Instructor Experiences with Implementing Technology in Blended Learning Courses in Higher education : Instructor Experiences with Implementing Technology in Blended Learning Courses in Higher education Blended Learning in Higher Education
Dr. Nellie Deutsch 1
Background : Background The Internet and technological tools are providing innovative ways for teachers to teach and students to learn (Fillion, Limayem, Laferriere, & Mantha, 2009; Graham & Robison, 2007; Moore, M. C., 2006; Wang, 2007).
Students, who use the Internet and technology for communication, entertainment, and collaborative learning, express dissatisfaction with the traditional face-to-face lecture format (Conole, de Laat, Dillon, & Darby, 2006; Donnelly, 2010; Garrison & Vaughn, 2008; Roberts, 2008; Vignare, 2007; Wang, 2007; Wuensch, Azia, Ozan, Kishore, & Tabrizi, 2007).
According to Allen and Seaman (2007b), there is a "9.7 percent growth rate for online enrollments [that] far exceeds the 1.5 percent growth of the overall higher education student population" (p. 1).
The rate of students completing online courses is higher in e-learning and blended learning courses than in traditional learning programs (Allen & Seaman, 2007a; Vignare, 2007). 2
Definition of Blended Learning : Definition of Blended Learning The word blended means mixed or combined (Picciano, 2009)
Blended learning or hybrid learning courses (Vignare, 2007) are “technology facilitated learning that retains a strong and deliberate role for the teacher in the learning process” (Oliver, 2005, p. 8).
Mixing face-to-face with e-learning
Blended learning courses combine the delivery of “traditional face-to-face class activities” (Picciano & Dziuban, 2007, p. 9) with “computer-mediated” (Graham, 2006, p. 5) and online instruction (Allen & Seaman, 2007a).
The number of face-to-face meetings and online sessions vary from course to course (Allen & Seaman, 2007a; Picciano & Dziuban, 2007).
The online portion of blended learning is from 30% -79% with the rest being face-to-face sessions (Allen & Seaman, 2007a). 3
Research on Technology and Blended Learning : Research on Technology and Blended Learning Teachers, who taught blended learning courses, became aware of their roles as facilitators and the positive impact of relinquishing control to the learner (Dziuban, Hartman & Moskal, 2007; Evans & Henricksen, 2008; Kaleta, Skibba & Joosten, 2007).
Instructors’ decision to implement technology in blended learning courses depends on faculty preparedness in learning “to effectively facilitate and manage both online and face-to-face discussion and interaction” (Kaleta, et al., 2007, p. 124).
There is need for more research studies on “the role for technology in the blended learning environment” (Dziuban, et al., 2007, p. 284) and on instructors’ experiences in implementing technology in the traditional classroom (Kurtz, 2007; Power, 2008; Ruiz, et al., 2006). 4
Sample Utilized in the Study : Sample Utilized in the Study Twenty instructors from campus-based institutions of higher education worldwide who had taught at least three blended learning courses and had a postgraduate degree status. 5
Study Results/Emergent Themes : Study Results/Emergent Themes The analysis of the transcripts of the responses to the interview questions yielded 35 invariant constituents (see Appendix H).
Four themes emerged from the 35 invariant constituents for describing the participants’ experiences with implementing technology in blended learning courses:
Facilitating Instruction and Learning (11 invariant constituents)
Frustrating (7 invariant constituents)
Satisfying and Rewarding (12 invariant constituents)
Socially Connecting (5 invariant constituents) 6
Discussion Question : Discussion Question 7 What is keeping you from integrating Blended Learning?
Let’s continue the discussion in the back channel.