Blended programmes

Blended Learning, where technology and traditional methods of delivery are integrated seamlessly together, is a powerful tool for the educator, especially so in Higher Education.

Technology is an integral part of our world today, and an integral part of most learners’ experiences. Technology has the potential to enhance the learning experience, making it more interactive, facilitating inquiry-based learning and providing learners with different ways of viewing a subject or accessing materials.

Blended Learning can include a range of approaches, such as:

• integration of technology into didactic teaching, to increase engagement or convey information in a powerful or more-meaningful way
• the use of technology to support questioning or information-searching during class
• the use of software platforms to facilitate communication, either within the class or outside of it
• the use of technology to enable students to view a problem from different points of view
• developing Digital Literacy skills and an appreciation of how technology can be used as a tool to support learning.

Use of Blended Learning is potentially challenging for both students and academic staff, who may be unfamiliar with technologies, both in how to use them and in understanding what you can use them for.

This section of the Learning Hub aims to provide practical examples of how technology can be used to enhance the learning experience, and make it richer, deeper, easier or more effective.