Lesson 7: The Practice of Blended Learning

Learning Outcomes:

 Identify and describe the various models of blended learning.

 Name and critique the different forms of online interaction.
 Demonstrate station rotation model of blended learning in a simulated learning environment.

Introduction:
Much has been said and written about blended learning. As an emerging or developing teaching
approach, it has attracted the attention of both the academic and corporate practitioners in education
and in training. While it has started to take its move in many educational institutions worldwide,
debates continue to question the nobility of this teaching practice. As future teachers, the call is timely
for you to acquire emperical and conceptual knowledge and understanding about the promise and
practice of blended learning.
Lesson 7 covers blended learning, the various models of blended learning, and the various forms of
online interactions.

Definitions and Development of Blended Learning

The term Blended Learning or BL for short was cited in the previous lesson in one of the three
broad categories of Web-based instruction. Briefly, it was defined in an instructional method of delivery
that combines web-based instruction with face-to-face instruction. However, the body of literature
forwarded other definitions expressing the varied perspectives and viewpoints of other scholars and
practitioners in the field.

Historically, according to Charles Graham, blending learning is the convergence between face-to-face
learning environments and computer-mediated (or distributed) learning environments. Blended
learning is bridging face-to-face instruction with computer-mediated instruction. Others describe
blended learning as the combination of virtual and physical learning environments.

As an educational technologist and a practitioner of blended learning, this author would like to view
blended learning as “a combination of strategies and approaches in the process of teaching and learning
using web-driven instructional resources.” It is mixing or combining two or more delivery modes in
engaging students in active learning using the instructional resources of the World Wide Web. The
author focuses her definition on the strategies and approaches because they are the key pedagogical
elements in the practice of blended learning. The simple combination of information coming from the
teacher and the use Web resources is not what blended learning is all about. It calls for a sound
pedagogical foundation to design, develop and deliver courses online.
Models of Blended Learning
As discussed in the previous lesson, there are three (3) categories of web-based instruction, namely:
Augmented, Blended and Online as cited by Siemens and Tittenberger (2009). In the case of blended
learning, this teaching approach comes four (4) models.

Horn and Staker (2014), came up with the following graphic visual representation of blended learning.
The graph illustarates the combination of brick-and-mortar classroom representing the face-to-face
instruction with blended learning. It further shows the four (4) models of blended learning, namely:
Rotation Model, Flex Model, A la Carte Model, and Enriched Virtual Model. Under the rotation model
are the other four sub-rotation models, namely; Station Rotation, Lab Rotation, Flipped Classroom, and
Individual Rotation.

Classroom-based Online Learning

Learning

BLENDED

Rotation Flex A La Carte Enriched

Model Model Model Virtual
Model

Station-Rotation Model

Lab-Rotation Model

Flipped-Classroom Model

Individual-Rotation Model

Figure 2. Blended Learning: Using Disruptive Innovation to Improve School (Horn & Staker,)

1. Rotation Model
In this model, the students rotate on a fixed schedule or at the teacher’s discretion
between learning modalities, at least one of each is online learning. These activities may
include small-group or full-class interaction, group projects, individual coaching, and pen-
and-paper assignments. Learning of the students mostly takes place on brick-and-mortar
campus, except for any homework assignments. There are four sub-models under this
rotation model.
 Station Rotation
In this station rotation model, the students experience the rotation within a
contained classroom or group of classrooms. The station rotation model differs from
the individual rotation model because students rotate through all of the stations,
not only those assigned to them. This model answers the question of many who
would wish to use blended learning approach that they can actually use blended
learning right inside the traditional classroom. This approach observes the following
simple steps:

Step 1: Creative Collaborative Learning Stations or CLS. Identify each CLS must have
at least a maximum of eight (8) and a minimum of five (5) members. Each CLS must
have at least one or two computers, laptop, Ipad or mobile technology preferably
with internet access.

Step 2: Assign specific learning task for each collaborative learning stations. One
condition for the station rotation model is that at least one or two learning tasks
must be web-driven or make use of instructional Web resources.

Step 3: Give clear and simple directions. Refrain from giving directions orally as this
can create confusion and disorder in the classroom. The best way to do is to write
the direction for the learning task in a piece of paper or handout.

Step 4: Give ample time for the CLS to complete their assigned learning task. The
teacher should be able to estimate how long each CLS will be able to complete the
given task. The teacher should refrain from talking or giving additional directions to
the class as soon as the students have started performing their assigned learning
task.

