After hearing about MOOCs for the past several years (and the fear that a MOOC could have a negative effect on college enrollment), I finally decided to explore and see what is out there. I began my first MOOC - Blendkit 2015 (Blended Learning Toolkit) over the past week. As a university professor, we are offering more courses in different formats and I wanted to explore to see what may be the most effective.
The following are notes from "Understanding Blended Learning" 2nd edition edited by Kelvin Thompson (Chapter 1) Blended Learning Toolkit:
This course is designed for someone creating what I refer to as a hybrid course - and they refer to it as "Blended Learning". Although the terminology may differ, the concept is the same. They are courses that meet both face to face and online.
When we first started offering classes in a hybrid format (about a decade ago), I began to wonder if a hybrid course could be as effective as a traditional 15 week format course. After gathering data for approximately 10 years, I believe that they are effective. A quote from this course - from the U.S Department of Education's (2010) Evaluation of Evidence-Based Practices in Online Learning: A Meta-Analysis and Review of Online Studies found "Students in online conditions performed modestly better, on average, than those learning the same material through traditional face-to face instruction" (p. xiv) and "Instruction combining online and face-to-face elements had a larger advantage relative to purely face-to-face instruction than did purely online instruction" (p. xv). Therefore, the research supported my hypothesis that hybrid education can be effective.
The challenge becomes - how do you create the most effective blended learning course? Too many instructors try to simply add an online component to their face to face course. This is not the most effective way. According to McGee and Reis (2012) as quoted in the course, clearly defining the course objectives before coming up with the activities, assignments and assessments is key to a successful course.
Carman (2002) lists five elements that they call key "ingredients" for blended courses:
1) Live events - instructor led lectures, video conferences, synchronous chats etc..
2) Self paced learning - tutorials or other activities that the students completes on their own
3) Collaboration - i.e. email, threaded discussions, wikis
4) Assessment - measurement of learning (test, quiz, grades, narrative feedback, portfolio evaluations, etc...
5) Support Material - reference manuals, FAQ, summaries, etc..
Online courses or online materials can be an excellent supplement for courses (even those that are traditional face to face).
The key to any good online or hybrid course is the careful planning of each of the modules.
Technology should not be used merely to use it. Technology should be used to enhance a course.
Follow my blog as I document my journey through this course!
