Blended Learning Delivery Methods for a Sustainable Learning Environment: A Delphi Study

Abstract

The outbreak of COVID-19 necessitated social distancing. Universities around the world were left with two options: a total suspension or a major reduction in students’ attendance. While the nature of many courses made it very difficult to teach them online, blended learning was the most suitable approach to teach these types of courses. Academics and educational institutions have realized the significance of blended learning not only as a response to immediate disruptions but also as a pivotal element in fostering a sustainable learning environment. However, designing successful blended learning courses requires making challenging decisions regarding the selection of the most appropriate delivery methods to achieve learning outcomes. To support higher education adoption of blended learning, this study identifies and rates the importance of the delivery methods that need consideration when designing a blended learning course. The aim is to assist academics to prioritize their delivery options and provide adaptable and resilient educational models. A Delphi study of two rounds was conducted to identify and rate the delivery methods. An expert panel of 19 academics with extensive experience in course design and online delivery was recruited. The findings indicate that online collaborative work and face-to-face collaborative work should be academics’ first delivery choices. Interestingly, face-to-face instructor-led learning was at the bottom of the list and rated well below all the other delivery methods.

Blended Learning and Flipped Classroom in Higher Engineering Education: Case Study and Students’ Perception in the Post-COVID-19 Period

“…The authors of the publication [39] suggest that social media can be a very effective tool for building a course community, especially in terms of exchanging official and unofficial information between students. The research conducted by them confirms that the proper use of social media could promote a new era of social learning, social presence, and an alternative platform to foster online learning [37]. One interesting tool to support social learning is the Perusall platform [40].…”

“…For example, they suggest preparing short, high-definition video tutorials as part of the pre-class activity to match the current way young people perceive knowledge. Video and multimedia are important tools for didactic work in the BL formula, especially FC [37]. One of them is the webinar analyzed by Kumar et al [38].…”

Optimizing Components Selection in Blended Learning: Toward Sustainable Students Engagement and Success

“…A growing body of research indicates that blended learning can foster sustainable students' engagement and success. By combining face-to-face and online components, students can access knowledge from various sources, thereby improving their learning outcomes [19,20]. Dziuban, Graham, Moskal, Norberg and Sicilia [1] observed that the diverse activities in blended courses positively motivate students and can boost class attendance.…”