Lauren Flanagan, Final Paper EDTC 610

Dear esteemed colleagues,

Today I will be presenting you with a developed analytical essay on blended

learning and web-based learning activities. First, I would like to begin with a

vocabulary refreshment! As we all know, it is important to tap into background

knowledge before presenting new information to our students. By definition blended

learning is learning that combines face-to-face instruction with online work.

(Tolley, 2014) By definition web-based learning is One way to learn, using web-

based technologies or tools in a learning process.

Blended learning combines traditional, face to face instruction with

technology based learning. (Riddell, 2012) According to many, blended learning is

educations next big thing. With every next big thing comes challenges and

opposition. Teachers need to embrace blended learning. When teachers do embrace

blended learning they have to relinquish authority over content and time. Teachers

that have practiced blended learning (me being one of them) have found that the

sacrifices are worth it! According to Tolley, if teachers want to remain relevant they

need to be on board with modern learning. (Tolley, 2014) Blended learning is

inevitably coming our way. Blended learning can only work with the right balance of

offline interaction and online learning. Online learning is a part of educations future.

Both blended learning and using web-based activities are components of the modern

learning recipe.
 Schools as a whole need to reduce the reliance on traditional lectures and

personalize learning for each student. Blended learning allows students to learn

anytime, anywhere. Blended learning allows students to learn outside of school. The

blended learning approach combines classroom instruction with online-learning.

Todays students are tech-savvy and want an interactive and engaging classroom

experience. Web-based learning consists of using technology that supports traditional

classroom training and online learning environments. New technology helps meet

Common Core Standards and online testing requirements. The ultimate goal is to

prepare students for success by helping them develop modern skills. (Wong, 2014)

As a school and as a county, we need to adapt and invest in more technology and

embrace new instructional models. Technology for instruction, if done well, allows

students to reach out to a much broader world. (Wong, 2014)

Introducing blended learning and web-based activities into our school would

not be an enormous change. Most schools, including our own provide some of the

functionality of an online-learning environment. Our school has online grading,

attendance and other administrative aspects. It is very easy to create a core-class site

and I feel that every class and teacher could create one. Weebly, Edublogs, Google

Sites or Wordpress could be used for creating a core classroom site. All of the sites

have free versions and extensive support. All of the sites can link to content. I often

wonder to myself why arent we developing classroom home pages in Professional

Development? Having a classroom page should be a requirement for 2015 staff.

 In my Web-Based Teaching and Learning: Design and Pedagogy class I had to

create a classroom website and a collaborative group lesson website. I believe that my

students would be very engaged when viewing both of the sites I created. For both

sites I used Weebly, by creating a free account. The site was easy to navigate.

Building my website was simple. I was able to embed links easily, add pages easily

and incorporate Youtube Videos and Google Docs easily.

Weebly truly is an easy way to build a fantastic site. I would really like to

recommend all staff be required to create a Weebly in Professional Development. I

think with a little guidance from our PD coordinator, IT technician and our UDL

representatives this could be easily done. I did not have to access this, but there is a

beginners guide if one really needs an easier breakdown.

First, I created an account with Weebly by typing in http://www.weebly.com/ .

I was immediately directed to Sign Up Free. I entered my information, my email

and a password. Once I was logged in I was prompted to select a theme. There were

many themes to choose from, the hardest part was selecting the theme I liked the

most. Second, I was prompted to my sites address/domain name. Once the site was

finished I would be able to publish my sites address. After that I was ready to start

building my site! I used Weebly elements as building blocks to creating my site. All

the content of my sites was added using the elements. I found the element I wanted to

use and dragged and dropped it onto my page. The main elements I used the most

were: images, text, spacers and YouTube video links. As you continue to build you

can create more pages for your sites, switch themes, edit headers and fonts and start

blogs. With Weebly the possibilities seem endless.

 In Project 2, I teamed up with four other middle school teachers to create one

project on the topic of Civil Rights Movement. Each instructor teaches a different

content area. We collaborated in order to give our audience a joined perspective of

different aspect of the Civil Rights Movement. Each team member designed an

interactive, creative lesson that will help build research, technological skills, team

building and critical thinking skills. We felt that those skills were needed in order for

our middle school students to become competitive and successful scholars ready for

high school. Our goal as a group was for our students to build those necessary skills

and gain more knowledge about the Civil Rights Movement.

I am a visual arts teacher my lesson was on Inside the Art of the Civil

Rights. My students were given the opportunity write about a self-selected piece of

artwork from an appropriate list created by the teacher. Students will have the

opportunity to choose from a designated list the artwork you wish to write about. You

will create a Prezi about the artwork(s) you have chosen. Use what you have learned

in class and online to create your piece. This project was engaging. I feel that this

project would be great for collaborative purposes with school faculty. I also feel this

project would be an excellent example of blended and web-based learning.

Throughout the semester I used multiple web-based learning strategies and

activities. Weebly, Padlet and Diigo were three of the most memorable. All three

websites were beneficial in helping me collaborate with other teachers. Diigo is a

social bookmarking site that allowed me to bookmark pages I found important. Diigo

allowed me to highlight any part of a webpage and attach sticky notes to specific parts

of readings. All of my bookmarks could be shared with peers and could be forwarded
via special links. Padlet allowed me to express my thoughts on a common topic with a

group of peers. Padlet works like an online sheet of paper where educators can place

content by choice. Both Diigo and Padlet act as shared workspace for educators.

