Example of Practice 1: Advancing Active and Blended Learning at SRUC
Publication date: 18 Sep 2024
The examples of practice in this section capture four different tertiary institutions' experiences of implementing active blended learning into their curricula.
1. Advancing active and blended learning at Scottish Rural’s College (SRUC)
Pauline Hanesworth explores how SRUC has come to a meaningful definition of the term 'active and blended learning' informed by Sharma’s 2010 definition of blended learning. For SRUC, active and blended learning encompasses four key elements:
- Blend of teaching locations which is a mixture of physical and virtual spaces including small group, interactive classroom sessions and online learning activities. The blend of locations can be low, medium or high impact, or a mixture of all three adapted from Alammary’s work (2014).
- Blend of teaching approaches employing a variety of active learning strategies, minimising (but not eradicating) the use of passive acquisition methods. Active learning is prioritised to engage students more deeply in the learning process.
- Blend of teaching technologies which aim to support the development of digital intelligence including 'hard' technologies (for example, drones) and 'soft' technologies (for example, Moodle).
- Blend of teaching locations, technologies and active learning approaches which are intentionally and consciously selected (as discussed in Section 2) ensuring that learning outcomes are met.
SRUC has created a bespoke programme and learning design process that draws upon Atkinson’s 8-Stage Learning Design model, Salmon’s Carpe Diem process, UCL’s ABC Learning Design approach (as discussed in Section 4) and Ulster’s Viewpoints work. Interestingly, the ABC approach has been adapted since module designers often overemphasised acquisition learning and placed less emphasis upon reflection.
2. Using blended learning (‘fusion’) in Edinburgh Future Institute’s new postgraduate portfolio
Jen Ross discusses how the implementation of blended learning on this programme was driven by the vision for the Edinburgh Futures Institute’s new postgraduate portfolio, which aims to be accessible to mixed cohorts of online and on-campus students - whilst suiting the different working patterns, flexible study needs and professional ambitions of all students. The desired outcome was for Education Futures students to feel like they belonged to a single cohort, and to experience the different learning environments as coherent, interconnected and supportive of their learning.
Launched in September 2022, each course has two weeks of asynchronous activity at the start and two weeks at the end, with two intensive synchronous days in between which necessitated much infrastructure development. Feedback on the programme has been very positive. Jen shares on-going challenges including lack of learner confidence in posting publicly, lack of learner understandings of the benefits of online asynchronous learning (as discussed in Section 4), and the need for upfront educator investment of time to design and present activities that are meaningful. A key observation is that 'it takes time for new approaches to be shaped to fit teachers, students and subject matter'. Jen concludes by outlining key insights emphasising the importance of:
- Interdisciplinary collaboration.
- Consistent signposting - clear communication and guidance about opportunities for engagement across modes.
- Flexibility and contact - designing for contact that is engaging but flexible is a key task for active blended learning that is also blending online and on-campus cohorts.
- Learning from experiences which ensures there are opportunities for networking, time and space for educators to consider controversial subjects.
- Appropriate physical spaces for synchronous hybrid sessions.
Example of Practice 2: Using Blended Learning (‘Fusion’) in Edinburgh Futures
Publication date: 18 Sep 2024
3. Using active blended learning to bring together face-to-face and online learners at the University of Aberdeen
Kirsty Kiezebrink, Dean for Educational Innovation at the University of Aberdeen, discusses how she had amalgamated her online and face-to-face offering for medical education.
Taking an active blended learning approach, she discusses the benefits of groupwork for online and on campus learners, how she organises the groupwork and provides hints and tips for successful online group work. Finally, she outlines how she brings together online and on campus learners for groupwork.
4. Active blended learning: An institutional approach at the University of Northampton
Armellini et al (2021) discuss their institutional approach to active blended learning in a British university during 2018-2019. Through the initiative, an accessible definition of active blended learning has been developed which reflects an institutional effort to engage a wider audience, including current and prospective learners:
Active Blended Learning means our students learn through activities which develop their subject knowledge and confidence in applying professional skills. In Active Blended Learning, students discuss ideas, experiment, work in teams and receive tutor feedback. We value community, collaboration, flexibility, and accessibility, whether on campus or remotely, because we recognise the benefits to our students of digital fluency and flexibility of place and time of study.
The active blended learning approach is student-centred, encouraging learners to construct their own understandings and developing appropriate skills to meet the learning outcomes. This has required educators to move away from the transmissive approach to learning and teaching to one that has a strong focus on the development of social skills, critical thinking and problem-solving.
The article focuses on how their learners perceive their learning experiences within the context of an institution-wide pedagogic shift to active blended learning. They summarise the key enablers of a positive learning experience in active blended learning including:
- the role of students as co-creators of the active blended learning curriculum development process, as highlighted in Section 4
- the importance of employability-focused activities linking theory and practice
- focused, student-centred, synchronous and asynchronous interventions throughout
- educator visibility and engagement
- an integrated and clearly articulated approach to student support, covering academic and pastoral elements.