The Magic of Blended Learning: Part II (Why it Works)

-Emily Perez, Laney HS

In my previous blog post, I reflected on my journey and ultimate acceptance of using blended learning in the secondary ELA classroom. While it is not necessary to use blended learning every day (by any means), it is a nice way to periodically break up the monotony of whole-class review, discussion, and introductions to a topic. Additionally, you might experience some of these “happy teacher moments” in the process:

• The levels of student engagement. It is not uncommon to see students’ faces glazed over on the first day of school (or any day, really). That glazed look was my motivation for using blended learning in the first place. Instead of the zombie look, my students were alert, focused, and engaged at each station. Hearing their on-task talk (yes, my classroom was noisy!) was actually refreshing for me as the teacher and for them as the students. Sometimes, just every now and then, a little bit of “controlled chaos” is what a classroom needs.

• Establishing student rapport and relationships. My favorite part about blended learning is the ability to walk around and get to know my students right away, especially on the first day of school. Establishing positive and respectful rapport with my students on the first day is very important to me and a great step for a strong foundation of trust for the rest of the year. Another bonus - it makes remembering their names a whole lot easier when you can connect a name to a face or a previous conversation!

• Creating a community of learners. In addition to establishing positive relationships between the teacher and the students, blended learning helps establish a supportive classroom community among peers, as well. If students feel safe and comfortable with one another, they will allow themselves to open up more during class discussions (and what English teacher doesn’t crave meaningful discussion?!).  
• Small groups also give you, as the teacher, the opportunity to differentiate lessons and group students based on ability. This benefits students academically, as well as socially. It’s nice to see the “classroom cliques” diminish as students interact with other teens they might not have spoken to on their own.

• Diligence and Accountability. When students know they only have a certain amount of time to complete a task before they are prompted to the next station, they tend to work more efficiently. Maybe it’s the aspect of physically moving to the next station that gives the students a sense of urgency, or maybe it’s the idea that they don’t want to be left behind in their group, but whatever it is, the assignment seems to miraculously be completed, and completed well, in half the time it would normally take in a whole-class setting.

I experience the above warm, fuzzy teacher moments each time I use blended learning in my classroom. Yes, every time. Even when it’s not perfect and even as I’m jotting down notes on ways to improve, I am always satisfied with the levels of student engagement and the collaboration between students.

Stay tuned for the final installment of The Magic of Blended Learning which will focus on the implementation of blended learning within your classroom! -Emily Perez