whitepaper 5 best practices for blended learning
TRANSCRIPT
WHITEPAPER
5 Best Practices for Blended Learning According to Pedagogical Research
By Sean R. Coffron, Ph.D. | August 2020
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ContentsA Forward from PowerSchool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Creating a Nurturing Learning Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Establishing Clear, Standards-Based Outcomes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Personalizing Learning with Differentiation & Scaffolding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Delivering Direct, Contextualized Feedback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Using Critical Thinking Strategies to Promote Literacy Skill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
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A Forward from PowerSchoolIt’s hard to decide what’s best for our students—especially in today’s uncertain educational climate. Many teachers and parents are concerned about reopening schools, how to address learning loss from the COVID Slide, and how to support students’ mental health during this unsettling time. But everyone agrees that the learning must go on. Whether the plan involves on-site, online, blended, or hybrid learning models, students must have access to the high-quality education they deserve.
But what goes into an effective blended or hybrid learning environment?
Sean R. Coffron, Ph.D. and Instructional Technology Training Specialist at Manassas City Public Schools, dove into the pedagogical research to find the answer. His review of the published literature reveals five clear best practices for a successful blended learning environment. Here are his findings.
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Introduction As the COVID-19 pandemic and social injustices continue across the nation, many K-12 educators and educational partners are searching to find the best way to approach teaching and learning in a way that celebrates more diversity, navigates more challenges, and demands more rigorous curriculum than ever before. Technology will, no doubt, play a critical role in the solution, but it is imperative that effective pedagogy and assessment not be lost in the pursuit of the more efficient methods of instruction. Students are still students, and learning is still learning no matter the learning space or learning community. By grounding a discussion about best practices in the foundations of education, one can ensure students are not only best served instructionally, but also supported socio-emotionally and culturally.
In exploring the tools of instruction that will promote effective education, one must begin with the best practices. Educational discussions must be structured in a fashion that is inclusive of all aspects of learning and affirming of all components of student development. A review of the literature reveals five clear strands of inquiry that must be addressed to provide a complete treatment for the conversation surrounding best practices in any arena, especially an arena that is challenged with the need for non-traditional methodology. These strands are:
Creating a nurturing learning environment
Establishing clear and specific outcomes based on prescribed standards
Personalizing learning with differentiated and scaffolded instructional practices
Delivering clear and direct feedback within the context of relevant and regular practice
Using critical thinking strategies that promote literacy and writing skills2, 3, 4, 6
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Creating a Nurturing Learning Environment
In the evaluation of effective practices that foster a nurturing learning environment, one must ensure the class setting not only supports learning, but also supports socio-emotional development—including the creation of an environment that allows for risk-taking, collaboration, communication, and self-inquiry. Regardless of the platform being used for learning, creating a nurturing learning environment is increasingly important in a hybrid or distance learning scenario because the natural connective environment of a traditional classroom is interrupted. Teachers must take great care to build bridges among students and connect the students and the teacher to effectively simulate the classroom experience.3
The most effective method for providing a learning environment that supports all students in a blended environment is one that has as few barriers as possible. At the beginning of the learning experience, or traditionally at the beginning of the school year, clear and specific norms must be set for student interaction as well as student and teacher interaction. These norms should allow students to learn and explore a perhaps unfamiliar technology while affirming those who are already comfortable—just as a traditional classroom would normalize structures for students struggling in the social setting of a classroom while celebrating those more socially adept.
When in a live camera session, teachers must enforce the norms they have developed with the students. This includes having a clear protocol for a student who has something to add to the conversation, like using the "raise hand" function in the live discussion and muting all participants when they are not participating. This will also diminish background noise and students’ temptation to distract others because they already know they are muted. Similarly, disabling the chat feature during direct instruction will cut down on side conversations while helping to keep students focused on the instruction.
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To facilitate a comfortable blended learning space for students, you can:
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Create informal discussion groups that focus on students’ likes and dislikes early in the year.
Use asynchronous discussion groups to gauge the social and instructional strength of students.
Supplement instruction with synchronous discussions via the chat tool.
Have live chat discussions with clear standards for discourse, so teachers can follow up with individual students.
Encourage students to journal or blog, so they can disclose their comfort levels and strengths
in a non-threatening and personal manner.
