Transforming a mishmash of educational technologies into a coherent “blended learning” model is fast becoming the holy grail of modern education. With so much software and hardware already in place, making blended learning work is less about acquiring technology, and more about changing mindsets. Susan O. Moore, supervisor of blended learning at Meriden Public Schools (CT), breaks the implementation of blended learning into five stages:

Build the capacity of staff members to support each other in the transition to a blended learning environment. Provide opportunities for staff to visit each other’s classrooms and collaborate.
Allow teachers and students the freedom to fail and learn from mistakes.
Engage student experts to support each other and their teachers in learning new technologies. “We had students present on technology tools to teachers during one of our professional development days,” Moore said. A student introduced her to Google Keep, which has become one of the apps she uses most.
Encourage students and teachers to take charge of their learning. Providing control over “time, place, path and/or pace” comes with responsibility. For example, a student might have access to digital content during the high school pep rally, but is that the best time and place to retain the information? Teachers may need additional training in using rotation models or creating digital content. “They need to model extending learning beyond the classroom,” said Moore.
Take the first step. As Moore put it, “We have had several reluctant teachers who, after implementing their first blended learning lesson, wondered why they hadn’t tried the approach sooner.”
Moore cautioned against waiting for the ideal time to launch a blended learning initiative. “We will never have all of the devices, all of the access points, the perfect content, the perfect classroom setting, and all the stars aligned in just the right way,” she said. “What we will always have are students who are counting on us as education professionals to lead the way, and that starts with a first step.”

Blending From the Beginning

Relatively new charter schools have the luxury of starting with the primary goal of establishing a cogent blended learning curriculum. The Village Green Virtual Charter School in Providence, RI, launched in September 2013 with a three-pronged approach.

“Number one is maximizing technology in courseware,” said Robert Pilkington, the superintendent at Village Green Virtual. “Number two is maximizing teacher efficacy in the face-to-face role, and three is providing supreme equity in access for all kids with a rigorous, high-quality curriculum.”

John Butler, the director of academic planning and logistics at Village Green Virtual, reported that actual class instruction is made up of 60 percent online and 40 percent face-to-face teaching. Village Green officials believe the 60/40 approach makes sense for schools looking to boost their blended learning efficacy, but they are by no means tied down by the ratio.

Kevin Cordeiro, social studies teacher in the Second Learning Center and mobile learning coordinator at Village Green, puts it this way: “The way blended learning plays out in the classroom is you are trying to have little to no false boundary between kids learning digitally or in a traditional method. The kids don’t distinguish between learning in a traditional way, or using some type of digital medium, or using a mobile device. The kids use every resource available to them for the best possible education.”