11th Annual Sloan Consortium Blended Learning Conference
LESSONS LEARNED FROM BLENDING IN
HEALTH SCIENCES
Crafting a Course Model for
Student Success
Paige L. McDonald, EdD
Laurie B. Lyons, MA
Howard Straker, MPH, PA-C
Elizabeth Ruckert, PT, DPT, NCS,GCS
Bryan Walker, MHS, PA-C
Linda Cotton, MA
WORKSHOP OBJECTIVES
• Discuss selection of blended models in PA
and PT based on pedagogical goals
• Review lessons learned from
research/evaluation of blending in Health
Science
• Review best practices on course design
derived from research and practice
• Apply best practices to develop a
blended model
CHALLENGES IN HEALTH SCIENCES
EDUCATION
• Need for more health professionals
• Expanding curricula
• Emphasis on problem- and casebased learning
• Emphasis on improved learning
outcomes related to future practice
OUR APPROACH
• Evidence-based (QM)
• Faculty/Instructional designer pair
• Structure related to pedagogy
• Multidimensional assessment
ENHANCED VS BLENDED
Web-Enhanced
Augmenting a traditional FTF course with online
technology (Allen & Seaman, 2013) for a
specific pedagogical purpose with no
reduction in class time
Blended
Integrating online activities with traditional FTF
class activities in a planned, pedagogically
valuable manner while reducing FTF class time
(Picciano, 2009)
COURSE ENHANCEMENT IN
PHYSICAL THERAPY
• Pedagogical goals
• Increase student engagement in class
discussion
• Encourage critical thinking and clinical
decision-making
• Apply knowledge learned earlier in the
curriculum at a higher level
TAXONOMY OF THINKING
PRIMING ACTIVITY DESIGN
• Structured around patient cases (but
don’t have to be)
• Required reading and/or review from
prior coursework
• Integrate aspects of clinical PT practice
• Incorporated elements of reflection
• Students completed and submitted prior
to class
• Applied content immediately during inclass session
WHY TECHNOLOGY?
• Appeals to Millennial learners
• Increases learner accountability
• Improves primer accessibility (more
time efficient)
• Increases learner engagement (visual
and auditory components)
EXAMPLE #1
ASSESSING OUTCOMES
• Learner
– Blackboard submission
– Student participation in-class
– Grading of primers
– Summative assessments (exam, practical)
• Instructor
– Formative assessment
– End-of-course evaluations
LESSONS LEARNED
• Design must hold the students
accountable
– Classroom discussion should be at “just
the right” level for students to value
completion
• Less is more!
– 2-3 key objectives are more than enough
• If designed well, students like them :-)
LEARNER OUTCOMES
USE OF
TECHNOLOGY
FOR CLINICAL
SKILLS
CLASS Center
PEDAGOGICAL GOALS
• Promote learning of clinical skills with a
large cohort of students (68), and
limited time and faculty resources
• Increase interaction (Bandura, 1986;
Illeris, 2003; McDonald, 2012)
• Support higher levels of learning (Illeris,
2003; McDonald, 2012)
HOW TECHNOLOGY CAN MEET THESE
GOALS AND CHALLENGES
• Promotes asynchronous learning
– Encourages self-directed learning
– Allows for personal reflection on own time
• Alleviates faculty time and space
burden
– Grading can be done electronically and
or remotely
– Eases space constraints
• Enables more authentic assessment
EXAMPLE: ORAL CASE PRESENTATIONS
• Oral communication is an essential
professional competency
• Mastery requires practice and
reflection
EXAMPLE: ORAL CASE PRESENTATIONS
• Video recorded standardized patient
encounter
• Video recorded case presentation
• Self-evaluation
• Faculty feedback
• Reflection
EXAMPLE: ORAL CASE PRESENTATIONS
EVALUATION
• Focus group
• Post activity survey
• End of course evaluation
LESSONS LEARNED
• Consider students’ prior experiences
with the activity (especially before a
graded assignment)
• Carefully consider the activity when
combining multiple skills
• If engaging other faculty, make sure
the expectations are clear
FULLY BLENDED: A CHALLENGING
EXPERIMENT
PEDAGOGICAL GOALS
• Promote reflective practice (Schon,
1987)
• Increase interaction (Bandura, 1986;
Illeris, 2003; McDonald, 2012)
• Support higher levels of learning (Illeris,
2003; McDonald, 2012)
• Support communities of inquiry
(Garrison & Kanuka, 2004; Garrison,
Anderson, & Archer, 2003)
REFLECTION, INTERACTION &
APPLICATION
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Readings
/Lectures
Online
Discussion/
Activity/
Quiz
Online
Discussion/
Activity/
Quiz
Online
Summary
FTF Class
Journal
Entry
Journal
Entry
(Reflect)
(Reflect)
(Reflect in
Action)
(Reflect
on Action)
EXAMPLE
• Pre- class discussion
Prior to our FTF class session, in your group discussion boards,
define your assigned “ism” and using the “Gardener’s Tale”
discuss the 3 levels of the assigned ism.
