Teaching can be done in many ways: in a group or individually, physically or online, synchronously or asynchronously. Each of these ways requires its own approach. When you know how to combine them in the right way, you enrich the student's learning experience. That combination is called blended learning. Activating strategies and maximizing interaction with the help of ICT are essential. But what is the best blend and how do you design it?
Blended learning design answers a number of pressing questions. How do you ensure constructive alignment between intended learning outcomes, learning activities, and assessment? How do you connect with students when teaching and learning takes place (partly) online? And how do you leverage the strengths of face-to-face and online learning into one harmonious whole?
This book can be used both in the design phase of education and during a course. It offers a practical translation of theory and contains numerous inspiring examples. These examples come primarily from higher education, but the instructions are also suitable for secondary vocational education, secondary education, and even primary education. In short, a must have for anyone involved in teaching and educational design.
Every teacher, regardless of whether or not they want to ‘do something’ with blended learning, should use the step-by-step approach to educational design described by Barend Last and Stefan Jongen. - Nynke Bos, Lector Teaching, Learning & Technology, Inholland University of Applied Sciences
I’m happy to read that the authors encourage teachers to experiment. I wish every teacher would have that opportunity. - Judith van Hooijdonk, ICT in Education Advisor, Zuyd University of Applied Sciences
Contents
Introduction 11
Section 1 About blended learning design 19
1 Blended learning 21
1.1 Definition of blended learning 21
1.2 Misconceptions about blended learning 25
1.3 Pros and cons of blended learning 27
1.4 The blended learning ecosystem 31
2 Framework for learning design 35
2.1 The three analysis layers of education 35
2.2 Constructive alignment 37
Section 2 The basis of any learning design 41
3 Vision of learning 43
3.1 Dif ferent flavours of learning theories 44
3.2 Bad guidelines for learning design 49
3.3 The vision of learning in this book 49
4 Learning design principles 53
4.1 An overview of learning design principles 53
4.2 What is the point of these principles? 58
Section 3 Intended learning outcomes 61
5 Learning objectives versus learning outcomes 63
5.1 Confusing terms 63
5.2 What exactly is a learning outcome? 65
5.3 Functions of learning outcomes 65
6 What should learning outcomes be about? 69
6.1 Behavioural dimensions 69
6.2 Criticism of the three behavioural dimensions 71
6.3 The importance of metacognitive skills 72
7 Formulating learning outcomes 75
7.1 Draf ting a learning outcome 75
7.2 Taxonomies for organizing learning outcomes 77
Section 4 Teaching and learning activities in the student journey 85
8 Community learning 87
8.1 Community of inquiry 87
8.2 Triple presence 88
8.3 Importance of teacher presence and direction 92
9 Design a structure 95
9.1 Determine target group with personas 95
9.2 Course structure 97
10 The student journey 103
10.1 From generic to specific 104
10.2 Choosing the right strategies 107
Active learning strategies 110
11 Don’t forget the learning space 137
11.1 Nudge theory 137
11.2 Physical space 138
11.3 Virtual space 140
11.4 Synchronous face-to-face and online learning at the same time: multi-location learning 143
12 A little help from ICT 147
12.1 Hardware and software for blended learning 147
12.2 Hardware 148
12.3 Software 150
Section 5 Assessment 157
13 Summative and formative 159
13.1 Dif ference between summative and formative 160
13.2 Quality criteria 160
13.3 Assessment formats in blended learning 162
14 Effective strategies for formative evaluation 169
14.1 The iterative process of feedup, feedback, and feedforward 169
14.2 Asking ef fective questions 171
14.3 Rubrics: a useful tool for feedback 172
15 More grip with the help of study data 177
15.1 Data collection 177
15.2 I have data, now what? 178
To conclude 183
Annex 1: Overview of definitions 187
Annex 2: Vision analysis 190
Annex 3: Dublin descriptors 191
Annex 4: Checklist and roadmap for learning outcomes 192
Annex 5: Checklist for community learning 193
Annex 6: Starter sheet student journey 195
Annex 7: Storyboard for the student journey 196
Annex 8: Checklist for analysing physical learning spaces 197
Annex 9: Checklist for analysing the digital learning environment 199
Index 201
References 205
About the authors 211
