What is Hybrid Learning and What are its Features?

It is a learning format where some of the students are in the classroom and some are connected online. This study helped to prepare the company paperhelp, you can read more about paperhelp reviews and see what they are experts in the educational sector.

How hybrid learning differs from blended learning

From full distance during lockdowns, many schools and universities have moved to models that combine distance and face-to-face approaches.

One such format is hybrid learning. This is when a class takes place in a specially equipped room with some students in it, while others are connected to a video feed and interact remotely with the instructor and classmates or classmates at the same time.

It is the real-time synchronization that distinguishes hybrid learning from blended learning, which can include both synchronous and asynchronous activities. For example, in blended learning, students first watch instructional videos independently, at their own convenience outside the classroom-and then work through complex issues with the instructor in a face-to-face class.

What are the benefits of hybrid learning

It may seem that the hybrid approach is a forced measure that only makes sense in a difficult epidemiological situation when some students, due to illness or quarantine, cannot attend face-to-face classes. There are, however, some powerful advantages of hybrid learning over fully face-to-face or asynchronous distance learning. A group of researchers from Belgium and the Netherlands, in their paper “A Systematic Literature Review on Synchronous Hybrid Learning: Gaps Identified,” divides them into organizational and pedagogical ones.

Organizational

Independence from the physical location of students is perhaps the most significant argument in favor of hybrid learning, even if we do not take into account the realities of the pandemic when part of the group learns in a conventional format, and part is quarantined and can only join online. If a university offers a hybrid format, students from any region or even country of the world can study there without having to move to a dormitory to do so.

A hybrid model would help when an institution is launching highly specialized courses and when the university as a whole is short of applicants. If a particular location does not have enough applicants, the addition of the “participate online” option will definitely increase enrollment.

A hybrid approach is also useful in the corporate sphere if you need to train a distributed team with offices in different cities or if part of the employees works from the office, and part — remotely. By the way, the international research company Gartner estimates that by 2023 40% of companies will use a hybrid format in training.

Pedagogical

Unlike asynchronous online learning, the hybrid format allows the educator to maintain quality communication with both face-to-face and remote groups. The teacher or instructor can track the engagement of all students, ask and answer questions, see the reactions of listeners, and understand when additional explanations are needed.

Asynchronous online learning requires the student to have advanced planning skills, high independence, and responsibility for their own learning process. Therefore, in situations where more support and control from the teacher is needed, the hybrid approach approaches the effectiveness of face-to-face learning.

What difficulties arise in the implementation of the hybrid format of training

Despite the aforementioned advantages, the hybrid format has its disadvantages and difficulties. They also relate to both organizational and technical as well as pedagogical sides of the learning process.

1. Hybrid learning requires special pedagogical approaches

To teach effectively in a hybrid model, a teacher, educator, or trainer will have to rethink the teaching methods used and how to engage students. What works well in a face-to-face format may not be as useful when part of the group is engaged remotely. Therefore, successful hybrid work requires developed digital competencies, a willingness to try new methods, and an objective assessment of their effectiveness in each case.

2. The cognitive load on the teacher increases

This point logically follows from the previous one. In the hybrid format the teacher or instructor, in fact, simultaneously works with two different audiences — one is directly in front of him, and the other is connected by a video link.

3. Quality hybrid learning requires special technical equipment

Ensuring that remotely participating students are as present as possible through technical means is no easy task. As the researchers note, high-quality audio plays a particularly important role here: it is necessary for the comfortable interaction of students with the teacher and fellow students.

At the same time, technical devices can be inconvenient for the teacher and the students in the classroom. For example, the need to speak only into a microphone can interfere with a lively discussion. And the awareness that you are constantly being filmed by a camera can cause awkwardness and discomfort for both the teacher and the students.

4. Achieving the perfect balance is probably impossible

As the Dutch researcher Anneliese Ras points out in her analysis of research papers on hybrid learning, students studying online are still less engaged than those in the classroom. Often they just watch the video broadcast without actively participating in the class. Existing research shows that online students feel distanced from the instructor and fellow students in the face-to-face group as if they were excluded from the class.

It can also be difficult for an online student to signal to a teacher if, for example, they want to answer a question asked. This is frustrating and has a negative impact on engagement. And there remains a problem that is relevant to any distance learning — learning online requires independence and self-control, and these skills are not developed by all students.

How to Effectively Organize Learning in a Hybrid Format

In an ideal scenario, a hybrid classroom is equipped with high-resolution cameras and high-quality microphones that transmit sound without echo and delay, an interactive whiteboard, a large screen that streams video from webcams of remote students, and each student in the class has a tablet. The technical part of the process is supervised by a special employee, and the teacher can fully concentrate on educational activities.

The reality, as a rule, is far from this, unless we are talking about the most high-tech educational institutions, which have invested a lot of resources in special equipment for the “hybrid”. But that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to conduct an effective hybrid class with limited resources.

The authors of “A Systematic Literature Review of Simultaneous Hybrid Instruction” provided recommendations to help reduce the impact of the negative effects listed above. And English teacher and blended and hybrid learning expert Jo Szouk shared tips on how to improve the student experience when classroom technology leaves much to be desired.

1. Prepare ahead of time and allow time for students to prepare

You can reduce the number of technical problems by testing the equipment in advance — whether the camera on the teacher’s laptop works, whether there are problems with the sound, and so on. It’s also worth allowing students to plug in before class so they too can test how their cameras and microphones work, how to send chat messages, and how to virtually raise their hands. Detailed instructions — how to set up an account on the broadcast platform, how to log in to the lesson, and so on — won’t be superfluous either.

2. Get a technical assistant from among your students

To reduce the organizational and technical burden a bit, delegate some of the tasks. For example, suggest that someone from among the students take on the role of a chat supervisor — keep track of the questions that remote students send in and voice them. Also, have one of the students act as a tech support person to whom the guys in the online group will turn if there are any problems with the broadcast. According to American researchers, this will allow students to have more control over the educational environment and will have a positive impact on engagement.

3. Clearly communicate to students the goals and objectives of the course

Seeing a specific educational goal in front of you is important for all students. And students who study online need even more clarity about why they are connected to the video broadcast each time. To ensure that this goal is not lost sight of, it is also helpful to think about tasks for the remote group in case the connection is interrupted or there are other malfunctions. And discuss in advance with students what they might do in such a situation.

4. Make sure everyone can follow the lesson

If possible, instead of a printed textbook, it is better to open an electronic version on the computer and broadcast the image to all students. For those present, on the screen in the classroom, and for the remote group, on the screen display. It is better to make notes during the lesson on a virtual whiteboard — there are many services that offer such a function and work directly in a browser. This will help all students keep track of the lesson. In addition, the image from the online whiteboard can be saved and sent to the students.

5. Involve students in active participation

A variety of interactive methods — surveys, tests, quizzes, educational mini-games — can help. Group activities like brainstorming will also be useful.

Researchers recommend frequently addressing questions to the audience and being attentive to the answers, encouraging participation in discussions on the topic of the lesson. Chatting is also worth stimulating — the distance between students from offline and online groups is not felt as much if students interact with each other, share and comment on their opinions, and support each other.