Step 5: After completing the assigned learning task on a specific time alloted, the
students will move or transfer to the next CLS and perform the given task of that
CLS. For example CLS 1 will move to CLS 2 and CLS 2 will move to CLS 3 and so on to
show the physical rotation. This has to be done in an orderly manner. This is the
stage when the students interact with the content.

Step 6: After the students have completed the rotation to the different CLSs, a
teacher-led open discussion can follow where the teacher pursues, and put in
context the learning experiences of the class from the different learning stations.
This is the teacher-led instruction stage when the teacher interacts with the
students.
 The teacher can further direct the students to go online or visit a website for
enrichment or assessment.
Station Rotation Model of blended learning today is widely used both in the basic
education and in higher learning institutions. The delivery of the K-12 program may
adopt this model to provide extended learning opportunities for the students.

 LAB Rotation Model

The LAB Rotation Model is the same as the Station Rotation except that the
students rotate to the computer laboratory or in multimedia room for the online
learning stations. This approach may be used for older students who are more
responsible and those with longer class schedules because physical rotation may
take longer time.

 Flipped Classroom
This model allows students to participate in online learning off-site in place of
traditional homework and attend the brick-and-mortar school for face-to-face, and
for teacher-guided practice or projects. The content is primarily delivered online
which makes flipped classroom different from the other rotation models where the
students simply do their homework online at night.

 Individual Rotation
In this model, the teacher gives each student enrolled in a particular course or
subjects an individualized playlist and does not necessarily rotate to each available
station or modality. The teacher provides the individual student schedules.
2. Flex Model
Online learning serves as the primary source of student learning although at times
students are directed to perform online activities. This model provides the students with an
individualized and customized mobility on more flexible schedules among learning
modalities. The teacher of record or other adults provides face-to-face support on a flexible
and adaptive as-needed basis through activities such as small-group instruction, group
projects, and individual tutoring assignments. A certified teacher may be around to
supplement the online learning on a regular basis, while in others, minimal face-to-face
enrichment is provided. There are several ways this particular model may be implemented.

3. A La Carte Model
This focuses on a course that a student takes entirely online along with the
other experiences that the student is having at a brick-and-mortar school or learning center.
The teacher of record for the A La Carte course is the online teacher. Students may have two
options either on the brick-and-mortar campus or off-site. This is different from full-time
online learning because it is not a whole-school experience. Students take some courses a la
carte and others face-to-face of a brick-and-mortar campus.
4. Enriched Virtual Model
In this model, a course or subject in which students have required face-to-face learning
sessions with their teacher and then are free to complete their remaining coursework
remotely from the face-to-face teacher. When students are located remotely, online
learning serves as the backbone of learning. The practice of enriched virtual model of
blended learning started as full time rotation schools and later on developed blended
programs to extend schools experiences. The enriched virtual model differs from the Flipped
Classroom because in Enriched Virtual Model, students seldom meet face-to-face with their
teachers. It differs from a fully online course because face-to-face learning sessions are
optional and only when required. (Horn and Staker;2014).

Two Types of Online Communication

Communication, as Weiner (1950) defines it, is a matter of an exchange of

messages “between man and machines, between machines and man, and between machine
and machine.” Communication is the driving force in online learning. There are two types of
communications that can take place in a virtual learning environment namely synchronous
and asynchronous.

The asynchronous communication does not require a constant bit rate. Examples
are file transfer, email and the World Wide Web. In online learning, asynchronous
communication is associated with learning anytime and anywhere. This usually calls for the
use of a discussion forum tool or other tools in learning management system. Online
teachers and students can post learning activities and can retrieve the messages or
directions posted in the forum tool at anytime.

In contrast, the synchronous communication is the opposite of asynchronous.

Synchronous communication takes place in real-time. The word synchronous means
communicating and doing specific task at the same time. In online learning, this type of
communication calls for the use of chatrooms and online conferences. This is a challenging
and demanding type of online communication because it takes place in real-time. The
problem in access to the internet can, however, serve as a drawback in synchronous
communication.

