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Go through the seven blended learning models.

🔵 Choose one that you consider most appropriate in your teaching situation and

🔵 Design a lesson plan. Use the Blended Learning Lesson Plan template available on the TwinBoard below to plan your lesson.

🔵 To get ideas, organise your work and plan effectively, study the process followed in Planning a Blended Learning lesson plan and an Example BL Lesson Plan.

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Now it is time for you to reflect upon your teaching situation and think of

🟢 the advantages and disadvantages of each one of the blended learning models that are described in the previous TwinSpace pages.

🟢 which model do you consider more appropriate in your teaching situation?

🟢 share your experience of using one or more of them                             Use the Discussion FORUM below to answer the questions above.

🟢 Make sure you go through the teaching situations the other participants describe and give a piece of your mind to one of their posts using "QUOTE"

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Short description: The Enriched Virtual model is an alternative to full-time online school that gives students the opportunity to complete the majority of their course work online at home or outside of school. The students focus on completing this online work and they only meet their teacher when they need it. That means students wouldn't see or meet the teacher on a daily basis. Some of the Enriched Virtual programms may only require twice-weekly attandance.

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Short description: The A La Carte model is a Blended learning approach which gives students a chance to take an online course to enhance the part taken in the classroom providing them with more flexibility over their schedules. The A La Carte Model is most commonly found at the high school, where students may choose to enroll in a course not currently offered by their school.  This course could be taken entirely online, either in a study hall period or outside of school time. It differs from full-time virtual schools as some courses could be online while others could be taken in school so students still benefit from interaction with teachers and peers.

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Short description: In the Flex model, online learning forms the "backbone" of a student’s learning. Studens are able to move flexibly through different learning modalities even though the online learning directs them to offline activities at times. The main goal is to optimize their learning experience based on their specific needs. Each student in essence has a customized, fluid schedule among learning modalities. Following this fluid schedule, students benefit from learning at their own pace online, as they spend more time learning basic content online. This allows teachers to spend more time helping students in challenge areas or diving deeper in content areas where a student has mastered. This flexibility facilitates them by providing one-to-one tutoring support, organise small group activities or dedicate this learning time to projects.
Advantages: The Flex Model

allows students to dictate where they rotate

increases students motivation and autonomy

offers teachers and students increased flexibility

gives students & teachers more control over how they use their time

allows teachers to "spend most of their time providing face-to-face tutoring, guidance, and enrichment to supplement online lessons" (Blended Learning Universe)

Reseacrh higlights that Flex model:

Creates a guided yet self-determined and heavily personalized atmosphere to achive goals

Supports students who are at risk and helps them graduate (DreamBox Learning)

Disadvantages: the initial cost for the platform and sophisticated technology required to customize learning for every student

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The Flipped Classroom model is a pedagogical approach that is characterised by a dynamic, interactive learning environment where the teacher facilitates the students as they try to apply the concepts they had studied through the material the teacher has provided before class time. The students are encouraged and supported to engage creatively in the subject matter, work with the newly acquired knowledge in order to create something of their own. In this respect, the flipped classroom fits perfectly in the eTwinning framework.

In the flipped classroom model, the explanation comes usually through a video and is the “homework” part of the process, allowing students to learn 100 percent at their own pace. That means that exercises, activities and projects that were once homework now become classwork so that the teacher can circulate and give students some much-needed one-on-one attention (especially to the students who are struggling).

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In this model, students can rotate through stations on individual schedules set by a teacher or software algorithm. It looks a lot like a Station Rotation model. The difference, however, is in the student’s experience. Each student’s learning agenda is tailored every day to his or her individual needs, based on his or her performance (which is typically recorded by an online learning platform) the previous day.

Students move every 30' to 35'. The learning objective may the same but the learning mode differs so as to cater to different learning styles.

Different learning modalities that may be integrated into one school day for one student:

working independently on a computer

watching live instruction

watching virtual instruction

collaborating in small groups

live investigation

independent practice

peer to peer

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In this model, students rotate to a separate computer lab for the online-learning station. Students can either rotate to the lab as part of a class or as an online learning class of its own. This model can be used for all grade levels. The teacher’s role in a lab rotation model can be very similar to a traditional teaching model, in that s/he may still deliver whole-class instruction.

The process in brief:

1. The teacher delivers a mini-lesson and does a formal check for understanding.

2. Students who demonstrate proficiency are ready to rotate to the computer lab to complete independent practice or personalized practice.

3. Students who need additional assistance get to work with the teacher in a small group.

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The students move between four learning stations on a ﬁxed schedule, and two stations incorporate online learning. Each station involves a different learning activity. One station is with the teacher, two stations are with the computer and the fourth station is guided practice. Activities include small-group instruction, group projects, individual tutoring, or independent practice.

The class is divided into four groups. These groups can be fixed (remain the same each day; grouped by learning styles) or dynamic (change depending on student skills/needs). Every 20-30 mins the groups rotate between stations.

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📌Blended Learning -also known as "hybrid learning"- is an approach to teaching that combines traditional face-to-face teaching and classroom activities with online instruction & activities that require technology such as online educational games (gamification).

📌Blended Learning "blends" project-based learning and technology incorporating online learning into traditional brick-and-mortar schools to create hybrid learning experiences for students. (Connecting Project-Based and Blended Learning by Bob Lenz, Edutopia)

📌 Blended Learning: Benefits & Practical Challenges

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The rotation model includes: Station Rotation Model, Lab Rotation Model, Individual Rotation Model and Flipped Classroom Model.
Lets see each of them separatedly

Station rotation model

Short description: The students move between four learning stations on a ﬁxed schedule, and two stations incorporate online learning. Each station involves a different learning activity. One station is with the teacher, two stations are with the computer and the fourth station is guided practice. Activities include small-group instruction, group projects, individual tutoring, or independent practice.

The class is divided into four groups. These groups can be fixed (remain the same each day; grouped by learning styles) or dynamic (change depending on student skills/needs). Every 20-30 mins the groups rotate between stations.

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Hello everybody. My name is Maria Jacinto, I'm a portuguese teacher and I teach Portuguese. I live in Portimão, a small touristic city in the south of Portugal. This school year I'm teaching the 9th grade and my students are 14 to 16 years old. I am looking forward to learn more about blended learning.