Annotated Bibliography 2: Blended/Hybrid Learning

Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching. Hybrid Learning. [online]. ( 2021).
Available at: <https://www.celt.iastate.edu/teaching/teaching-format/hybrid-learning/>
[Accessed 3 November 2021].

The article on the Iowa State University website gives university instructors a framework and
approach towards developing a hybrid/blended learning course. The article proposes a number of
factors that instructors should consider when they begin their hybrid/blended course
development. These include: Review the hybrid/blended teaching and learning overview on the
website; downloading and read the Introduction to Hybrid Teaching Workbook (PDF);
registering to attend the University’s course design programs, among others. The site also
discusses the importance of hybrid learning, why there is a need to use blended learning, as well
as giving instructors what they should consider when using hybrid/learning. These considerations
include: Allowing for time to review and re-imagine education; being proactive with
requirements for accessibility; and considering time-on-task for both in-class and online
activities. Finally, the site lays out the way in which instructors should design their hybrid
learning courses. It particularly emphasizes that a good design takes into consideration the “best
of both worlds” by combining online learning and face-to-face.

The reliability of the information contained on the website is in question. This is because it
contains instructions on how to structure a hybrid learning course for Iowa State University
educators. The source is biased since it gives only the advantages of online learning and why
instructors need to embrace it. The information on the website was written by Iowa State
University’s Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching (CELT) as a derivative of Hybrid
& Online Learning developed by Cornell University’s Center for Teaching Innovation. It was
published in 2021 on the university’s website. The purpose is to give instructors the framework
of developing an efficient course design in hybrid/blended learning. The primary audience of the
source are instructors who are interested in utilizing blended/hybrid learning in their teaching. Its
purpose, publisher, and audience makes the information contained on the website less reliable.
The information presented on this website will help me reflect on the ways in which instructors
might go about using blended learning in their teaching schedules.

This source was helpful since it helped me understand the way in which instructors might go
about integrating blended learning into their teaching. Since it is basically an instruction manual
to Iowa State University instructors, I will not be analyzing this source and by extension, I will
not be using it to support my arguments. It compares to the other sources in this bibliography in
that while the paper by Dr. Avazmatova is reliable and we researched, giving the benefits of
blended learning as laid out in researched papers, this one just gives instructions of using blended
learning.
Avazmatova, Marhabo Mukhtorjonovna. "Significance Of Blended Learning In Education
System." The American Journal of Social Science and Education Innovations (2020): 507-
511.

The main aim of this paper is to show the main reasons for utilizing blended learning in
education/teaching as well as the essential factors required for a successful blended learning
course. Since different people define blended learning differently, the author starts by giving
some of these various definitions presumably with the aim of making the scope as big as
possible. The author then goes ahead to give the reasons as to why it is important to integrate
blended learning in the education system by analyzing the work and findings of other authors.
This is presented in the form of a literature review that looks at the advantages and benefits of
blended learning. He notes that with its rapid growth, technology has practically become part of
our lives and should therefore be integrated in the education system. Face to face teaching might
sometimes be monotonous to students who then resort to not paying attention in class. This,
according to the author, is why the mix of online and in-person teaching is needed. The author
cites various experts who give their own advantages of blended learning, including: Flexible
study, with learning on-demand, anytime or anywhere, to meet learners’ needs wherever they
want; Increased access and convenience; decreased dropout rates and increased exam pass rates;
no need for large buildings, and many more. All in all, the findings by the author show the
blended learning id important in teaching, since it is the bridge of promoting students’
knowledge, breadth and depth.

