Sloan-C: Welcome & Introductions

Sloan-C Blended Workshop

Mary Niemiec kicked things off at the 2009 Sloan-C Blended Workshop by speaking a bit about the evolution of blended learning. “When we first started it was an invited 30 people. Blended learning wasn’t well defined (hybrid? tech-advanced?).”

“It took almost two years to agree on a common definition that seems to be permeating both the US and Canada.”

Blended learning, she explained, is an intentional blend of online and face-to-face instruction. That could be just a blended course or an entirely blended program.

Data Collection

Other problems she noted were the lack of a consistent method of collecting data about these courses. Generating data about performance, retention, and more remain issues regarding blended learning.

The dominant theme she sees is that blended learning is becoming a part of almost every institution, especially as budgets get tight.

Niemac, finally, stressed her hope that we would leave this workshop (“Not a conference, a workshop!”) with new ideas for planning and teaching in blended formats, but also to become committed to collecting good data and assessments of how blended courses and programs are working.