Power,+M+2008

= The Emergence of a Blended Online Learning Environment  =

Michael Power Laval University, Quebec City, QC, CA

michael.power@fse.ulaval.ca

@http://jolt.merlot.org/vol4no4/power_1208.htm

This paper is based on an ongoing research program examining the implementation of instructional design and technology in university teaching as well as in faculty migration from a distance education design model to an online learning design model. The purpose of this paper is to substantiate an emerging online learning trend termed //blended online learning//, based on a synthesis of existing research and new findings from a three-year, multi-case study. Blended online learning, as defined here, was borne out of an intensive, iterative cycle of rapid prototyping-based design research and is seen as a combination of both blended learning and online learning, i.e. the simultaneous and complimentary integration and implementation of an asynchronous-mode learning environment (i.e. a learning management system, or LMS) and a synchronous desktop conferencing environment (i.e. a virtual classroom). Previous research by the author defined the context, parameters and methodology of this study and identified specific design problems encountered by faculty when designing and developing courses for off-campus outreach. This paper takes a step back and observes how distance education as a field is losing impetus as online learning is gaining momentum.
 * Abstract **

Universities world-wide have long been interested in distance education, both as a means of increasing accessibility to higher education, thereby promoting social justice (Jung, 2003), and also as a means of increasing enrolments while decreasing costs (Rumble, 2002). After decades of change and technological innovation in models of DE (Taylor, 2001) and of, at times, mixed results (OCDE, 2005; Tallent-Runnels, Thomas, Lan, Cooper, Ahern, Shaw & Liu, 2006), university administrators are now turning //en masse// to information and communication technologies to develop online components of on-campus courses (Bonk & Graham, 2006; Cook, Owston & Garrison, 2004). As a result, a variety of //blended learning// approaches to course design and delivery has emerged whereby faculty, working with instructional designers, develop, to varying degrees, didactic materials for online delivery which complement on-campus teaching and learning and facilitate distribution of didactic materials (Garrison & Kanuka, 2004; Garrison & Vaughan, 2008; Mortera-Gutierrez, 2006; Shea, Fredericksen, Pickett, & Pelz, 2004). > " The basic principle   [ of blended learning ] is that face-to-face oral communication and online written communication are optimally integrated such that the strengths of each are blended into a unique learning experience congruent with the context and intended educational purpose” (Garrison & Vaughan, 2008: p. 42).   > > > > >   Garrison, D. R. & Kanuka, H. (2004). Blended learning: Uncovering its transformative potential in higher education. //Internet and Higher Education//, 7, 95–105.   > >  Garrison, D.R. & Vaughan, N. (2008). //Blended Learning in Higher Education: Framework, Principles, and Guidelines//. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.  > >  Mortera-Gutiérrez, F. (2006). Faculty Best Practices Using Blended Learning in E-Learning and Face-to-Face Instruction. //International Journal on E-Learning//. 5 (3), pp. 313-337. Chesapeake, VA: AACE.  > >