Blended Learning

1. Best Practices in Designing a
Blended Learning Course
Dr. David Asirvatham
Director,
Centre for Information Technology
University of Malaya

2. What will be covered?
 Introduction to UM
 Reshaping of Education
Why Blended Learning
Blended, MOOC and Flipped Classroom
 Best Practices
 #1: Learning Outcomes
 #2: Which Model
 #3: Delivery Mode
 #4 Role of Teacher
 #5 Class Size
 #6 ICT Skills
 #7 Content Development *
 #8: Assessment
 #9 Professional Development
 #10 Student Engagement
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3. • Located in Kuala Lumpur
• 1st in Malaysia
• 3rd in South East Asia
• 29th in Asia
• 146th in the world
Introduction to University of Malaya
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4. Facts and Figures
12 Faculties
2 Academies
6 Institutes
5 Centres
8 Research Clusters
Faculties & Academies
Medicine
Science
Engineering
Economics & Administration
Business & Accountancy
Education
Languages & Linguistics
Law
Sport
Dentistry
Computer Science & IT
Arts & Social Sciences
Islamic Studies
Malay Studies
Total no of Students ~ 27,000
Undergraduates ~ 13,000
Postgraduates ~ 12,000
International ~ 3,000
Total No of Staff ~ 6,000
Academic ~ 2,500
Non-Academic ~ 3,500
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5. Reshaping of Education
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6. Globalisation of Education
Efforts to develop a Global citizen
Globalisation puts continuous pressure on the educational system to
explore and to do better
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7. Universities in a globalised world
Universities are expanding to serve beyond their
boundaries.
Greater Competition
Compete for the best students globally
Universities want to achieve world class status
Universities want to create top-tier research
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8. Classrooms to Digital Learning Space
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9. Yesterday vs Today
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10. 10
F2F
Lecture

11. 11
Traditional F2F
Lecture
MOOC
E-learning
Blended
Traditional vs Blended Learning

12. Chalk-and-talk has long
ruled the classrooms
o will not be eliminated
o Less emphasis
“Digital” Learning
o greater emphasis on MOOC
o on demand learning
o networked Learning
MOOC, e-Learning, Blended and Flipped
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13. Disruptive Technology
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14. Definition of Blended Learning
“integrate online with traditional face-to-face
class activities in a planned, pedagogically
valuable manner.”
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15. Blended Learning – Some of the possibilities
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16. Blended Learning – Syn. vs Asyn.
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17. There is a need to re-think how we teach
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18. 18
20 years experienced history teacher:
My school is going through the process of adopting the
Common Core, and there is a tremendous push to create
student-driven classrooms using technology. In short, I am
overwhelmed and fear that I am too old, too used to the way
I have taught to make the change

19. Change is inevitable
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20. Balanced Blended with Flipped Approach
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21. Blended with Flipped
Blended may not be sufficient
Blended with Flipped
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22. MOOC is a course
 Start and End Time
 Video Lectures
 Assignments & group work
 Projects
 Discussions and Forums
 Reading materials
 Assessments
 Certification
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23. Growth of MOOC
Source: https://www.edsurge.com
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Why MOOC is growing in popularity?

24. To MOOC or not to MOOC, is no longer a question to
ask; How to MOOC better is a more relevant
question to ask.
MOOCs are very demanding compared to traditional
courses content development
(Alario-Hoyos et al. 2014)
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To MOOC or not to MOOC?

25. MOOC & Blended Learning
MOOC is a course
Most MOOC courses do not have face-to-face element
Blended Learning is an approach to teaching and learning
You can use MOOC content within a face-to-face
environment
Students can go through a MOOC course and attend a
face-to-face classroom sessions for discussions or class
activities.
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26. Best Practices
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27. Why design a Blended Learning Course?
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28. Blended course design requires a willingness to
step back and consider the goals and range of
possibilities, strategies, techniques and tools.
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Garrison and Vaughan, 2008

29. Balancing between Online and F2F
Need to find the equilibrium between online and F2F
High work load:
Online Learning can be put great pressure on teacher.
It can drain on one’s time and effort
Can have a negative impact
A proper “balance” is need to have a positive impact
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30. #1 Learning Outcome
Focus on Learning Outcome and not Technology
Learning Objectives must take precedence in the design
Are the learning outcomes specific, attainable, and
measurable?
All activities must focus on the Learning Outcome
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31. #2 Which Models?
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32. # 3 Which Delivery Mode is Best?
There is a need to balance online
delivery with F2F delivery
50:50; 30:70 or 80:20 ??
Topic, learning strategy, class size,
technology, etc.
Which Topics/Activity – Which
mode?
70:20:10 Model -
20:10 – Blend social learning with
formal
Promote informal learning
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33. Which delivery mode?
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Blended Learning—Current Use, Challenges and Best Practice, Report 2013

