I’ve run an English school delivering face-to-face courses. I’ve run an online teaching operation. I’ve tried to combine the 2 many times – for Business English, Technical English and Exam Prep courses. My company has released 3 online Medical English courses this year, for nurses, healthcare workers and doctors. Most agree that the trend is towards online, but is the pedagogy any good? Can it replicate face-to-face, or will it always be the poor relation? This presentation looks at the best of face-to-face and online self-study, as well as the challenges facing both. It looks at how they can be combined in truly effective blended English language learning courses. This is a Medical English conference, so the examples and case studies will look at courses directly related to the concerns of delegates.
3. Begin with the End in Mind
“To begin with the end in mind means to start with a clear understanding of
your destination. It means to know where you’re going so that you better
understand where you are now so that the steps you take are always in the
right direction.” Steven Covey, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.
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What words
do you need
to express
yourself?
Describe the
key scenarios
you use English
in
Who do
you use
English
with?
What kind of
texts do you
read in English?
What kind
of writing
do you
do?
What accents
do you need
to
understand?
4. Plan Your Journey
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Taba’s Model of Curriculum Processes
1. Diagnosis of needs
2. Formulation of objectives
3. Selection of content
4. Organisation of content
5. Selection of learning experiences
6. Organisation of learning experiences
7. Determination of what to evaluate and means to evaluate
8. Checking for balance and sequence
Hilda Taba, 1902-1967
5. Face-to-face Best Practice
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“Give the pupils something to do, not
something to learn; and the doing is of
such a nature as to demand thinking;
learning naturally results.” John Dewey,
1859-1952
“Give the pupils something to do, not
something to learn; and the doing is of such
a nature as to demand thinking; learning
naturally results.” John Dewey, 1859-1952
6. Face-to-face Best Practice
Students
• Engaged learners
• Analysers
• Experimenters
• Collaborators
• Problem solvers
• Dialogue builders
• Debaters
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Teachers
• Planners
• Learning experience
creators and organisers
• Facilitators
• Listeners, elicitors
• Feedback givers
• Classroom managers
• Experts
8. Rise of Informal Learning
Unstructured, spontaneous, tangential, immediate, unpredictable, on-
demand, mobile first, portable, anytime anywhere learning.
Has this become the norm?
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13. Online Study – Best Practice
Core Methodology
• Relevant
• Fun
• Rewarding
• Variety
• Multimedia
• Quick, eg short reading texts
• Instant review & feedback
• Recycle and re-contextualise content
And then…
• Adaptive
• Social/sharing/networking/PLNs/learning communities
• Gamified
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“In terms of lessons learned, it became
apparent during the development process
that good online design includes interactive
elements on every screen the learner sees.
Whereas traditional book-based
programmes can provide explanations and
examples followed up by related exercises,
online design precludes extended expository
material and has very definite real estate
limits.”
Beagle & Davies, ‘Blended Learning for the
aviation industry: A case study’, 2013
14. So, Can the Twain Ever Meet?
Face-to-face
• Collaborative – pairs, groups
• Synchronous
• Extensive tasks – eg TBL
• Teacher listens and feeds back
• Tried and tested
• Fixed materials
• Not portable
• Fixed times
• Fixed location
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Online Self-study
• Work alone - autonomy
• Asynchronous
• Short activities
• Computer says right/wrong
• Being tried, being tested
• Reiterated, updateable materials
• Portable
• On-demand
• Anywhere you have a connection
Oh East is East and West is West, And never the twain shall meet…
- Rudyard Kipling
15. Where the Twain Meets…Blended Learning
What is Blended Learning?
"combining Internet and digital media with established classroom forms that
require the physical co-presence of teacher and students."
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17. How to Blend
1. Supplemental
• Face-to-face classroom is primary component/driver
• Online secondary, eg deepening knowledge, review/recontextualise, prepare for
classroom interaction, personal study – may be optional
2. Replacement
• Flexible mix; classroom interaction for collaboration, group problem solving,
teacher-student interaction
• Online for extensive reading/video (inc lectures & webinars)/research, reflection,
writing, preparation
3. Emporium
• Key learning space is physical/virtual learning resource centre
• Online primary component/driver – collaborative focus, learner-driven study,
flexible learning; minimal f2f sessions to present, discuss, feedback
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18. Blended Learning Course Design for ESP
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Take a principled approach,
not an eclectic one
19. Blended Learning Design – Some Questions
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Learner needs?
Learning objectives?
Content breakdown?
Order of inputs?
Lead delivery mode?
Pedagogy?
Time allocation?
Session frequency and duration?
Level of student autonomy?
Compulsory vs optional?
Location?
Interactional patterns?
Role of teacher and students?
Level of support for students
using BL?
Level of support for teachers
using BL?
Evaluating effectiveness?
Tracking and reporting?
Improving the course?
20. Nursing English Case Study 1
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Weekly Training F2F Sessions
Guided online review, study and prep
Needs
Analysis,
Goal
Setting
Assessment
&
Review
21. Nursing English Case Study 2
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Daily F2F Sessions, different options
Assessment
&Review
Bench-mark
Phase1OnlineCourse
NeedsAnalysis,GoalSetting
Daily Self-Study, Guided, different options
Weekly Webinars for all students
On-demand Online Resources
22. To Conclude
“effective implementation of technology is not
accomplished just as an ‘add-on’ to existing tools, it
must be synergised into the language learning
environment with the support of surrounding
educational systems”
(Yang, SC (2001) Integrating computer-mediated tools into the language curriculum.
Journal of Computer Assisted Learning 17: 92.)
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23. To continue the conversation
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Chris Moore
Specialist Language Courses
chris@specialistlanguagecourses.com
Hinweis der Redaktion
I’ve run an English school delivering face-to-face courses. I’ve run an online teaching operation. I’ve tried to combine the 2 many times – for business English, ESP and exam prep courses. My company has released 3 online Medical English courses this year, for nurses, healthcare workers and doctors. Most agree that the trend is towards online, but is the pedagogy any good? Can it replicate face-to-face, or will it always be the poor relation? This presentation looks at the best of face-to-face and online self-study, as well as the challenges facing both. It looks at how they can be combined in truly effective blended English language learning courses. This is a Medical English conference, so the examples and case studies will look at courses directly related to the concerns of delegates.
We’re learning online all the time – Google, Wikipedia, etc Rise of informal learning. We can learn a lot from these interactions.
So, best practice methods focus on creating a syllabus that draws learners back to it again and again. Get it right powerful learning experience
How do f2d and online add value to each other?
If they are not seen as complementary demotivating
Can be a mish mash, ‘worst of both worlds
How do f2d and online add value to each other?
If they are not seen as complementary demotivating
Can be a mish mash, ‘worst of both worlds