Blended
Online/Face-to-face Courses
The term
blended learning implies that some of class time/activities will be in the classroom, and some will be online. For example, a course where students traditionally
would be expected to be in class for 3 hours per week, in a blended course
would come to class for 1 hour and spend 2 hours per week in online activities.
Ideally, the use of BlackBerry can help
in the organization and execution of learning tasks. These include reading,
research, writing, sharing, and group-work. The
following partial list illustrates various strategies that you can implement:
- Online assessment: move your tests, quizzes and practice tests into the Bb testing engine. Tests are delivered and marked automatically.
- Set up “communities of practice” using Bb’s discussion forums and group work areas for smaller teams. Many instructors break up large classes into small teams and assign learning tasks to the teams. The teams eventually use Bb to report back to the class as a whole about their results.
- Put all your reference materials in Bb
- Place pre-class work online (learning activities students must complete before attending face-to-face classroom activities).
- Set up coaching forums to help cover complex or tough subject areas.
- Deliver learning aids or lab support materials online (e.g. power point shows, handouts)
- Provide access to “experts” via the web.
- Use e-mail effectively with the “send e-mail” tool. Blanket the entire class with a general announcement or select specific groups/teams or individuals.
- Create folders for each module; insert resources, practice tests, sample assignments, readings, etc. – Label clearly.
