Defining Blended Learning In The New Normal
What is Blended Learning? Translated, blended learning means “mixed learning”. This means educational offers that combine face-to-face learning and virtual online learning. The combination of both learning methods aims to achieve a respective learning goal.
What are the benefits of blended learning?
- Flexibility in time, location, and individual learning are important in blended learning.
- Positive learning success can be traced back to the possibilities of digital communication. This is because you can access the content according to your own needs (depending on the learner type) when, where, and as often as you want.
- Heterogeneous groups of participants are brought to a uniform level of knowledge. This ensures that knowledge can be applied and exchanged at a lower level so that the learning success is more sustainable for each individual.
What does the process of a blended learning offer look like?
Depending on the learning offer and target group, the structure of the blended learning education differs according to the proportion of face-to-face and online phases.
At the beginning of the course, it makes sense to have a face-to-face event in which the speakers and participants get to know each other. The first face-to-face meeting provides orientation and clarification of organizational questions. Social aspects, communication in real-time, and a familiar learning arrangement. These are the advantages of face-to-face appointments. These are a good start for many target groups. To overcome technical hurdles, an introduction to the online learning platform is recommended.
Nothing stands in the way of online learning. By providing the content on a learning platform, the participants can learn how, when, and where they want. There are no limits to the multitude of communication methods. There are options from learning scripts, infographics, and podcasts. Explanatory videos to interactive game sequences and webinars are also possible. Online presentations could be recorded and even converted to mp3 (Convert 2 mp3) for future reference.
Participants can communicate with the use of forums, chats, and virtual classrooms. There are free and paid tools to collaborate and process group tasks.
How much e-learning is there in blended learning?
E-learning is the umbrella term for online-supported learning. The range of e-learning options is diverse, so that blended learning is a sub-form of e-learning. There are different approaches and models for combining face-to-face and online learning. The teacher determines the sequence structure of blended learning.