BlendKit 2014 Reading Reaction: Chapter 2

With the topic of blended interactions, I would like to focus on the role of the educator or instructor. Interaction online requires making sure to create a sense of community just as community is important in a completely face-to-face class. Included in that sense of community is students’ taking an active role in shaping their own learning and cultivating their self-expression. One important point in this era is that technology offers so many different ways for students or learners to express themselves through various types of media. The instructor role is to create environments that facilitate learning and self-expression (which includes wresting with new information, analyzing critically, refuting arguments, etc.). I find this aspect of teaching with technology most creative and intellectually satisfying as so many possibilities exist now that did not 20 or 10 or 5 years ago.

One quote from the text really struck a chord with me in defining what blended learning has to offer the residential liberal arts experience. Dziuban, Hartman, and Mehaffy (2014) note that:

Blended learning, in all its various representations, has as its fundamental premise a simple idea: link the best technological solutions for teaching and learning with the best human resources…. encourag[ing] the development of highly interactive and collaborative activities that can be accomplished only by a faculty member in a mediated setting. (p. 332)*

It strikes me that blended learning does really draw on the best technological solutions and the best human resources—in the right form at the right time. Technology can be leveraged to simplify and facilitate the learning of foundational knowledge while providing the time and space for highly collaborative instructor-student(s)/student-student interaction when students might need assistance diving deeper into knowledge. The ability to leverage instructor expertise in a highly interactive environment empowering students to dive deeper into the content can also draw up students’ intrinsic motivation to learn more about what interests them.

In the discussion of blended interaction, the reading listed four models for roles of instructor and learning in this technological era:

1. John Seely Brown’s notion of studio or atelier learning (To me, the instructor plays a role similar to a studio art teacher in a critique session where the whole class analyzes one student’s work at a time and the instructor can highlight creative, innovative work.)
2.  Clarence Fischer’s notion of educator as network administrator (The instructor helps students make connections and form learning networks as well as learn to evaluate information critically.)
3. Curtis Bonk’s notion of educator as concierge (The instructor serves as a tour guide pointing students to opportunities or resources for additional learning.)
4. George Siemens’ notion of educator as curator** (the instructor is an expert learner who make spaces where students can create, discover, and connect knowledge in combination with thoughtful interpretation.)

The reading also notes that blended learning draws on instructor expertise and student construction of knowledge with all these models where instructors work “guiding, directing, and evaluating the activities of learners.” While I agree with this assessment, I could imagine all four surfacing at various times in a blended course. For example, Bonk’s notion reminds me of the charge of reference librarians to guide students to materials that could enhance their learning and scholarship. Moreover, a faculty member can draw on notions from Brown, Fischer, and Siemens when analyzing a writing example, making connections between ideas in class discussion, and creating an environment where students discover and connect information together to construct knowledge themselves. A good, experienced instructor is constantly switching gears as needed with regard to a lesson plan or the course plan as well as for individual students. The overriding factor for successful blended learning is a faculty member with flexibility to play these different roles at different times in the right combination with the right technology. That comes only through experience and experimenting to find what works best for the individual faculty member.

* Dziuban, C.D., Hartman, J.L., and Mehaffy, G.L. (2014). Blending it all together, In A. Picciano, C. Dziuban, and C. Graham (Eds.), Blended learning: Research perspectives, volume 2. NY: Routledge.

**The chapter is adapted from “New Learners? New Educators? New Skills? “ in the Handbook of Emerging Technologies for Learning by George Siemens and Peter Tittenberger under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.5 Canada license. Portions of the following chapter labeled as the property of the Commonwealth of Learning are used in compliance with the Commonwealth of Learning’s legal notice and may not be re-mixed apart from compliance with their repackaging guidelines.