I feel that this course along with the other courses I have taken in attempting to

achieve a masters in instructional technology have made me more capable of

teaching in a blended learning approach. I really feel that blended learning is

educations next big thing. We need to be willing to give up teacher control of the

stage. The best way to do that is by reorganizing the classroom. Teachers need to be

coaches, mentors and tutors who guide our students through content mastery. The

main may way to do that is through blended learning and web-based learning.

There are many ways to include blended learning in your classrooms. Virtual

participation at multiple schools presents a plan for blended learning classrooms

where students can complete courses through a virtual classroom at one of the

districts three high schools. (Riddell, 2012) This may not work well for the middle

school level but could be highly successful at the high school level. Alternative

assignment in failure classes which allows students to complete alternative

assignments in exchange for credits in classes they failed. (Riddell, 2012) Self-

directed learning, which involves using self-directed reading, online, learning

modules and assignments, face-to-face lecture and participative activities would be

great for all grade levels. Address multiple math skills levels consists of teacher

introducing students to a concept, and the students complete practice exercises

through Khan Academy. (Riddell, 2012)

 Using blended learning and web-based learning does not mean you have to

fully give up reviewing content on the board and discussing it the next day in class.

As a teacher you can still go around and help, coach and mentor your students.

Having access to computers in your classroom may help you form a better

relationship with your students. This type of learning sometimes allows for a role

reversal, sometimes your students may even teach you! Hands-on application is not

lost in this type of learning. Hands-on learning is incorporated into this type of

learning. Flex models and rotation models are a part of this plan and allow students to

have some control over the time, place, path and pace. Blended and web-based

learning allows for each student to learn at their own pace.

Upon further research I found an enlightening article by Bernard J. Poole that

discusses ten pillars for successful technology implementation. Success in

implementing technology in a school depends on everything from leadership to staff-

buy in to quality of training. First, a technology program is only going to succeed

when school boards, school superintendents and school principals commit to it in

word and deed. Second, technology should never be forced on teachers. Teachers

must be given the opportunity to prepare for the change. Third, in every school there

should be one or more teacher-computerists who have a sufficiently high level of

expertise in computer based educational technology. Fourth, school districts must

provide teachers with every opportunity to stay abreast of advances in technology and

must give the teachers time to integrate teaching and learning technologies into the

curriculum.
 All teachers must receive ongoing training. Sixth, all teachers must receive

ongoing technical support. Technical support should be on site and on demand.

Seventh, practice makes perfect. Lack of practice leads to loss of previously acquired

skills. There is no point in providing training and technical support if the teachers are

not ready and willing to apply newly acquired skills. Eighth, parents and students

must be actively involved in the evolutionary process. Ninth, there must be planned

and systematic financial investment in technology-integrated teaching and learning.

Last, we need to recognize that technology is not for all, and that it involves all in the

process of lifelong learning. (Poole, 2015)

At this point we have developed background knowledge on blended and web-

based learning, discussed how to develop web-based activities including my own and

covered examples of including blended learning in your classrooms. I am left to

wonder Does my school provide me and my colleagues with the training to employ

the latest technologies in my classroom? What led me to integrate computers into my

teaching and learning?

Most of my technology skills are self-taught. I personally did not learn how to

use new technology through my school. This past year our school received

Chromebooks for the sixth grade classrooms. I found myself in a jealous state

wondering what about my room, my students? In professional development we

were trained in how to use the Chromebooks. I was not sure why I had to waste forty

minutes of my planning period for training about a tool I didnt have access to. When

PARCC rolled around in the spring I found out what I was trained, for testing reasons.

We should have support from the larger systems-districts, states and the national
government. Technology is worth the hype. If teachers are not trained to use it

effectively and enthusiastically we will never evolve.

References:

Blended Learning: Combining Face to Face and Online Education, Heather

Wolpert-Gawron, April 28, 2011, Retrieved from

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/blended-online-learning-heather-wolpert-gawron

Retrieved on 8/2/15
How Technology Enables Blended Learning, Wylie Wong, April 1st, 2014,

Retrieved from http://www.edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2014/04/how-

technology-enables-blended-learning Retrieved on 8/2/15

Creating Successful Blended Learning Classrooms, Bill Tolley, October 8th

2014, Retrieved from

http://www.edweek.org/tm/articles/2014/10/08/ctq_tolley_blended_learning.ht

ml?qs=blended+learning Retrieved on 8/2/15

13 Blended Learning uses in K-12 and College Classrooms, Roger Riddell,

November 30th, 2012, Retrieved from http://www.educationdive.com/news/13-

blended-learning-uses-in-k-12-and-college-classrooms/77416/ Retrieved on

8/2/15
Weebly, Weebly Inc., 2015, Retrieved from http://www.weebly.com/#

Retrieved on 8/2/15
Ten Pillars of Successful Technology Implementation, Bernard J. Poole, August

2nd, 2015, Retrieved from

http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/columnists/poole/poole011.shtml

Retrieved on 8/2/15