[Marc BeParticipant]

My definition for Blended Learning is based on teaching practice: Blended learning is an amalgam of traditional classroom instruction blended with computer software, hardware, internet, and web-based programmes.

Because the computer and the internet are de facto tools in education, the challenge for teachers is developing a process for leveraging the technology to empower student learning. Technology should never drive student learning; in fact, effective education is putting the student in charge of his own learning. In addition, the computer and the internet provide incisive and innovative ways to teach to the multiple intelligences that students have.

Howard Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences reveals that today’s students have different strengths and learn in different  ways. Blended learning facilitates the use of a child’s multiple intelligences: for example, a student whose strength is intrapersonal communication can learn on his own through programmes such as MOODLE or Nicenet. He does not have to be restricted to the traditional classroom setting; he can learn at his own pace and engage in reflective thinking as he works on his assignments. He is not one hundred percent dependent on classroom interaction or teacher feedback; rather, he can learn on his own–depending on the subject material and the age of the student, of course–taking advantage of the available technology.

Blended learning also facilitates Project-based learning and Project-oriented learning. The technology tools, or mind tools as David Jonassen, empower student creativity. Apps, software, the internet and devices such as tablets are tools that students can use to answer driving and complex questions which form the platform for Project-based learning. Students can investigate problems on a broader and deeper level; a community of learners can be developed from around the world through Skype or Facetime; and the software allows students to publish and present their work in a dynamic and creative manner.

Blended learning provides for differentiated instruction. A students IEP (individualized educational plan) can be developed with the purpose of using technology to empower students to learn. Through Knovio.com or webpages, a teacher can use the technology to provide additional guidance or learning activities for students who struggle academically.

Nevertheless, Blended learning has several challenges. If siblings are in a school which expects students to use computers, smartphones, iPads, or tablets for learning, is a family expected to purchase thousands of dollars of computers? Not all families have the economic means to purchase the electronic devices that are necessary for learning.

A second challenge for Blended Learning is its very purpose. In Alberta, grade 12 diploma exams have excessive heft; therefore, the main purpose of classroom instruction for diploma core courses is to prepare students to do well on the diploma exam, an exam which is worth fifty percent of the final grade. Therefore, Blended Learning–and its associated benefits, such as Project-based learning–is sacrificed for curriculum content coverage. Consequently, teachers may choose not to incorporate Blended Learning; teachers may choose to rely on traditional classroom instruction.

A third challenge for Blended Learning is velocity. With technology, software, and programmes evolving so quickly, teachers have to work hard to understand how the latest technology works and how it can be used in the classroom. By introducing podcasts into classroom instruction, the teacher must now serve as the de facto expert and troubleshooter when students are working on their podcasts.

Teachers must be experts in both their content area and in the technology they are using; consequently, their workload increases substantially.

In my classroom, my instructional practice has utilized blended learning. I use Knovio, nicenet.org, the internet, Bookbuilder, and other programmes to teach. My goal is not to restrict students’ learning to forty-two minutes (junior high class length) or eighty-four minutes (senior high class length); rather, I want to expand the time students spend working on their assignments and I want the schedule to be flexible so students can learn when they choose. The webpages and software that I use provides me the opportunity to expand the time students work on English and it allows them to have the flexibility and responsibility they need to be successful. Traditional classroom instruction, with its face-to-face format places the teacher at the centre of learning.

Blended learning shifts the locus from teacher to student: the student now has the tools and the empowerment to learn on his own and with his own multiple intelligences.

As it should be.

 

 

[Author]

Posts