Teaching Modes

In defining hybrid/blended courses, the Blended Learning Toolkit offers the following:

"Blended courses (also known as hybrid or mixed-mode courses) are classes where a portion of the traditional face-to-face instruction is replaced by web-based online learning.

How much of the face-to-face instruction must be replaced by online coursework? This question will vary greatly by class, discipline, and learning objectives. The Online Learning Consortium (formerly, the Sloan Consortium, a professional organization dedicated to postsecondary online learning) defines blended learning as a course where 30%-70% of the instruction is delivered online. While this is a useful guideline, it may not be sufficient to cover every blended learning configuration."

Hybrid course models vary greatly, and your model will depend on your course content, activities, as well as you and your students' needs.

From Vanderbilt's Center for Teaching, Active Learning in Hybrid and Physically Distanced Classrooms.

Design Considerations

• Online course design. As you design online components of your hybrid course, you may find the considerations and resources on the Online Teaching page of this guide to be helpful.

Equity Considerations

• Access to technology. In order to determine what your hybrid course model might look like, you will need to survey students beforehand to determine their access to technology and scheduling availability and to help connect them with campus resources.
  • Library and Learning Technologies works with faculty to provide devices on extended loan through the Mobile Edge initiative to enable students in need to engage in their coursework.. This includes Mac and PC laptops and tablets. A limited number of laptops with Adobe Creative Cloud are available for students enrolled in courses where Adobe CC is a requirement. All device requests must come through faculty via the Mobile Edge request form.

Classroom Considerations

• In-person teaching may be physically-distanced. See the page on face-to-face teaching for information pertaining to classrooms and outdoor teaching, as you plan potential in-person sessions for your hybrid courses.

• The Blended Learning Toolkit is a free, open repository of information, resources, models, and research related to blended learning.
• EDUCAUSE has an entire topic page on blended learning, with links to resources that fall under this topic.
• From Clemson University, Modified Blended Classroom
• From University of Colorado, Boulder, Hybrid Course Design
• Another Blended Learning Toolkit, this one from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
• The UDL on Campus website by CAST has a great page on blended learning, focusing on Universal Design for Learning considerations in hybrid/blended courses.
• The Spring 2017 issue of New Directions for Teaching and Learning (vol. 149) focused on hybrid teaching and learning. The following pieces may be of interest:
  • "Fundamentals of Hybrid Teaching and Learning" by Kathryn E. Linder
  • "Hybrid Platforms, Tools, and and Resources" by Kathryn E. Linder, Linda S. Bruenjes, Sarah A. Smith
  • "Accessibility Considerations for Hybrid Courses" by Kirsten Behling
• The podcast Teaching in Higher Ed has a collection of episodes grouped under the topic of blended learning.
• Here's an article from EDUCAUSE on 6 Models for Blended Learning (which could combine either face-to-face and online, or asynchronous and synchronous online teaching).