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Establishing Clear, Standards-Based Outcomes
Currently, there is much discussion on the role of standards in instructional practice and the role of data in determining effective differentiation. For example, researchers debate the role of competency-based assessment versus more traditional benchmarks. Many continue to discuss the value of rigorous standards at all, especially if they may replace more evidence-based practices that are more aligned with conventional wisdom. However, despite the value of these arguments, it is clear that effective instruction must come from a plan centered around clear outcomes and standards that outline an external structure for success.4, 8
To best leverage the role of standards and data in pedagogy, the teacher must continually gauge students’ performance. In a blended learning environment, the following outcomes must be measured:
1. Learning Objective – The student’s abilities at the end of a lesson resulting from the activities, teaching, and learning that has taken place.
2. Skills Mastery – The student’s ability to understand the critical thinking and collaboration necessary to engage in the learning.
3. Digital Citizenship – The student’s familiarity with technology and ability to use the required technology to meet the learning goals.
It may seem daunting at first to develop outcomes around students’ digital literacy, but by planning collaboratively with colleagues, the teacher can ensure this is being accomplished effectively. More importantly, teachers will avoid the unpleasantness of completing a lesson and realizing the student might have been successful if they had only learned how to use the technology tool required for the activity.8, 11 And just as you would in any classroom setting, you’ll want to share the results of your measured outcomes with the student and develop an intervention plan with parents if the student is struggling.
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Personalizing Learning with Differentiation and Scaffolding
One of the fastest growing trends in instructional technology is the development of personalized instruction and assessment. What began as a form of differentiation quickly grew to be a primary component of the classroom as the impact of technology increased and the resources available to the teacher became less about adapting traditional techniques and more about creating new learning spaces and more robust lessons.2, 11 As learning spaces evolve to include technology, it’s crucial to ensure the differentiation, scaffolding, and personalization expected in a physical classroom are also incorporated into a blended or hybrid model.
Personalized learning at its core is no more complex than the desire to meet students where they are and operate within their instructional understanding. Bloom’s Taxonomy remains the forefront of student engagement with the goal being to move from remembering and recalling to synthesizing and evaluating content. However, the methodology has shifted to promote a cultural and educational sensitivity to the student’s individual strengths and struggles to promote equitable learning and ensure individual success.9
In exploring best practices for blended learning, it is essential to examine all aspects of personalized learning. Similar to the previous theories of differentiation, the focus is on preparing and previewing information for students not only to prime them for learning, but also to inform the teacher on the promises and pains the students are experiencing related to the content. Formative assessment remains assessment for learning as much as assessment of learning. However, there are additional considerations when moving from a grouped differentiation to a more stratified personalized approach including the consideration of:
• Learner profiles
• Student agency
• Flexible activities
• Individual mastery
• Personalized learning paths9, 10
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When planning the lesson, the teacher must continue to employ backward design, and begin by considering the assessment and desired outcomes. However, the teacher must anticipate the differences among their students and create a lesson that previews necessary information to ensure that the students are all starting on the same page. This should include an assessment that will add to the teacher’s understanding of the student’s learning profile and, while grouping will be the result, an understanding that there must be sufficient opportunities for learning that every child gains from the experience.9, 10, 12
In the planning for instruction, the teacher considers the student profile and prior learning data to ensure that all students are prepared for the lesson. Similarly, the teacher must develop the lesson to foster a strong sense of student agency. Research in the last 20 years indicates that learners are most successful when they are the directors of their own learning and are given choices to their method and means of learning. This can be accomplished most efficiently by focusing not on the content but on the process by which the standards are met. For example, a science classroom will see more labs and collaboration; a language arts classroom will see more short passage reading and critical analysis; and a mathematics classroom will see more collaborative problem solving to replace the drilling of specific skills.10, 12
This level of flexibility in the student learning affords an opportunity for students to thrive in an environment where they are comfortable, but also for teachers to challenge their pupils in new directions. It is not recommended that students have universal choice of how they learn. In physical training, we must exercise all muscle groups. Likewise, children must be challenged to grow and experience different modes of learning. Nonetheless, this must be done in a manner that is informed by the student’s previous successes and struggles to ensure that they are achieving individual mastery not only in the content, but also in the process of learning, whether it be critical reasoning, literacy, or the development within the context of the sciences or humanities.9, 10
DISCOVERY
WRITTEN
DISCUSSION
RESEARCH
Learners are most successful when they are given choices to their method and means of learning
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Delivering Direct, Contextualized Practice and Feedback
The difficult aspect of providing practice is routinely offering quality feedback in a timely manner. In an online environment, or a blended learning classroom, self-directed learning provides the best way for teachers to give effective feedback. By providing regular opportunities for students to practice digitally, the teacher is also providing themselves an opportunity to provide feedback regularly without the burden of time and resources accompanying more traditional forms of extension activities. By collaborating with the student in the creation of a running record, blog, or portfolio that is comprised of individual practice activities, the teacher is an active partner in the process without spending countless hours grading and evaluating.1
This will look different for a six-year-old than it does for a sixteen-year-old, but the key is to share the responsibility in a manner that supports the student’s self-agency. By self-regulating, the student is promoted to an exciting role in the learning process that can both empower them and hold them accountable for not only the content being learned, but the process of instruction as well. Similarly, through the use of portfolios and structured blogs, the teacher is able to enhance the student’s sense of self and personal responsibility because the resulting data goes beyond completion and even understanding. It affords a conversation with the student, and family if necessary, regarding their meta-cognition and attitude toward the content and even learning in general.1
In the blended learning classroom, where the personalized activities are primarily virtual and the student profile is limited to the data that can be attained from a distance, making students feel successful can be increasingly difficult. It is advised that the teacher focus on student-centered assessment and tracking of their progress with the use of logs, charts, and digital media. Thankfully, there are tools for this available in most learning management systems that are both intuitive and integrated into the content. Then, the teacher can become the guide on the side and witness the student’s self-assessment. Of course, this must be developmentally appropriate, and more structure and assistance should be offered to the youngest members of our learning community.
