Blended Models

Blended Models

The first step in our framework is to select a blended model. Different models will be discussed and you will select what you think will be best for your blended course. As always, formative evaluation will be conducted to help you thoroughly think through your design decisions.

Chapter Learning Outcome: I can choose a model for my blended course.

Sub-section outcomes:

I can identify my reasons for creating a blended course. (Section 2.1)
I can identify the affordances of my digital learning environment. (Section 2.2)
I can select a blended model appropriate for my learners’ learning needs. (Section 2.3)
I can clearly describe the model and rhythm of my blend to learners. (Section 2.4)

✏️ Chapter 2 Blueprint Challenge

You will use the skills presented in this chapter to outline a model for your blended course.

Open the Chapter 2 Mastery Challenge: Blended Model Template and save a copy. Label the copy using this format: Your Name Blended Model. (Example: Hyun Joo Blended Model.)

Each section in this chapter will guide you through the process of choosing and outlining the model you will use for your blended course.

2.0 Introduction

The definition of blended learning emphasizes modality, or the physical time and place dimensions of a learning environment. Blended learning occurs when learning in the online and in-person modalities are strategically combined. In our digital age, this blending of modalities is becoming the norm, though it is not always designed strategically. Figure 2-1 below shows a range of blends that fill the gap between fully online and fully in-person learning.

Figure 2-1. Range of Instructional Blends

Created by Charles Graham, CC BY 3.0

On the left of the spectrum, we have blends in which instruction primarily happens in-person with online elements added as support.
On the right of the spectrum, we have blends that look mostly like online courses with supplemental or optional in-person support.
In the middle, we have blends where the integration of online and in-person modalities is essential to the core instruction.

Each institution of higher education might define blended learning in a slightly different way. Often an institution will specify a rough percentage of instructional time that is online or in-person in order to institutionally categorize courses as online, on-campus, or blended. However, not all blends are created equal! This is because the modality does not have the greatest impact on learning. Student learning is most influenced by the teaching methods that are used.

Video 2-1 below shows a brief explanation of how modality, method, and media interact in a learning experience.

Video 2-1. The 3 Ms: Media, Method, and Modality (5:31)

3 Ms — Watch on YouTube

**What to Look For:** Which of the 3Ms has the most direct impact on student learning?

The blended model that you use will involve choices of all three M's. Keep in mind that the methods you use are the most significant, and be aware of how media and modality can enhance your methods. Table 2-1 gives examples of how these three important characteristics influence the design of the learning experience.

Table 2-1. The 3 Ms

3 Ms	Description	Examples
Modality	The physical time and place dimensions of a learning environment.	Place: online vs. in-person. Time: synchronous vs. asynchronous.	Blended: combining online and in-person modalities. Bichronous: combining synchronous and asynchronous modalities.
Media	Tools or technology used to deliver or mediate learning.	Digital: computer, LMS, cell phone.	Non-Digital: textbooks, paper and pencil, lab equipment.
Method	Teaching strategies.	General: lecture, group work, discussion, debates, demonstrations, case studies.	Content Specific: STEM labs, writing circles, design critiques, primary source research.

As you begin to choose a blended model for your course, which means choosing the modality, base your decision on methods and media appropriate for your course.

2.1 Identifying Your Purposes for Blending

There are many reasons why instructors and institutions choose to combine both online and in-person instruction in their courses. The most common reasons are (1) to improve student learning, (2) to increase access and flexibility, and (3) to improve efficiency and/or reduce costs.

Learning Outcome: I can identify my reasons for creating a blended course.

Assessment: Chapter 2 Mastery Challenge Blended Model Part 1.

Figure 2-2 places these purposes in a hierarchy pyramid with student learning at the base. This is because improved student learning should be foundational to any course blend that instructors design.

Figure 2-2. Hierarchy of Purposes for Blending a Course

hierarchy of purposes

Blended courses often allow for increased access, flexibility, and efficiency without compromising student learning. We do not want to provide high levels of access to low-quality learning experiences. We want to provide increased access to learning experiences that are as good or better than what is available without technology.

It is important for instructors to design and plan with a purpose in mind. Table 2-2 includes some common reasons that instructors have chosen to create blended learning experiences.

Table 2-2. Example Reasons for Choosing a Blend

Increased Efficiency

An instructor:

moves some science labs online, creating less need for expensive equipment in the classroom.
uses online books to lower costs (and to have more than a classroom set for learners).
uses the online space to publish assignments, instructor and learner examples, writings, explanations, and questions, reducing the need for copies.
creates videos to expand instructor presence in the class, thus multiplying her effectiveness and productivity.

