In the more recent years we have seen an upward trend with the use of technology, and even more so in education. The influence of technology has aided many people generally, and is helping to further push the envelope with new teaching methods such as blended learning, and the flipped classroom approach. Blended learning can be described as “any time a student learns at least in part at a supervised brick-and-mortar location away from home and at least in part through the Internet with some element of student control over time, place, and/or pace” (pg. 1, Using Blended Learning). The flipped classroom can be defined as “an educational technique that consists of two parts: interactive group learning activities inside the classroom, and direct
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Blended learning can offer a higher level of interaction than commonly experienced in face-to-face courses” (pg. 4 Using Blended Learning). Rather than a 100% brick-and-mortar instruction or a 100% online instruction blended learning utilizes multiple ways of learning to benefit students and maximize learning, as well as, application. Studies have shown that a full online class may not always be beneficial in the long run “A recent New York Times article reported a five-year study which tracked 51,000 students enrolled in Washington State community and technical colleges. The study found that students who took higher proportions of fully online courses were less likely to earn degrees or transfer to four-year colleges” (Using Blended Learning). So, combining both in-person and online instruction seems to optimize student-learning outcomes “A meta-analysis of 23 experimental or quasi-experimental studies conducted by the U.S. Department of Education found that blends of online and face-to-face instruction, on average, had stronger learning outcomes than did face-to-face instruction alone” (pg. 4 Using Blended Learning). Blended learning also allows students to take control over material being learned, students have the capability to control the pace of the lesson being learned, and allows pupils to gain insight using in class collaborations to better understand materials, “blended learning can provide the flexibility that students and instructors require (McCray 2000; Strambi and Bouvet 2003; Wingard 2004) as it allows some time for face-to-face student- and
Blended learning can offer a higher level of interaction than commonly experienced in face-to-face courses” (pg. 4 Using Blended Learning). Rather than a 100% brick-and-mortar instruction or a 100% online instruction blended learning utilizes multiple ways of learning to benefit students and maximize learning, as well as, application. Studies have shown that a full online class may not always be beneficial in the long run “A recent New York Times article reported a five-year study which tracked 51,000 students enrolled in Washington State community and technical colleges. The study found that students who took higher proportions of fully online courses were less likely to earn degrees or transfer to four-year colleges” (Using Blended Learning). So, combining both in-person and online instruction seems to optimize student-learning outcomes “A meta-analysis of 23 experimental or quasi-experimental studies conducted by the U.S. Department of Education found that blends of online and face-to-face instruction, on average, had stronger learning outcomes than did face-to-face instruction alone” (pg. 4 Using Blended Learning). Blended learning also allows students to take control over material being learned, students have the capability to control the pace of the lesson being learned, and allows pupils to gain insight using in class collaborations to better understand materials, “blended learning can provide the flexibility that students and instructors require (McCray 2000; Strambi and Bouvet 2003; Wingard 2004) as it allows some time for face-to-face student- and