The Worst of Both Worlds

As we strive to wrap our heads around the big idea of the blended learning, invariably misunderstandings arise. This post "Is Blended Learning the Best of Both Worlds?" from Clifford Maxwell at the Christenson Institute addresses the misconception that blended learning models and educational technology tools themselves are magic. 

The post is worth the 3 minute read, but three important take-aways are:

1. "Online learning and face-to-face instruction aren’t opposites—they can go hand-in-hand in a way that is in harmony with the goals and aims of an effective education."
2. "It is a delivery model that can help to optimize for each individual student, but only when implemented effectively. When blended learning is not implemented well, teachers may feel replaced and students may feel like they’re mindlessly droning away on a computer."
3. "When schools aim to create a 'best of both worlds' environment when implementing blended learning, they combine the benefits of both the new technology (online learning) and the old technology (traditional classroom) to improve along the initial definition of what a good classroom is meant to do."

This speaks to having clear objectives, clear knowledge of where learners are "at," and clear understandings of how the technology we choose is beneficial to teachers and students for those purposes.

Many are rightfully nervous about the innate value of adding technology. We know that just adding technology won't necessarily make lessons better, just as simply using stations doesn't guarantee deeper learning. The magic happens when blended learning is implemented to make education more accessible to the variety of learners in our charge. 

There are so many ways that blended learning can make education better for students AND teachers. The key is when we use blended learning to provide more opportunities for student engagement in high quality learning and for teachers to use research-based instructional practices.