Blended Learning Best Practice

 According to Simonson et al. (2019), a blended course seamlessly combines online and face-to-face instruction, encompassing 30% to 79% of the course's content delivered via online platforms. The integration of blended courses is driven by the facilitator's perception that online activities yield more fruitful student learning experiences. The facilitator coordinates the individual learning activities of students, fostering collaboration among classmates, remote learners, the facilitator, and multimedia technology accessible locally through the LMS or from the World Wide Web. Blended learning emerges as a favored method of training delivery due to its incorporation of diverse learning environments and pedagogical approaches, including asynchronous learning networks, web-enhanced teaching platforms, and digital online learning tools (Keengwe and Kidd, 2010). For an exploration of best practices, kindly click here to access the guide that outlines the following:

1. Reasons for converting current course content into a blended format.
2. Elements of a face-to-face course that can be enriched through blended learning.
3. Significant disparities between face-to-face and blended delivery.
4. The evolving role of the trainer in a blended environment.
5. Pre-planning strategies to consider before transitioning from a face-to-face to a blended course.
6. Strategies to foster and encourage trainee communication in the online realm.

References

Keengwe, J., & Kidd, T. T. (2010). Towards best practices in online learning and teaching in higher education. MERLOT Journal of Online Learning and Teaching, 6(2), 533-541.

Simonson, M., Zvacek, S., & Smaldino, S. (2019). Teaching and learning at a distance: Foundations of distance education (7th ed.) Information Age Publishing