Blended & Online Learning:

An opportunity for our students to succeed in a nontraditional way!

Acquiring knowledge no longer takes place in just a classroom, but continues to change through the combination of tradition and technology.  Blended learning is when a student participates in learning both at school, or in a "brick and mortar" setting, and online where they have a little more control and receive their instruction primarily over the Internet.

As I write this, I'm thinking about my classroom this year.  As a first year teacher, I don't have a lot of experience in the classroom but there are a few things that come to mind.  The biggest issue I have had all year and be summed up in one word: attendance.  Obviously, students miss for health reasons which limits their ability to complete assignments but some students miss because of planned and unexpected family trips.  That is where technology comes into play.  That is where technology comes into play.  They can be miles away and still post on a discussion board, watch a required video, download, complete, and upload a required worksheet, without even setting foot in your classroom.  How many of them have Smartphones?  If so, they can even access the needed websites on their phones, which brings me to my next point.

Our students today are driven by technology.  Everything that they do during the day uses technology in some way, shape, or form.  Why not allow them to do their work in a way that they are most familiar?  Although I oppose the idea of removing traditional work (handwriting skills without the aid of spell and grammar checks) completely, we have to face the fact that this is the direction our culture is headed.  As educators, we must be proactive and start allowing our pupils to learn in a way that is comfortable to them and easily accessible.  All three of my textbooks have eBooks, so students can access their books and complete their assignments online without having to break their backs with backpacks full of textbooks and notebooks.

With every positive thing, however, there is always a negative.  I made mention about Smartphone earlier, but in poor, rural corporations, such as mine, some students don't have Smartphones, or access to the Internet, or even a computer unless they are at school.  We, the teachers, need to be prepared for that.  I am fortunate enough to have 15 laptops available to me, and though they are not the greatest in the world, they get the job done.  I can't assign online work at the end of class and expect it to be done the next day, however.  I have to be flexible and allow those students who do not have access at home enough time to complete the assignments at school.

Consequently, blended and online learning is our future.  It's coming and we have to be proactive and accept it.  Unfortunately, those educators who choose to ignore it will be left in the dust, lost, and labeled ineffective.  Are you ready?