To blend or not to blend: A didactic decision for innovative teaching and learning

• Main Author: Pitagan, Ferdinand B.
• Format: text
• Published: Animo Repository 2010
• Subjects: Blended learning; Educational innovations; Web-based instruction; Educational Technology; Online and Distance Education
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/faculty_research/12833
• Institution: De La Salle University

All forms of learning are blended in nature; however, with the advent of digital technology the term "blended learning" is defined as the combination or mixture of traditional classroom and computer-mediated instruction. In recent years, there has been a continuously increasing rate in the use of blended learning in academic institutions worldwide. Furthermore, blended learning has eliminated most physical barriers to learning thereby producing a more diverse set of learners that are more technologically equipped and more complex than their predecessors. Present day educators are facing the question of whether to blend traditional methods and innovative technologies that combine in-person training with online learning or not. It is therefore imperative to understand such system in terms of theoretical and conceptual data as basis for designing, developing, implementing, maintaining and evaluating blended learning. The paper explores the evolution, effectiveness, factors affecting effectiveness, and future of blended learning based on empirical data. The principal components of analysis are composed of two dimensions-method of literature and selection criteria of articles. Practical ways on how to integrate blended learning into the curriculum for innovative teaching and learning are also presented.