jspohrer's blog

What exactly IS blended learning? The term (along with its analogue "hybrid" learning) is broadly used to describe individual courses or educational programs that combine "traditional" classroom-based teaching and computer-aided learning outside the classroom. This is a very broad umbrella, however, and I get many questions attempting to clarify what counts and doesn't count or what blended learning looks like on the ground in more concrete terms. 

The National Center for Academic Transformation has developed a taxonomy of blended learning models that might provide some clarity to those new to the subject and inspiration for faculty looking for ways to transform a "traditional" course into a blended one.

I was struck by two themes running through the conference presentations this year:

First, the importance of "closing the loop," or bringing the online components of a blended course back into the classroom in some way. Kristine Rabberman, for example, talked about the importance of opening class discussions with insightful observations, questions, or debates from her course's online discussion boards and blogs, as part of her strategy for fostering a deeper, sustained intellectual conversation online and in the classroom. This resonated with feedback we received on student surveys of courses that were part of the NGLC blended learning study project. Rightly or wrongly, students perceived online work that was not recognized in some way as being unimportant or ancillary to the course. Making these activities "low-stakes" (i.e., giving some points or credit for completing them) rather than "no-stakes" was one common mechanism faculty used to signal that online materials were important, but student survey responses and experiences faculty shared suggest that discussing students' online work in class as Kristine did or explicitly communicating how you are using student's online work to diagnose and address problems -- for example, by going over a problem you noticed students were having trouble with in online homework, might be as, if not more, effective. 

First, I would like to thank everyone who helped to make this year's Blended Learning in the Liberal Arts Conference a success. Our in-house catering, conference, and housekeeping teams and my student assistants, Yichen Liao and Angela Rosenberg, did a stellar job of making sure we were well-fed and everything ran smoothly behind the scenes. The fact that they were able to do so immediately following Bryn Mawr's graduation celebrations (and for the students, weeks of exams) is a testament to their talent and dedication!

I would also like to thank our 15 presenters, who agreed to expose their teaching and their discoveries to public scrutiny, so that we all might learn from the experience. Recordings of their presentations and any slides and materials they've shared are archived on our conference website -- just click on the title of a presentation in the schedule to see everything associated with it.

The conference was a huge success, attracting about 100 registered guests from over 30 institutions, not counting many Tri-College faculty and staff who dropped into sessions as their schedules permitted. As always audience questions and comments and the informal conversations over breaks and lunch were one of the most valuable and interesting aspects of the event.

The Sloan Consortium is offering a Blended Learning Mastery Series designed to help faculty develop effective blended courses. The series consists of three workshops spaced about a month apart to allow time for personal reflection and incorporation: research and design, teaching techniques, and assessment techniques. The next series runs from August 16, 2013 - October 25, 2013, and costs $599, which includes a certificate upon successful completion. For more information, Sloan-C is hosting a free webinar on July 18.

Bryn Mawr College will be hosting the second annual Blended Learning in the Liberal Arts Conference on May 20-21. This conference was designed as an opportunity for faculty and instructional technology staff who are experimenting with blended learning to share resources, techniques, and findings -- with a particular focus on how blended learning might work in a liberal arts college setting. Our definition of "blended learning" is quite broad, encompassing in which: 1) students get feedback on their learning outside the classroom through computer-based materials or activities, and 2) the classroom component informs or alters how an instructor uses class time. Advance registration is required, the conference fee will be waived for affliliates of colleges that were partners on the NGLC Blended Learning grant study. See the conference website for more information or follow us on Twitter at #blendLAC.