Education Policy, Business and Technology

What Effective Blended Learning Looks Like

THE Journal: A high school algebra teacher in Lawrence, KS, has her students watch Khan Academy videos for homework, and when they come to class the next day, she gives them a choice of what to do: They can work together on a problem set that puts the lesson into practice, teaching — and learning from — each other. They can work independently on the same problem set. Or, they can listen to the teacher go over the lesson herself in a more intimate, small-group setting.

In Sonoma County, CA, high school students in Catlin Tucker’s N.E.W. (Next Evolution in Work-based Learning) School classroom rotate through various stations as they learn concepts related to a cross-curricular theme. At some of the stations, students work offline by reading handouts or attending small-group “skill labs.” Other stations have students working online, such as doing internet research or reading digital texts from McGraw-Hill’s StudySync or other sources. Then, students break into groups to collaborate on solving a real-world challenge of their own design.

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