Today’s mobile technologies and use of social media allow users to communicate
both asynchronously and synchronously.
Three Forms of Online Interaction

Interactions play a crucial role in online learning. According to Moore and Kearsley,
“Active learning will not take place in an online environment unless interaction is
deliberately planned and the teacher encourages it.
Thurmond (2003) further defined interaction as:
…the learner’s engagement with the course content,other learners,the
instructor, and the technological medium used in the course. True interactions with
other learners, the instructor, and the technology result in a reciprocal exchange of
information. The exchange of information is intended to enhance knowledge
development in the learning development. Depending on the nature of the course
content, the reciprocal exchange may be absent—such as in the case of paper
printed content. Ultimately, the goal of instruction is to increase understanding of
the course content or mastery of the defined goals. (p.4)

Moore (1989) cited and defined three (3) forms of interaction in distance education:
namely; learner-to-content interaction, learner-to-learner interaction, and teacher-
to-learner interaction.

Teacher to Student Interaction

This form of interaction takes place when the online teacher for example conducts
an open discussion with the students using the chat room, social media technologies and
other tools for online conferences. This type of interaction requires real-time
communication and, therefore, it is synchronous. The chat room is one basic tool where
teacher-student interaction normally takes place. Developers of learning management
systems name this particular tool as “Chat Room” and the name outright connotes
informal chatting, hence, many users of the chat room conducts casual conversations. If
this tool is to serve delivery of distance learning programs, it should be named “virtual
classrooms”.

In practice, an online teacher serves as a guide and a coach, therefore, they

should refrain from delivering prescriptive lectures, instead, focus on providing guidance
in the course of online teaching online. The role of online teachers as what practitioners
claim, is not only challenging but demanding in terms of time in preparing instructional
plans for online delivery and responding to the other concerns of online students which
may be technical or content related in nature.

Student to Content Interaction

 In its most basic definition, student or learner-to-content interaction refers to the
time the learner spent interacting with course content including textbooks, PowerPoint
lecture presentations, web pages and discussion forums. (Su, Bonk , Magjuka, Liu, &
Lee,2005.)

Interaction with content in the context of online learning can take many forms and
serve a variety of functions. The learner-to-content interaction is demonstrated when
online students are given opportunity to interact with the lesson or specific subject
matter which may be assigned to them by their online teacher. For example, the online
teacher directs the students to visit a website to read a particular article that covers the
lesson. It can also be demonstrated when online students are assigned to a particular
Web-based instructional material such as a simulation or a tutorial program. This
interaction takes place only between the student and the content without the teacher.

The multitude of Web-based technologies available today such as the blogs, Wikis,
YouTube and Google has dramatically transformed the context of student-content
interaction. The development of Open Educational Resources in various forms further
provides teachers and students with an array of instructional resources for student-
content interaction.

Brady’s (2004) study of the benefits of interactivity within an educational website

shows that student-content interactivity positively influenced learning outcomes,
satisfaction, and student time-on-task. As pre-service teachers, you can reflect on your
personal experiences as you interact with an instructional site. You can further ask
yourself to what extent your interaction with the site enhances the depth of your
understanding in a particular subject.

Student to Student Interaction

The student-to-student or learner-to-learner interaction is perhaps the most
important of Moore’s (1989) three forms of online interactions. This type of interaction
takes place between and among online students. If you recall your previous course on
teaching methods and strategies, designing learning activities in a traditional learning
environment requires your creativity to prompt and sustain student-to-student
interaction. Use of online collaborative learning activities, problem solving, case-based
instruction and and other learning tasks provides students the opportunities to interact
among themselves and learn from each other.
In an online learning environment, similar learning activities maybe applied to some
extent, however, they differ on the medium employed to prompt, promote and sustain
student-to-student interaction. In face to face classroom environment for example, the
physical presence of the students in engaging with one another is more real because they
can see and observe physical reactions through facial and hand gestures. The complexity
of online environment such as the physical and geographic separation of teachers and
students, the technological issues and concerns on access and availability, along with the
pedagogical and technical orientations of online teachers and students make it more
challenging to design learning activities intended to promote and sustain student-to-
student online interaction.

The proliferation and rapid growth of social media such as Facebook, Twitter,
Instagram and others “yet to come” are today playing a vital force in online student-
student interaction. The overwhelming usage of social media technologies today calls for a
more serious concern for online teachers and practitioners to be more cautious and guide
online students in using social media communication tools considering the nature and
characteristics of their applications.

Other Forms of Interaction

While Moore’s three forms of interaction serve as the basic framework where
scholars and researchers focus their discussion on the subject of interaction, others,
however, continue to argue that there are other types of interactions that are distinct and
important in distance education.
The article on “Modes of Interaction” by Friesen and Kuskis (2012), cited other
forms of online interaction.