Increased Access and Flexibility

An instructor:

uses the online space to incorporate into the classroom materials and information, targeted instruction, and activities that are not otherwise available.
uses technology to give learners choices in learning activities.
consults with learners to set learning goals.

Improved Student Learning

An instructor:

uses the blend to give learners small group instruction or one-on-one time with learners to address specific learning needs.
uses data obtained from online tracking systems to constantly monitor learning and to make adjustments to instruction.
uses self-made videos to give instructions that learners can slow down, speed up, pause, or repeat to understand the material or an assignment.
offers choice in assignments to increase learner engagement and ownership in their learning.

From Graham, et al., 2019. CC BY-SA.

Each instructor needs to decide their reasons for blending. This is important because determining one's purpose for blending provides a vision for how to select appropriate blended models and strategies to achieve those purposes.

One of the best ways to get started is to identify and focus on a problem or challenge in your course that you believe blended teaching could help you solve. These are sometimes called Problems of Practice. The following Problems of Practice pathways could help you identify some of your reasons for creating a blended course.

The 6 C's of Deep Learning: character, citizenship, collaboration, communication, creativity, and critical thinking.
The 7 P's of Quality Blended Teaching: participation, pacing, personalization, place, personal interaction, preparation, and practice with feedback.
Subject-Specific Teaching Strategies.
Problems with Learner Access.

Table 2-3 places these Problems of Practice pathways into the framework of the Hierarchy of Purposes for Blending a Course. As you examine the table, consider why you are creating a blended course.

Table 2-3. Problems of Practice and the Hierarchy of Purposes

	Increased Efficiency	Increased Access and Flexibility	Improved Student Learning
The 6 C's of Deep Learning	I want to increase my learners’ ability to communicate effectively about their learning. I want to help my learners practice appropriate digital citizenship.	I want to allow my learners to demonstrate their learning in creative ways.	I want to help my learners develop better collaboration skills. I want learners to think critically about current world events. I want my learners to develop good character as they prepare to enter the real world.
The 7 P's of Quality Blended Teaching	I want to increase learners' out-of-class preparation before classroom activities. I want my learners to receive timely, effective feedback on their practice.	I want to enable 100% participation in class discussions. I want my learners to pace themselves to learn as quickly as they are able or as slowly as they need to. I want my learners to personalize their learning by selecting learning activities that will help them the most. I want to open up learning experiences that take place outside of my classroom.	I want to create additional opportunities for learners to personally interact with me and with one another.
Subject-Specific Teaching Strategies	Science Class: I want to create opportunities for my learners to use technology to analyze and interpret data and then create a scientific argument from this evidence.	Math Class: I want to increase the quality of mathematical discourse in my classroom.	Writing Class: I want to find more effective ways to engage my learners in collaborative writing.
Problems with Learner Access	I want to make it easy for learners who miss class due to illness or extracurricular activities to stay caught up.	I want to make it possible for learners who are single parents with significant childcare responsibilities to be able to participate flexibly in the class.	I want learners to have low-cost access to the educational materials used as part of our learning in class.

From Graham, et al., 2019. CC BY-SA.

Reflect on the Hierarchy of Purposes for Blending a Course as you identify your reasons for creating your blended course.

✏️ Chapter 2 Blueprint Challenge Part 1

Blended Model Part 1 Reasons for Blending.

Open your Blended Model document. Read the directions for Part 1 Reasons for Creating My Blended Course. Review the example. Then fill in the table with your ideas.

2.2 Understanding your Digital Learning Environment

The affordances of a learning environment are the features that enable or inhibit different kinds of interactions. For example, a chemistry lab has affordances such as bunsen burners, beakers and flasks, test tubes, that allow scientific activities that wouldn’t be possible without them. Just like your physical classroom environment has affordances that enable certain learning interactions, your digital environment will enable and limit the kinds of learning interactions possible.

Learning Outcome: I can identify the affordances of my digital learning environment.

Assessment: Chapter 2 Mastery Challenge Blended Model Part 2.

Learning Management Systems (LMSs) are software tools specifically designed to support teaching. These tools have many affordances that can make teaching easier as well as constrain some of the activities you might envision. Some common features of a learning management system are related to:

Assessment and grading
Peer interaction and discussion
Instructor interaction and communication
Content interaction

Table 2-4 provides a few broad examples of common affordances in many learning management systems.