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One of the most important strategies to deploy to ensure effective and meaningful assessment is the use of a technology enhanced resource for the delivery of feedback. Assigning practice (or homework) is typically the simple part of this process. The homework must be relevant, developmentally appropriate, and differentiated; however, this is not the stumbling block for most educators because it is in line with conventional wisdom.
The key is to develop the new skills made available through technology while maintaining traditional norms and ethics of the classroom. When students blog about their learning or develop a portfolio of their work, they must be given a clear rubric or guidance that is both developmentally appropriate and within the context of the lesson. While this can be a tremendous amount of work up front, it can pay off in dividends in higher quality learning and resource management throughout the lesson, as the burden of work is now shared between teacher and student. More importantly, it provides more information than a more traditional homework plan. The malleability of a semi-structured set of assignments gives the teacher valuable information about the student in the classroom as well as outside of the learning environment and can be leveraged to develop greater rapport.7
Students must attain a sense of personal success, which is best achieved in an environment where students are:
Taught with continual and consistent feedback that is both affirming and achieving
Aware of the intended outcome in advance
Guided to the proper pathway to their success
Provided practice to hone their skills and competencies
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Using Critical Thinking Strategies to Promote Literacy Skills
Throughout every aspect of the learning process, it is essential that students be given the opportunity to think critically. This is best achieved through reading and writing—regardless of the content. The act of reading and responding with writing necessarily promotes critical engagement with the text and therefore the content. This, of course, does not need to be burdensome and forced. A science lab report, a social studies reflection on the reading, an English essay or series of sentences, or a written explanation of a math problem—all provide opportunities to learn within the context of literacy and critical thinking. Content literacy is not only imperative for long-term acquisition of knowledge, but it has also proven to be one of the best strategies for learning in terms of effect size.5
Critical thinking is as diverse and integrated into instruction as any other resource or strategy. As such, it is important that the teacher incorporate critical thinking into the lesson in an appropriate and meaningful way. This can be as simple as taking a recall activity to the next step, asking questions that prompt long answers, or providing a scaffold for group discourse that forces students to take the next step in learning. Whether the students are comparing and contrasting, evaluating ideas, or synthesizing new ideas altogether, this is a vital part of the learning process as it helps students to understand the material and integrate the information into their current knowledge base.5
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ConclusionIn conclusion, as the K-12 community continues its search for the best way to approach teaching and learning in a blended or hybrid environment, these five key best practices must be incorporated into their instructional model. As we’ve discovered in the recent months, relying on research and data to inform our decisions and actions is critical. Let’s integrate these research-based findings into students’ learning plans, so we can keep the learning going no matter what next school year brings.
Dr. Sean Coffron has served as an educator with Manassas City Public Schools for nineteen years, including six years as an administrator and instructional technologist. Having earned a PhD in Educational Leadership and an MBA, his research interests include professional learning and evaluation of staff development. He has offered presentations and workshops on the implementation of instructional technology strategies to promote student and staff engagement, including topics such as digital footprint, learning management systems, 1:1 implementation, and electronic professional learning communities.
DR. SEAN COFFRONInstructional Technology Training Specialist, Manassas City Public
Schools, Virginia
About the Author
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