• FTF class activity
In your new assigned group a) give a summary of your team’s
discussion, b) discuss how a patient’s intersection of these
“isms” may affect their care and c) we as clinicians, may do
about them.
• Journal entry
Reflect upon the readings, lecture, and face-to-face
discussion on gender versus sex. In your journal entry, discuss
how they informed your previous conceptualizations of
gender and sex. Then, describe health care challenges of the
sexual minorities including LGBT health disparities. How might
your understanding of these challenges influence your future
practice?
ASSESSMENT OF STUDENT LEARNING
Assessed
area
Evaluation
method
Time
Results
Reflective
Practice
Journal review
Throughout
semester
Majority
reflected on
personal
assumptions
Interaction
Observation,
VoiceThread,
discussion forum
review
Throughout
semester
Significant
increase from
previous format
Student
Learning
Faculty
Assignment
Review
Throughout
semester
Majority of
students
demonstrated
synthesis of
materials
ASSESSMENT OF THE BLENDED FORMAT
Assessed area
Evaluation method
Time
Results
Student concerns
Oral discussion
Each FTF Session
More structure
Student satisfaction
Online survey
Mid course
50% liked the blended
format
Student perceptions
workload and
challenge
University end-of-course
End of course
evaluation
· One third felt
challenged
· One third felt
unchallenged
Online course specific
End of course
blended learning survey
Mixed reviews on
support for learning:
· 40% agree 40%
disagree
· 38% agree 44%
disagree
· 32% agree 31%
disagree
Student perceptions of
supports for learning
· Online elements
aligned with F2F
· Online assignments
prepared for F2F
· F2F reinforced online
activities
LESSONS LEARNED FROM
FULLY BLENDED COURSE
• Never enough structure
• Adoption of technology must align with other
courses in program and student experience
• Don’t overwhelm with varieties of technology
• Ensure actual application in F2F sessions
• Don’t tell students they are doing something
new
• Ensure students see the relationship between
online and face-to-face activities
WORKSHOP/WORKSHEET REVIEW
BREAKOUT SESSION (30 MIN)
• Interesting ideas to share?
• Questions that arose?
WRAP UP
REFERENCES
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Allen, I. E.,& Seaman J. (2013). “Grade change: Tracking online education in the
United States, 2013. Babson Survey Research Group, Pearson and the Sloan
Consortium. http://sloanconsortium.org/publications/survey/grade-change-2013
Bandura, A. (1986). Social foundations of thought and action: A social cognitive
theory. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Garrison, D. R., Anderson, T., & Archer, W. (2003). A theory of critical inquiry in online
distance education. In M. G. Moore & W. Anderson (Eds.), Handbook of distance
education. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
Garrison, D. R. & Kanuka, H. (2004). Blended learning: Uncovering its transformative
potential in higher education. The Internet and Higher Education, 7, 95-105
Graham, C.R., Woodfield, W., & Harrison, J. B. (2012). A framework for institutional
adoption and implementation of blended learning adoption in higher education.
The Internet and Higher Education, 18, 4-14.
Illeris, K. (2003, July-August). Toward a contemporary and comprehensive theory of
learning. International Journal of Lifelong Education, 22(4), 396-406.
McDonald, P. L. (2012). Adult learners and blended learning: A
phenomenographic study of variation in adult learners’ experiences of blended
learning in higher education. George Washington University, Washington, DC, in
partial fulfillment of Doctor of Education degree, Department of Human and
Organizational Learning, Graduate School of Education and Human Development.
Picciano, A. G. (2009). Blending with a purpose: The multi-modal model. Journal of
Asynchronous Learning Networks, 13(1), 1-9.
Schon, D. A. (1987). Educating the reflective practitioner. San Francisco, CA:
Jossey-Bass.