Table 2-4. Examples of affordances in many learning management systems (LMSs) or online learning environments

Category	Affordances
Assessment and Grading	Question Types—the variety of types of questions that are possible to include in an assessment (e.g., multiple choice, essay, fill-in-the-blank, etc). Feedback Mechanisms—the different ways that feedback can be provided both automatically and manually. Gradebooks—the features tracking learner submission of assignments and communicating scores and grades (this could also include mastery-based gradebooks that show learners reaching mastery thresholds).
Peer Interaction and Discussion	Asynchronous Discussion Boards—the ability to enable different types of discussion. Synchronous Video Communication—the ability to enable real-time video communication between peers. Collaborative Team Spaces—spaces that allow for learner teams or groups to communicate around shared documents and resources. Peer Feedback—mechanisms for enabling peers to provide feedback to each other on their work.
Instructor Interaction and Communication	Announcements—the ability to provide text and video-based announcements. Learning Analytics—access to analytics related to learner interaction in the LMS and the ability to take supportive actions based on the data. Communication Features—the ability to quickly message learners and answer questions in multiple modalities.
Content Interaction	Static Content—the ability to provide content for learners to access and download (e.g., text-based and video content). Dynamic Content—the ability to create and integrate dynamic content such as simulations, educational apps, and adaptive learning software.

From Graham, et al., 2019. CC BY-SA.

It is important for you to know what LMS and other digital tools you have available to you in your learning environment because the tools will enable and limit the kinds of interactions that you can build into your blended course. For example, if your digital learning environment only allows for multiple choice assessment questions or doesn’t allow synchronous video-based communication, your blended design options will be constrained by the limited affordances.

✏️ Chapter 2 Blueprint Challenge Part 2

Blended Model Part 2 Affordances of My Digital Environment.

Open your Blended Model document. Read the directions for Part 2 Affordances of My Digital Environment. Review the example. Then fill out the table with your ideas.

2.3 Choosing a Blended Model

There is a wide range of blended models. For every blended model there are two important design layers to consider: the physical layer and the pedagogical layer.

The physical layer has to do with the media and modalities chosen for the blend. This directly impacts access and cost, which influences the methods that are possible for the instructor to use.
The pedagogical layer has to do with the teaching methods that you will use within the blend. This directly impacts student learning.

Most of the blended models specify details about the physical dimension of the blend. However, many do not provide specifications for the pedagogical layer involved in the blend, which is what will have the greatest influence on student learning. You must keep the pedagogical layer, that is the teaching methods, in mind as you evaluate and choose a blended model.

Learning Outcome: I can select a blended model appropriate for my learners’ learning needs.

Assessment: Chapter 2 Mastery Challenge Blended Model Part 3

There are many blended learning models. They have similar strengths, but each one has a specific rhythm. For each model in Table 2-5 below, we summarize the main ideas, compare the rhythms of the models, and consider how the model can be applied in a course.

Table 2-5. Comparison Matrix

Model	Information
Synchronous Concurrent Blend	Synchronous online and in-person instruction are taking place at the same time. Example: An instructor is interacting with learners in the in-person classroom as well as learners participating via video at the same time. Theoretically, learners are experiencing the same teaching methods and the same media while some are present in-person and others are present online. However, it is difficult to teach to two audiences because the instructor's attention is divided. Often the online participants are overlooked during discussions. When the instructor remembers to check the online chat, those learners can participate fully, but most of the time it is easy to forget they are present. This can be mitigated by assigning the TA or one learner to stay on the chat and present the online participants' comments and questions in their behalf.
Synchronous Consecutive Blend	Synchronous online and in-person instruction are taking place at different times. Example: Learners attend Monday’s class in the physical classroom and Wednesday’s class online using video conferencing. This is a very commonly used blended model. Often the online days are for lecture or instruction, while the in-person days are for labs (suchs as TA labs, writing labs, science labs, etc.).
Replacement Blends	Replacement models are the most common in higher education. They replace some scheduled in-person class sessions with online learning. For example instead of meeting M-W-F in-person each week, the class might meet in person only on M-W with Friday activities being done online. The pattern looks the same as the synchronous consecutive blend model, but the difference is that the online instruction in a replacement blend can be asynchronous. Often the in-person days are for lecture or instruction, while the online days are for synchronous or asynchronous discussions, peer reviews, or group projects.
Flipped Classroom Model	The flipped classroom model is one of the most common blended models used in higher education. The flipped model moves direct instruction outside of the classroom to online learning, and reserves in-person hours for interactive group guided practice activities. It is common for direct instruction online to include instructional videos recorded by the instructor as well as reading from a textbook and a reading quiz. The learners are expected to know the material before attending class. This can be very beneficial for courses with complex material, such as statistics or chemistry. The learners can work through the direct instruction alone or they can contact the instructor or TA for help. Then the learners come together in person to work through story problems or exercises. They can learn from each other as they work together, and the instructor/TA can identify what topics need to be reviewed.
Online Enrichment Models	There are many models where the core instruction is online but there is in-person support for learners who need it. Sometimes there are also a limited number of required in-person class sessions or instructor-learner check-ins at various points during the semester. This could be used for a course where the learners can work through material independently, and then there is an in-person review before the unit test or midterm or final exam. This is very similar to a completely asynchronous course.
Rotation Blends	Rotation blends are the most common blended model in K-12 environments but are less common in higher education. Rotation blends usually occur within a brick and mortar setting and involve rotation between in-person activities and online activities. Station Rotation—learners rotate through stations on a fixed schedule with at least one of the stations involving online learning. Individual Rotation—learners rotate to a number of stations on individualized schedules with at least one of the stations involving online learning. Lab Rotation—learners rotate between classrooms on a fixed schedule with one of the classrooms being a computer lab where online learning occurs. Rotation blends are less common in the higher education context because there is no supervisory requirement for adult learners.
HyFlex Model	The instructor creates equivalent opportunities for learning with synchronous in-person activities, synchronous online activities, and asynchronous activities. Learners choose each week if they are going to attend class in person, participate via video at a distance, or watch the class recording asynchronously and participate in other asynchronous events. This is a very complex model. It can be very difficult to create equivalent options in the various modalities. It is also challenging that learners can opt in or out of modalities each week. This model needs the super-tracking power of a robust LMS.

