Blended Learning in English Language Teaching: Course Design and Implementation
Blended Learning in English Language Teaching: Course Design and Implementation
Blended Learning in English Language Teaching: Course Design and Implementation
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first-h<strong>and</strong> experience on which they can reflect when they come to approach<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong><br />
underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g theory.<br />
We are also able to make much better use of the face-to-face time that is available for<br />
the course because participants arrive with a good level of technical knowledge <strong>and</strong><br />
sound experiences <strong>and</strong> have already had some time to absorb many of the technical<br />
<strong>and</strong> theoretical aspects dur<strong>in</strong>g the first onl<strong>in</strong>e block of the course.<br />
Lastly, through exploit<strong>in</strong>g the social network<strong>in</strong>g <strong>and</strong> community build<strong>in</strong>g opportunities<br />
offered dur<strong>in</strong>g the <strong>in</strong>itial onl<strong>in</strong>e phase of the course, the participants arrive at the<br />
face-to-face part of the course already familiar with each other <strong>and</strong> this really<br />
accelerates the bond<strong>in</strong>g process that groups generally go through dur<strong>in</strong>g the<br />
<strong>in</strong>itial stages of a face-to-face course.<br />
<strong>Design</strong> challenges<br />
Both face-to-face <strong>and</strong> onl<strong>in</strong>e courses can be problematic for the development of<br />
teachers’ techno-pedagogical skills. Face-to-face courses generally tend to be too<br />
short <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>tensive for teachers to get past the ‘shock <strong>and</strong> awe’ impact that new<br />
technology can have, <strong>and</strong> whereas they can help to build or destroy enthusiasm for<br />
technology, it can be hard with<strong>in</strong> short face-to-face courses to develop the degree of<br />
balanced critical underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g that is necessary for the effective use of technology.<br />
Onl<strong>in</strong>e courses, on the other h<strong>and</strong>, tend to be far too theoretical with teachers<br />
lack<strong>in</strong>g the practical ‘h<strong>and</strong>s on’ guidance <strong>and</strong> experience that they can get with<strong>in</strong> the<br />
physical classroom. The blended learn<strong>in</strong>g structure of the course was employed to<br />
address both these areas. Teachers had the opportunity to be exposed through the<br />
onl<strong>in</strong>e course to some of the potential uses of technology to support development<br />
with<strong>in</strong> an onl<strong>in</strong>e environment, <strong>and</strong> then had the opportunity to employ their <strong>in</strong>sights<br />
with<strong>in</strong> a more practical face-to-face workshop environment.<br />
Most people still have a limited concentration span for onl<strong>in</strong>e work. This, mixed with<br />
the busy nature of teachers’ lives, <strong>in</strong>fluenced the design of the onl<strong>in</strong>e tasks. Most of<br />
the active tasks were developed to be short <strong>and</strong> doable <strong>in</strong> chunks of 30 m<strong>in</strong>utes or<br />
less. They are also very practical so that participants can immediately implement<br />
what they are learn<strong>in</strong>g with<strong>in</strong> their own classroom.<br />
Future adaptations<br />
The course has been designed to evolve as more participants do the course <strong>and</strong> as<br />
the technology changes. Because the onl<strong>in</strong>e element of the course is Moodle-based<br />
it can easily be edited <strong>and</strong> kept up to date. It is also anticipated that digital artefacts<br />
<strong>and</strong> teach<strong>in</strong>g resources produced by each cohort with<strong>in</strong> the course can be archived<br />
<strong>and</strong> shared <strong>and</strong> be the basis for the development of new materials for later cohorts.<br />
Lessons learned <strong>and</strong> advice<br />
Time management<br />
<strong>Blended</strong> learn<strong>in</strong>g is often seen as a time-sav<strong>in</strong>g measure both <strong>in</strong> terms of course<br />
design <strong>and</strong> tutor time for delivery, this is a huge misconception. The development<br />
70 | A blended learn<strong>in</strong>g teacher development course