Page 230 - BLENDED LEARNING

Under each of the above headings will be a series of questions that mirror the
approach that Dudeney and Hockly (2007) took when considering the design of
online learning courses. However, where it differs is that suggested answers and
examples will be provided to the questions with information drawn from the
case studies.

1. Context
The reasons for employing a blended approach are context dependent and therefore
will differ from setting to setting, as will the eventual course design. Despite these
differences, before embarking on a design or redesign process it is important to
carefully consider the teaching and learning context, to identify the reasons for
adopting a blended approach and to determine what the limiting factors to the
design will be.
What are the reasons for blending?
In the Introduction the reasons stated in the literature for employing a blended
learning approach in the corporate and academic sectors were outlined. With
reference to higher education Graham et al., cited in Stracke (2007a: 59), condensed
the lists down to three main ones: improved pedagogy, increased access/flexibility
and increased cost effectiveness. In relation to ELT, Sharma and Barrett (2007)
reiterate these reasons whilst adding convenience, and being able to work in your
own time and at your own pace to the list. Also in relation to ELT, Hockly (2011)
repeats flexibility as a reason for blending and adds a further two, namely learner
expectations and Ministry of Education (or similar) directives.
So how do the reasons given in the case studies in this book, where they are
explicitly stated, compare with those given in the literature by Graham et al. in
Stracke (2007a), Sharma and Barrett (2007) and Hockly (2011)? Interestingly there
is a high degree of agreement, in particular with regard to increased access/flexibility
and improved pedagogy.

Table 2: Reasons for employing a blended approach
Reasons given in the literature Supporting statements from the case studies
for blending
Improved pedagogy The main driver of change therefore to incorporating
technology in our practice is pedagogic (Aborisade,
Chapter 2)
Increased access/flexibility Blended learning offered flexibility in the learning
environment, which was crucial to our context
(Pardo-Gonzalez, Chapter 4)
Increased cost effectiveness Cost effective because the learners, military personnel, could
be trained at their place of work (Whittaker, Chapter 16)
Convenience, working in your own Due to the size of China… participants had to travel anything
time, at your own pace up to 12 hours by train or bus to get to the face-to-face
training (Bo and O’Hare, Chapter 7)
Learner expectations One way of meeting the changing needs of learners was to
shift some of the learning to a different medium and opt for
an approach that includes technology (Krake, Chapter 20)

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