Blended Learning: Transforming Education Like Never Before
Cohort-Based Learning Is Transforming Online Education
Cohort-based learning is a learning approach where a group of people with the requirement of learning a particular subject, assemble to learn that subject at a similar time. This is a proven and age-old in-person classroom approach to learning. However, it differs from the traditional mode of learning as Cohort Learning is done Online. Participants of Cohort Learning start and finish a course together.
Cohort-based learning is transforming online education in a way that now it is more open and easily available to people. Various platforms offer Cohort Based Learning. One of the significant changes brought by Cohort-based learning is that it is equally available and accessible to women and kids at their homes which is not the case with the traditional mode of learning. It also helps learners build a community and become part of a group with similar interests that work as both, a source of motivation and competition for learners. Cohort-Based Learning has come as a blessing for people who want to learn but cannot afford to pay high course fees, as many of the cohort-based courses are available for free. You just need to decide what you want to learn; cohort-based Learning has everything ready for you.
Blended Learning is helpful for Students
The very construct of Blended Learning and the idea behind it makes it really helpful for the students. Blended Learning gives a student the freedom to learn from both online and offline mediums. While the traditional medium of education offered students access to books and copies, there was no one with them to discuss their doubts after the class. Now, with advanced learning apps and other technological advances, learners have more options available to them, and it is easy to interact with the teachers now. Blended Learning, with the help of technology, also helps a teacher understand the level of progress of students, which in turn, helps the teacher to guide them better.
Blended learning comes with multiple apps, games, and other measurable techniques that allow students to understand their level of progress. This encourages students to do better in their studies while learning at their own pace.
Blended Learning as a Problem Solver
- Blended learning does not follow a one-size-fits-all approach and hence, it is tailor-made for every student.
- Blended learning, first of all, provides a safe learning environment and solves the problem of catching the virus under Covid-19 circumstances.
- Blended learning is not only safe, but also saves a lot of time for both learners and teachers.
- It enables students to master concepts at their own pace it also provides teachers the data and instructional resources which help teachers to give individualized attention to struggling students.
- Various studies have shown that students find Blended Classrooms more engaging than usual traditional classes.
- Students feel more comfortable sharing their ideas and opinions online than sharing them in front of other students in face-to-face classes.
Experiences in Blended Learning
Blended Learning as the name suggests is a way of learning that blends both online and offline ways of learning and helps students get the best out of both methods. Most of the students who share their experience with Blended Learning are happy with the method of learning and want to continue with this model. On the one hand, Blended Learning helps students explore new methods and techniques of online learning. On the other hand, it also provides students with an opportunity to meet their educators face-to-face where they can discuss more complex issues. It also saves students from the monotony of classroom or online class routines. Blended Learning is also good in the sense that it is not completely online, thus saving students from too much exposure to screen time.
Effectiveness of Blended Learning
Blended Learning is very effective in advancing the needs and knowledge that today’s generations require. Since Blended learning deals with both online and face-to-face interaction-based classes it caters to the need of both kinds of students. Whether you are an online person or an offline person, Blended learning is for you. Several studies show results in favour of Blended learning. For example, research on Medical students studying Anatomy showed that statistically there was a significant increase in the test scores of students after switching to a blended learning course. It also shows that a Blended learning class, when compared with a traditional classroom, showed better performance and results.
One of the reasons behind the success of Blended learning is that here students are free and are also encouraged to follow various learning techniques which help them build better mental connection, leading to increased retention of the subject learned.
Who benefits the most from blended learning?
Blended Learning provides a win-win situation to both the learners and educators. It is good for students because it understands a student’s learning requirement and helps them understand a subject on their own pace while providing them a study pattern that suits them best. On the contrary, it is good for an educator in the sense that it lets the educator understand the student’s strengths and weaknesses and provides automated techniques to help them with weak areas.
To sum up, we can say that Blended Education has come as a revolution in the field of education, and it is altering the learning experience of students in a positive manner. It helps us overcome a lot of problems that are unavoidable in the traditional method of education. Blended Education, with its innovative techniques and multiple channels of education, allows students to go deeper into their subjects. This scope is limited when it comes to traditional learning. Blended Learning is an advanced and upgraded way of learning and teaching, which according to the demands of a rapidly changing world order, is ruled by technology.