The information contained in this source is reliable since it is peer-reviewed and the author,
Marhabo Avazmatova, is an expert in the field of online and online teaching. The paper is well
researched with information in it being drawn from articles written by other experts in the field
of blended learning. However, the source is biased and subjective since it leans towards only
promoting blended learning and not giving a neutral view. The source only talks about the
significance and advantages of integrating blended learning in the education system without
giving any disadvantages or drawbacks. As noted, the paper was written by Marhabo
Avazmatova PhD, a lecturer at National University of Uzbekistan, and published by The
American Journal of Social Science and Education Innovations on the 29th of August, 2020. The
purpose of this paper is to show the importance and advantages of utilizing blended learning in
education/teaching as well as the essential factors required for a successful blended learning
course. The primary audience might be any student, instructor, or learning institution considering
using blended learning to learn, teach, or integrate in their system. In my research, I will be
looking at the importance and benefits of blended learning and this paper will help me in that
perspective.

This paper not only helped me understand the various definitions according different experts and
authors but it also helped me get the various perspectives of these authors on the significance of
integrating blended learning into the education system as well as the many benefits of blended
learning. I will be analyzing this text and using it to support my argument that blended learning
is necessary and required especially at a time like this when in-person learning is significantly
limited. I now view the topic differently since I know that there are a lot of benefits to blended
learning that outweigh the drawbacks. While the article on the Iowa State University website was
giving instructors the framework regarding how they can go about using blended learning to
teach, this paper focuses on the need to integrate blended learning, its significance as well as
benefits. Both are however, encouraging instructors to use blended learning to deliver
instructions.

Akkoyunlu, Buket, and Meryem Yilmaz Soylu. "A Study of Student’s Perceptions in a
Blended Learning Environment Based on Different Learning Styles." Educational
Technology & Society 11.1 (2008): 183-193.

Over the past decade or so, rapid growth has been witnessed in the use of technology in learning,
and in particular, the use of communication and web-based technologies. This study examines
the different learning styles that student use as well as their views and opinions on blended
learning. The study was conducted in conjunction with 34 students at the Hacettepe University in
Ankara, Turkey. Two methods/instruments were used to collect the views of the students on
blended learning as well as their preferred learning styles: questionnaires tailored to collect the
views of the students on blended learning; and Kolb’s Learning Style Inventory (LSI) which was
used to measure the learning styles of the students. Additional data for the study was gathered
from the students’ achievement scores, as well as records indicating their participation in an e-
learning environment. Results from the study showed that the views of the students on blended
learning, for example, evaluation, ease of use of the web environment, and in-person learning
environment, among others, differ according to their learning styles. The authors also note that
the results of the study showed that highest mean score corresponds to the in-person aspect of the
process when the evaluation of the students concerning the implementation of blended learning
is taken to consideration.

The authors of this source work at the Department of Computer Education and Instructional
Technology at Hacettepe University meaning that they are experts in the field of blended
learning which means that the information here is reliable. The information is also objective and
not biased since it is a research study that they conducted on the ways in which students view
blended learning as well as other learning styles. It relies on empirical data and results of the
study to reach conclusions. There were no biased influences on the students and this is evident
on the results where the views are mixed and not favouring any particular style. As noted, the
source was written by Buket Akkoyunlu and Meryem Yilmaz Soylu and published by the
Educational Technology & Society journal in 2008. The purpose of the study is to examine the
different learning styles that student use as well as their views and opinions on blended learning.
The primary audience of the study might be learning institutions that are looking to implement
blended learning and are interested in knowing how students feel about it. In my research, I will
be examining how students might view and feel about blended learning and this source will be
useful in helping me in that perspective.

When looking at a learning style, it is always important to get the opinions of students on it and
this source was useful to me in that regard. I was able to see how students view blended learning
as compared to other learning styles. My argument is that the students perspective in such
matters is important and I will therefore using the source to emphasize this point. I can use this
source to argue that instead of learning institutions deciding to unilaterally introduce blended
learning, students should be consulted to see if they are open to the idea. The source did not
really change how I think about blended learning but rather it reinforced an idea. While the other
sources are talking about how to put in place mechanisms to utilize blended learning, its
significance in the education system, and its benefits, this source examines the perspective of
students on the matter. Additionally, while the other two sources cannot be said to be objective,
this source is entirely objective and relies on empirical data to reach conclusions.