model of training with a more modern eLearning solution.
Blended learning is all about the students: combining instruction with digital resources to help increase student achievement and engagement (Chris Mattia, 2016)
Blended learning focuses on efficiency and sustainability, caring about student engagement and placing them in the centre of their development process. But, how does it look like, practically speaking? A course that takes the blended learning approach normally has a significant part of the learning process delivered in both a face-to-face classroom and online. The adaptability of the model enables the lecturer/facilitator/trainer with the flexibility to fine-tune their students’ needs. For this reason, it is a suitable solution at any educational level.
I frequently read, or get a glimpse of fear, from professionals in this sector, who consider blended learning being a threat to quality in education. I must say that I disagree with that statement. It is really about your students, about knowing yourself, and the course, and then finding the right combination of tools and techniques to help your students develop. One of the benefits of using blended learning is that it is not an all-or-nothing approach. It is more about picking and choosing the right blend for you and your students in your class to produce a great experience.
6 major reasons to implement blended learning in your course
Offers more flexibility
Blended learning classes offer flexibility for teachers in how they present material and for students in the pace and variety of the learning approaches they experience (Imagine learning, 2018). As a teacher, you are not tied up to a one-time-moment with your students. The learning process can start way before the class takes place: Videos, webinars, quizzes, exercises, tests, anything can be placed ready for the student to gain context on a specific subject before the face-to-face session is held.
Accessible any time
Time limitations are no longer a constriction in the learning process, you only need to have an internet connection. The online resources are always there to help — 24/7. In addition, if your blended learning strategy also offers a public forum, you can also learn from the experience of others and get your solution without the assistance of a responsible person from the teaching team (Applied educational systems, 2019). For those who work part/full-time, the commuters or anybody who cannot attend a specific session has the option to fill in the gaps with the available online resources.
Collaborative learning
This approach enables a good collaborative environment for all stakeholders. This exponentially increases collaboration not only amongst student and teacher but also between students themselves. Learners have available a large range of collaborative tools (interactive webinars, online forums, peer-review platforms, instant messages, among others) encouraging them to work with each other beyond the classroom. It creates a platform where all information, interaction or public feedback can be used by every single student in their learning process.
Track development in real-time
Digital equals data. That information helps us gain insights. When those insights are obtained through a platform created for learning purposes we can go in-detail with our course progress to a granular level.
It translates in the ability to visualise key performance indicators, track them and re-design the learning experience accordingly. All you need to do before starting the course is decide what are metrics that you want to assess and set a timeframe. You will be able to tweak the course along the way with the real-time results combined with your observations on the class performance.
Future-proof
Blended learning is scalable. As your institution grows so it does the resources needed to sustain traditional learning. By implementing a blended solution, you count with more resources than just manpower. Pairing face-to-face classes with eLearning, you are able to accommodate new students with a lower impact in your logistics.
In my former employer, we would have several offices around the world. Training sessions would accommodate up to twenty new employees. However, it would only be justified allocating a full-time trainer if we would get, at least, twelve new hires. What happened if we were able to hire only ten good candidates? Or if we would need two or three specialists for a specific position? How could we make it happen without incurring in any loss? Easy, blended learning. By mixing digital and in-class training, we would not depend on a full-time trainer to deliver the content, but we could tailor a learning experience with webinars, online assignments, conferences with training sessions being held in other offices, among other initiatives. Therefore, instead of waiting for the next in-site training session, new hires log on and start the learning process on day one. It is the most efficient way that you can turn your learning experience in future-proof.
Agile
A fast-paced environment is becoming the standard in both the academic and corporate world. The market changes rapidly and so does the learning and development needs for students and employees. In order to adapt rapidly to this flux of changes, an agile approach is required to successfully react and overcome those challenges.
With traditional learning, all the development is bid on one place: the classroom. The teacher/trainer/facilitator has a detailed curriculum to follow and, any deviation from it would require intensive preparing time to do research and incorporate it into a non-flexible programme. Implementing changes or updating content is slow, not cost-efficient and have limited scalability.
With blended learning, we work with extra-layers of resources and possibilities. With a modular mind-set, updating content or upgrading the experience does not compromise the current material. It is a platform that endures change.
Setbacks
As we can enumerate a vast number of benefits, there are also a number of setbacks when it comes to implementing blended learning. How much infrastructure has your organisation ready to implement this model?
In order to achieve the learning objectives of your blended learning program, the content developers use the technological tools and resources that are easy to use, reliable, and up-to-date. (…) Also, since blended learning is about technological dependence, there is a limitation with regards to the technical skills of both the instructors and the learners. Students and instructors who are not tech-savvy can face a great barrier in terms of smooth interactions. The participants will face difficulty in accessing the course material; therefore, this learning strategy must come with adequate technical support. (Raccongang, 2019).
Blended learning also has detractors among learners. A certain part of the population still prefers a traditional classroom environment with a full-time trainer on-site. It is important to have this part of the students into account and enable more catch-up sessions for groups (i.e.: through Q&A sessions). This will able to provide more personalised support remaining trustful to the model.
In a nutshell
The world is changing quickly. There is a major need and demand for flexibility and versatility when it comes to learning. With the current development of technology, we can use it to enhance the learning experience through blended learning.
Blended learning combines face-to-face in-class sessions and a wide range of eLearning solutions to complement the learning experience. By seeing it with a holistic approach, you are able to complement the experience prior, during and post the classroom session.
eLearning does not erase teachers, facilitators or deletes jobs. It supports all stakeholders in a rapid-grow environment, providing the flexibility needed to cover all needs: from tweaking the course for a specific audience to update and upgrade the content and flow of a course having a minimum impact time-wise.
Data is king. You will count with enormous amounts of data that will help you improve the experience at any time. It makes it easy to contrast, compare and identify the strong areas of your course and where you should pay attention to.
This model also encourages collaborative learning, peer review and communication among students. It is accessible all the time, from any place. It enables learning to those who work or have other responsibilities and cannot dedicate more time for studying.
And you, have you ever tried or experienced blended learning? What are your thoughts on this topic? Do you also think it is a game-changer? I would love to read your comments below.