Sometimes you can combine models to create the type of blend that works best for your course. Table 2-6 shows an example of how to create your blended model.

Table 2-6. Example of a weekly schedule including modality, medium, and method

	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
Modality	Asynchronous online	In-person classroom	Asynchronous online	Asynchronous OR Synchronous online	In-person computer lab
Medium	Textbook, video	Powerpoint, video, worksheets, Jamboard	Google Docs, Turnitin	LMS discussion boards, Google Docs for collaboration and peer review, Zoom.	Powerpoint, Google Docs, Turnitin
Method	Direct instruction.	Mini lecture and guided practice- writing workshops.	Independent practice- drafting.	Group discussions, peer review, group meetings.	Mini lecture and writing conferences.

✏️ Chapter 2 Blueprint Challenge Part 3

Blended Model Part 3 Choosing a Blended Model.

Open your Blended Model document. Read the directions for Part 3 Choosing a Blended Model. Review the example. Then complete the assignment with your ideas.

2.4 Communicating the Class Rhythm to Learners

Now that you have figured out what blended model works for your class, you need to communicate this clearly and simply to your learners. You need to include this information in your course syllabus.

Learning Outcome: I can clearly describe the model and rhythm of my blend to learners.

Assessment: Chapter 2 Mastery Challenge Blended Model Part 4

A syllabus is a document that explains the objectives and content of your course and what learners need to accomplish to meet the objectives. The syllabus is an opportunity to communicate your course blended model to your learners. It outlines assignments, calendar, grading scheme, and university policies. It is like a contract between instructor and learners. It says what the instructor will provide to facilitate student learning and success. It says what the learners need to provide to earn a good grade.

If you don't already have a syllabus, now is a good time to start one. If you already have a syllabus, now is the time to update it.

A syllabus may include the following:

the university abbreviation for the course
the name of the course
the instructor's name and contact information
TA's name(s) and contact information
the instructor's office hours
the TA(s) lab hours
your class schedule—This refers to your rhythm of in-person, synchronous online, and asynchronous online days. You can include the information from your Blueprint Challenge Part 3. You should also include a rationale outlining the benefits of a blended course.

✏️ Chapter 2 Blueprint Challenge Part 4

Blended Model Part 4 Communicating My Blended Plan

Open your Blended Model document. Read the directions for Part 4 Communicating My Blended Plan. Review the example. Then complete the assignment with your ideas.

Conclusion

This chapter has helped you understand what blended learning is, why it is beneficial, the strengths of a LMS, and different blended models. It has also helped you choose a blended model for your course and communicate that model to your learners in your syllabus.

👷‍♀️ Course Checklist Part 1: Design

Step 2: Select a Blended Model

Open your course checklist. Read the directions for Step 2 Select a Blended Model. Then complete the assignment with your ideas. Check the completion box.

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Access it online or download it at https://edtechbooks.org/he_blended/chapter_2_blended_models.