Learner/Interface Interaction
This form of interaction according to Hillman, Willis, and Gunawardena (1994), is the
process of manipulating tools to accomplish a task. Learner-to-interface interaction
includes access, skills and attitudes of the learner in the course of his/her interaction or
engagement in a technology mediated learning.
Several reactions were raised on the learning-to-interface interaction. How is this
interaction distinct and different from Moore’s three types of interaction? They claim that
all forms of interaction in web-based instruction particularly in distance education are in
principle technology-mediated. Thus, learner-to-interface interaction may not be
considered as a separate form of interaction. However, the acquisition or communication
and technical skills are taken as important in distant education.

Vicarious Interaction
This form of introduction was introduced by Sutton (2000). Just like in classroom
setting, in online learning, not all students get the opportunity to interact directly with
other students or even with their teacher. But these students may act vicariously. So what
is vicarious interaction? Sutton(2000),defined various interaction as an interaction that is
taking place “when a student actively processes both sides of a direct interaction between
two other students or between another student and the instructor.”
 Vicarious interaction, therefore, is an art of reflecting, engaging and processing on
the interactions taking place between and among students and the teacher. This action
does not demonstrate active engagement or direct interaction or participations. The
online student is learning from the on-going interactions and is just waiting for an
opportunity to interact.

There are also several reactions on Sutton’s vicarious interaction. So far no evidence
that vicarious interaction leads to improve learning in distance education. The measure of
learning is demonstrated in active engagement and interaction with an among other
students, with the teacher and with the content. This active engagement is seen in the
regular posting of messages.

Teacher-to-Content
Another form of interaction is the Teacher-to-Content Interaction as cited by Friesen
and Kuskis (2012).

Online teaching is considered as a complex professional practice. Every online

teacher should not only demonstrate mastery of the subject matter, but equally important
is to have sound pedagogical orientation and skills to deliver online content. Teaching
online is different from teaching in a traditional classroom setting. Teachers cannot do
the same thing as what they do in face-to-face instruction.

The teacher-to-content interaction is primarily the concern of online teachers. It

involves teacher’s skills in designing course content, selection of appropriate instructional
web materials, and the use of specific online teaching strategies and approaches.

The development of the Open Educational Resources in the Web poses several
issues and concerns particularly to novice online teacher. This is where the teacher-to-
content interaction comes into the picture. How will online teachers address the
instructional design, selection, implementation and the evaluation of these online
resources to be used in the delivery of online courses? Please note that these are the key
words you have encountered in the various definitions of educational technology you
have learned in Lesson 1.

As pre-service teachers, you have learned in your previous courses about designing
instructional materials, and your creativity has been challenged through your course
projects. Considering copyright and other legal restrictions associated with the use of
some Web-based instructional resources, teachers ultimately engage in developing their
own instructional resources for online delivery. In the process of designing and
developing customized online instructional materials, other technical skill considerations
may hinder if not discourage those who might consider online teaching.
 The teacher to content interaction is a vital element that immeasurably contributes
to the success of distance education programs. This is the greatest challenge for pre-
service, in-service and future online teachers have to face as they prepare to become the
21st century educators.

SYNTHESIS: KEY THEMES AND CONCEPTS

 Blended learning is an instructional method of delivery that combines web-based

instruction with face-to-face classroom instruction.
 There are three (3) categories of distance learning, namely: Augmented, Blended
and Online.
 There are four sub-types of blended Rotation Model, namely: Station Rotation, Lab
Rotation, Flipped Classroom, Individual Rotation.
 There are simple steps to follow in using the station rotation model.
 Communication is defined as an exchange of messages between man and machines,
between machines and man, and between machine and machine.
 There are two types of communications in a virtual learning environment, namely
synchronous and asynchronous.
 In online learning, asynchronous communication is associated with learning anytime
and anywhere and does not require a constant bit rate.
 Synchronous communication takes place in real-time, usually in a chat room.
 Interaction is defined as the learner’s engagement with the course content, other
learners, the instructor, and the technology.
 Moore’s three (3) forms of interaction include learner-to-content, learner with other
learners, and teacher to student interaction.
 There are other forms of interaction in addition to Moore’s, namely:
learner/interface interaction, vicarious interaction and teacher to content
interaction.