Blended Learning

Welcome back to my blog as we are in week four and approaching the end of the course. This week we learned about blended learning that differs from simple in class learning. There are various types of blended learning that we explored and the corresponding resources on how to incorporate blended learning into your lessons.

The first model of blended learning we explored was station rotation that allows students to rotate through various stations on a fixed schedule. At least one of these stations is an online station. The station rotation model is often used in elementary schools because students are used to learning in stations already.

https://www.blendedlearning.org/models/

The second model that was explored was the A La Carte model where students are able to take an online course with an online teacher and face to face classes. This model provides students with more flexibility over their schedules. The a la carte method may be used in a high school setting that provides students with a blended learning opportunity.

https://www.blendedlearning.org/models/

The third model that we explored was enriched virtual that is an alternative to full-time online school that allows students to complete most of their school work at home or online. However with enriched virtual there are face-to-face classes that are required for students to attend. Most enriched virtual classrooms allow students to only attend twice a week providing students with flexibility over their schedule as well.

https://www.blendedlearning.org/models/

One of the benefits of blended learning is that it can appeal to various learning styles where students are able to do more work at home if they find they work better in those environments. Students are able to use technology to their advantage with watching videos online that help them learn various units and subjects. One of the resources that we explored was through EduGains. The EduGains website provides educators with various blended learning lesson plans that have to do with all grades and math units. Teachers can use these resources in order to incorporate blended learning even into one or two of the lessons in a unit using technology. One of the lessons that I explored required using a data input application where students would take surveys and input the information onto an online application where the data could be analyzed for future use. With the growing use of technology, blended learning could be the future that we will begin to see more of.