Ben Young, Director of Learning Solutions, presented on top Moodle plugins for blended learning. Blended learning combines online and in-person learning and is popular because it allows learning at your own pace, focuses on interests, and caters to different learning styles. Research shows blended learning improves outcomes. It saves time and money by reducing infrastructure costs and allowing training to reach many students at once in a repeatable model. Common Moodle plugins that support blended learning include Big Blue Button for live sessions, progress bars, dialogues, attendance tracking, multimedia, quizzes, and wikis. The presentation outlined next steps for implementing blended programs which include setting goals and objectives, considering learners, designing the blend, and measuring success
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7. Agenda
1. What is Blended Learning?
2. Why is it so popular?
3. How it saves time & money
4. The science behind why it works
5. Best Moodle plugins for blended learning
6. Next steps to implement your blended programs
10. Why is it so popular?
• Learn at your own pace
• Focus on what interests you most
• Increased engagement with varying
mediums
• Anytime, anywhere learning
• Caters to differing learning styles
• Better learning experiences
11. Pew Research: 66% of
institutions reported
improved learning
outcomes with Blended
Learning
Better Learning Outcomes
12. • Removal of infrastructure costs
– Live, online sessions for F2F
• Typically, one-time cost for course creation
• Training can be delivered to many at once
• Repeatable model
• Professional costs decrease
• Time to deliver training decreases
Save Time & Money
13. The 3 Different learning styles:
– Visual
– Auditory
– Kinesthetic
Science behind why it works
Source: http://blc.uc.iupui.edu/Academic-Enrichment/Study-Skills/Learning-Styles/3-Learning-Styles
14. • Big Blue Button/Adobe Connect
• Progress Bar™
• Dialogue
• Face to Face
• Attendance
• Multimedia capabilities
• Quizzes & Question types
• Wikis
Moodle Plugins for Blended Learning
15. Now What?
1. State your goals & objectives
2. Consider your Learners
3. What is your blend?
4. Build in Success Measures
5. Test and adjust!
Ben has over 7 years of experience proving cost effective and results-driven eLearning solutions to organizations of all shapes and sizes
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Blended learning is an emerging approach to education that ‘blends’ physical and virtual learning environments, as well as technology with traditional teaching and learning process.
This mode of learning consists mainly of online courses supplemented by face-to-face seminars in local centers, access to personal tutors, and ad hoc support groups.
It can also involve using a learning management system such as Moodle or Totara to deliver a diverse range of teaching methods, and resources to offer more effective, blended learning experiences.
Some models of blended learning see students guide themselves through source content on their own time, and then attend group discussions and seminars to solidify understanding and application of the information in the corporate environment.
** The flipped classroom **
- This applies to both training and education
Combines personalized online learning with face-to-face classroom learning, blended learning allows students to learn at their own pace and ability level, while allowing them to focus on what interests them most.
Information is spread out over time, using a variety of resources and mediums, keeping students engaged.
Increases access to learning and programs through online learning environments that can reach further. Providing people the option to learn from wherever they are, whenever they like. This favours learners whose schedules don’t allow them to attend class at set times every day or week – this could include learners with disabilities, full time jobs, children, etc.
Blended learning caters to different learning styles. Some people are visual learners, others are verbal learners, and some learn best when they write things down – regardless, blended learning allows all of these different types of learners to succeed.
Blended learning also provides increased student satisfaction, while simultaneously engaging and motivating them. It enables independent working and thinking.
Allows administrators to provide learners with an online space for easy communication and access to resources. It also provides a safe space for learners too shy to speak up in the classroom – allows them to participate without as much hesitancy as they would in person
A piece of research we found In a study conducted with over 30,000 students, students in a blended learning environment achieved 25% more than those in a non-blended environment. The online component allows learners to work at their own pace, quicker feedback is possible, and it’s more engaging and organized.
In research funded by the Pew Foundation of the Unites States, 20 out of 30 institutions participating reported improved learning outcomes due to a blended learning approach. 18 of these institutions also reported a decrease in students dropping classes, failing classes, or withdrawing from classes part way through.
If your blend doesn’t include F2F sessions, you don’t have to pay for instructors and physical locations
Conferencing for face to face sessions so you don’t have to fly instructors across the globe
- Training can be delivered to many at once:
International organizations can train many people in many different places simultaneously
YMCA case study: Melissa Kelly, paper-based government mandated training, 520 hours saved, 500 employees trained with advances re-certification paths, organizational growth as Melissa can now focus her time to improving after school childcare
http://www.lambdasolutions.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/Lambda_CaseStudy_YMCA-HBB.pdf
We all know that everyone processes and learns new information in ways that resonate with them.
There are three different learning styles that differentiate how people learn best:
Visual learners learn best through seeing objects such as graphs, pictures and charts. They need to see information in order to retain and processes it. These types of learners will learn best by watching lectures (either recorded or in person).
Auditory learners on the other hand, learn best through content they either hear or speak themselves. These types of learners learn best when they are told to do things, and then vocalize the main points so that the information sticks.
Kinesthetic learners, learn best by doing. They learn best with a hands on approach to learning new material and typically excel in math and science. These learners would rather demonstrate their understanding as opposed to verbally explaining. Out of all the learning styles, these learners prefer group-based work over individual.
Blended learning works, because it allows you to incorporate all of these aspects into the learning or training experience.
Big Blue Button, Adobe Connect
Progress Bar™
Dialogue
Face to Face
Attendance
Multimedia capabilities:
Poodll: add audio and video recording functionality to Moodle
Lightbox Gallery: this resource allows you to create a lightbox image gallery in a Moodle course. As a teacher you can create, edit and delete galleries
Quizzing
Open university question types:
drag and drop onto image,
drag and drop onto text,
select missing word,
ordering* (already available for Moodle 3
drag and drop onto markers
Goal example: deliver cost effective eLearning solutions that meet your learning/training targets
Objective example: train/educate x amount of learners that achieve x training/learning score
For training you will want to tie training objectives to performance measures
2. Consider your learners: what components will you add to your blend?
If you’re lucky enough to have historical data and learning analytics that can provide you with cold, hard facts on how your learners learn best – great. Many don’t so I would suggest:
Look at the demographics of your learners. Millennials typically like the freedom to learn from multiple different stimuli. Baby boomers on the other hand take more of a traditional approach to learning with reading materials.
Great learning experiences make it easy to digest difficult ideas while simultaneously equipping pupil to apply those concepts to their worlds.
When you have a good understanding if your learners, you can then move on to consider the blend
3. What is your blend? How will you use technology as a tool to make your program more successful?
Will video help your learners?
Gamification?
Simulations?
Face-to-face sessions?
Online quizzes with self-graded answers?
There are so many options! Get creative using some research and inferences to back your blend .
4. Build in Success Measures:
Success measures will be different for every organization so we can’t speak to deeply into this but think hard on them
Ask yourself: What measures do I need to build in to showcase my program’s success and ultimately, the learner’s success.
5. Test and adjust:
When your blended learning program is complete, and your learners have gone through it, look at your success measures so you can improve your learning/training experience for your next batch of learners