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Blended Learning: What Kind of Online Education Opportunities Exist?

Introduction to Online Education

Guide to Online Education > Online Education Basics > Types of Online Education > Blended Learning

Blended learning (or blended education) combines coursework in a traditional classroom (synchronous) setting with an online (asynchronous) component. Students get the sense of community with other students, but are allowed to complete a portion of the coursework independently in a virtual environment.

• Virtual learning may take the place of day-long workshops, symposiums, labs, or even some class meetings.
• It is very suitable for those courses that involve structured exercises.
• It is particularly convenient for those students who live several hours from campus, lack transportation, or have difficulty negotiating the campus due to a physical disability.
• Significantly reduces childcare costs; less time on the road means more time at home.

If Jenny were to take advantage of blended education she could complete many of her lectures on her own time and make the drive to campus just 2 or 3 times during the course.

Flexible

Blended education is truly innovative. Courses that take into account attendance several times a week, as well as class participation, term papers and exams are not ideal for every type of learner. Mature students with household responsibilities, commuter students, and students who reside in remote areas have different challenges than traditional, residential students. Blended education recognizes a student's commitment to learning the material and completing a course, without penalizing the student for factors outside his or her control.

In an age when kindergarteners have access to computer labs, their older siblings are watching movies on iPods the size of credit cards, and their parents are getting their headline news from telephones, the education field was ripe for change. A learning method that relies on a model created centuries ago is not as relevant today as it was even five years ago.

The traditional blueprint dictates that one professor must stand in front of scores of students and lecture. Each individual student—regardless of her background, ability and level of interest in a subject—is expected to be in lock-step with all of the other students at any given time.

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