34. #4 The role of a teacher
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35. #5 Right Class Size
Class size has an impact on online teaching domain.
Class size will determine the types of activities,
assignments, evaluations, and feedback that will be used.
There is a need to balance these activities according to
class size
Research indicates that online class size should be limited
to 20-30 students (Orellana, 2006; Roby, Ashe, Singh, & Clark, 2013).
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36. #6 Students’ ICT Skills Level
Not all students have good ICT skills
Teacher will need to recognise their needs, challenges and
opportunities
Support, Helpdesk, User Manuals, etc.
New students may need more support and monitoring
(Allen, 2000; Grover, 2006; Schrum & Hong, 2002)
Advanced or veteran online students may require less one-
on-one attention (Hachey, Wladis, & Conway, 2012, 2014).
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37. #7 Balancing Content Development Time
Online course preparations can be very time intensive,
requiring considerable research, creativity, and planning
(Dahlgran, 2008; Meyer, 2012).
Not necessary online mode save on teaching time
(Bender, Wood, & Vredevoogd, 2004; Cavanaugh, 2005; Lazarus, 2003)
Teaching online can actually provide teachers with more
flexibility (Meyer, 2012).
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38. #8 Assessment/Feedback
Grading papers/assignments & online class
discussions/feedback can take up most of the teachers’
time (Mandernach, 2013)
Technology can help to leverage efficiency in grading and
content delivery, but it can be time-intensive to implement
(Sheridan, 2006)
 A balanced strategy for grading is necessary (Sheridan, 2006)
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39. #9 Time for Professional Development
Professional development: opportunity to attend
conferences/ workshops, participate learning communities,
learn new e-learning techniques and keep abreast of
discipline-specific research and pedagogy.
Professional development is often less of a priority given
the other demands in the teaching domain (Dede, Ketelhut,
Whitehouse, Breit, & McCloskey, 2008).
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40. #10 Student Engagement is Key
 Get Student’s Attention – Innovative ideas
 Social Presence and belonging
 Clear Content Structure
 Clear Instructions
 Challenging Activities
Timely Feedback
 Personal Touch – Chat, E-mail, etc
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41. Does Blended Learning really works?
 Pennsylvania’s Spring City Elementary Hybrid Learning School (SCEHLS)
 Implemented blended learning in Fall 2012
 Teachers were given 9 days of training
 Before the school began
 Teachers redesign classrooms to fit blended mode
 Basic technology was introduced
 Station Rotation Model
 3 Stations (20 min each station)
 Individual Learning
 Collaborative Learning
 Direct Instruction
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42. Experiment Results
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Source: iNACOL, The International Association for K–12 Online Learning, http://www.inacol.org/

43. Why Blended Learning?
Best of both
Worlds
Learner
Engagement
Deeper
Learning
Extended
Learning
Better
Achievements
Creative
Collaborative
Learning
Flexible &
Motivating
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44. Possible Barriers to Blended Learning
Infrastructure – Classroom, Network, Internet Access, WiFi,
etc.
Hardware and Software – PCs, Notebooks, LMS,
Integration, etc.
Lack of Skill (Training)
Cost and Time
Mindset Change – Teachers, Students and Parents
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45. Challenges in Designing Blended Course
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46. Key Success Factors
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47. Summary: Essentials for Blended Mode
1. Good Infrastructure – Bandwidth, technology, learning
space, etc.
2. Go 1:1 - each student to have the own device
3. Good LMS – Schoology, Canvas, Facebook like, etc.
4. Digital Learning Space
5. Promote teamwork and collaborative learning
6. Promote MOOC Courses as electives & content
7. Determine the right formula for your course
8. Focus on Learning
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48. Human Touch
We learn to make eye contact, to become aware of another
person's posture and tone, to comfort one another and
respectfully challenge one another -- that empathy and
intimacy flourish. We learn who we are.
by Professor Sherry Turkle
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49. Technology Touch
Technology has the power to engage students and make
learning more fun. So much of learning happens outside of
the classroom; we need to connect our in-school activities
with our kids' out-of-school interests. Maybe they develop a
love of writing poetry, producing music videos, or solving
hard problems in their communities.
Philips Andover
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50. THANK YOU
Terima Kasih
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51. Take this quiz?
https://b.socrative.com/login/student/
Room: KELANA
1. Who will resist most in adopting Blended Learning?
 Students
 Administrators
 Lecturers
2. In your opinion, which will be your preferred mode of learning?
 MOOC-style (fully online)
 F2F (fully classroom-based lectures)
 Blended Mode
3. Will Blended Mode be a threat to universities/schools that do not adopt it?
 Yes
 No
 Not Sure
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