There are so many resources available to help faculty design blended courses it may be difficult to find the ones that best suit your teaching style and personality. Here are a few essential tips to set a successful stage, and below that are links to more resources.
- Use technology that you are comfortable with; keep it simple and focused on course goals and objectives
- Clarify the online expectations to students and build some means of accountability into outside assignments
- Point out some benefits of blended learning to students (time flexibility, independent learning skills, tech skills, real world experience, more F2F time for difficult material)
- Be super organized – so students know exactly what they are supposed to do, and when.
- Emphasize continuity between in class and out of class content and activities
- Take advantage of the freedom of out of class time to create engaging activities for students
- Establish strong communication lines – both student to student and student to faculty
- Think about building assessment of blended delivery into the course right at the start – and adjust as you receive useful feedback.
More Resources
Looking for the Pedagogy in Blended Design – Educause Learning Initiative
The Blended Learning Toolkit: Improving Student Performance and Retention – Educause Quarterly
Blended Learning Toolkit – Design and Delivery Principles – University of Central Florida Blended Learning Toolkit
BlendedKit Course: Readings – University of Central Florida Blended Learning Toolkit
BlendKit DIY Tasks – sequence of tasks to tackle as you build your blended course (includes lots of templates and samples)