Decide Between Online, Blended Courses

If you're thinking of continuing your education, a program combining face-to-face interaction and online learning could be the right option for you.

The approach, typically called blended or hybrid learning, generally refers to an educational program delivered partly online and partly on campus.

Some experts say hybrid learning appeals more to traditional college students than adults who want to continue their education. Regardless, nontraditional students can still benefit from blended learning, says Susan Gautsch, director of online learning at the University of Southern California's Sol Price School of Public Policy.

"I think it certainly meets the needs of people's lives," Gautsch says, noting that many students who take blended learning classes at USC's public policy school are professionals with full-time jobs and families.

"Blended learning can be a great resource for students who may have been out of school for an extended period of time," says Som Seng, director of marketing for UMassOnline. The University of Massachusetts system offers a blended master's degree in health informatics and management. "It can be a natural transition between everyday life and returning to school."

When deciding between a blended learning program or a fully online program, experts suggest considering some facts beforehand.

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1. Research has shown that blended learning may have academic advantages. One reason to consider blended learning: it might combine the greatest strengths of online and face-to-face education.

The U.S. Department of Education published a review of the research on blended learning in 2010, which found that blended learning approaches are often more effective than more traditional face-to-face instruction and that they incorporate learning and teaching elements that are not found in purely online or face-to-face courses.

"Blended learning is really the best of both worlds," says Christine Shakespeare, assistant vice president of continuing and professional education at Pace University.

A 2011 research review published by Kaplan Inc. also found that blended learning programs can potentially offer more personalized, student-focused and flexible forms of teaching than would be found in the face-to-face-only classroom.

Michael Karp, a faculty member at USC's Keck School of Medicine, is a second-year student in the university's executive Master of Health Administration blended program within the public policy school. He says it combines the flexibility of online lectures and assignments with a face-to-face curriculum that involves additional lectures, visits to medical sites and work on additional projects.

"I needed something flexible for my schedule, and once I started researching the structure of the program at the Price School, it made a great deal of sense," he said in an email.

2. Students will need to plan ahead when it comes to showing up to class. When it comes to arriving on campus for the face-to-face component of a class, students should make sure that they are aware of the required dates well beforehand, Shakespeare says.

Students definitely need to prepare, Shakespeare says, especially when it comes to having a backup plan in the case of a family emergency during the in-person class, for instance, or making sure you won't have to work a shift at your job at that time.

It can also be essential to learn about the consequences of a missed face-to-face class and whether alternatives are offered, she says.

"Students need to understand how much flexibility there is in the face-to-face experience," Shakespeare says. "If they have to come to campus, they need to understand that ahead of time."

3. Experts say many nontraditional students choose fully online over blended learning. While some schools do offer blended learning options, for many nontraditional students, fully online learning is the more obvious, or more suitable, choice, says Carol Twigg, president and CEO of the National Center for Academic Transformation, a nonprofit that aims to redesign academic programs using information technology.

"Adults make decisions based on flexibility and convenience," Twigg says.

At Pace University, hybrid courses are offered in a few disciplines at the school, such as the registered nurse to bachelor's in nursing program and a master's program in homeland security, though these classes take place mostly online, Shakespeare says.

She adds that she believes enrollment in the latter program is not as high as it would be had the class been offered fully online. Polls conducted by the school have indicated that many students feel purely online courses are a more realistic option than hybrid classes, she says.

"My takeaway is that the students like the idea in theory, but there are very few who can make time in their lives, even if it's just two or three times a semester, to be physically present on campus," Shakespeare says.

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4. Hybrid learning gives students an opportunity to network and interact with other students. Gautsch says meeting in person as opposed to only online has its benefits when it comes to strengthening your professional network.

"Building relationships in person over time makes for great strong ties," Gautsch said in an email.

Seng agrees, noting that blended learning enables both in-person and online student interaction, each of which has its own advantages.

"A huge benefit is the ability to be able to meet and connect with classmates both online and in person," she says.

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