Blended Learning Programme: The Future of Indian Education

We all are well acquainted with the conventional method of evaluation in schools and colleges, where a teacher frames the questions and students answer them. But, India in 2000 is not the India in 2021, and so, the modern problems are resolved in the newfangled, modernised manner. As we are facing unprecedented circumstances due to the pandemic, educational institutions are devising new methods to ensure smooth continuation of classes as well as exams.

In this row, a viral screenshot made headlines and took the internet by storm with the reflection of uniqueness and innovativeness. Indian Institute of Technology, Goa found an extraordinary way to evaluate the students in their end semester exams. Faculties of IIT Goa have asked the students to prepare questions all by themselves as well as answer them. The screenshot of their analog circuit question paper just mentioned that students were expected to prepare questions worth 60 marks from lecture materials and then answer the same. Maharashtra Class 10 Board Exam Results 2021: State Govt Announces Evaluation Criteria, All Students To Be Promoted and Marks to Be Given on Internal Assessment Basis.

This is one of the examples set by the educational institution to combat obstacles in the most exceptional way. The unprecedented times called for unprecedented measures and aligning with this, the government has also devised a "Blended Teaching Programme" to bring educational transformation through optimum utilisation of technology to lead towards digital-period-means of education.

Blended Mode of Teaching & Learning

As the name suggests, the blended learning programme is an approach that combines offline and online education by extending physical classroom learning to interactive sessions on online platforms. The integration of technology in education has been accelerated by the pandemic. The chaos has opened the gates of opportunities in the education sector. A combination of traditional learning along with digital tools will make learning easy and effective for students. The idea of blended education is promising in the long run with the scope of incorporation of technology and innovative ideas to create an ecosystem in the education sector.

Customising classroom learning: Need for Blended learning

The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 aims to recognise that students are the main stakeholders and in order to keep a student centric approach, classroom learning is essential to be incorporated with online education which enables students to customise their education for effective output.

Some of the advantages of this programme includes:

Accessibility: Blended learning mode gives the flexibility to students to seek guidance or information online which can be accessed any time.

Pace & Time Management: Excelling academics is not just the purpose of education, but learning to manage time, incorporating discipline in life is equally essential. Blended learning mode will enable students as well teachers to learn according to their pace.

Overall Development: Through this mode of learning, students will be able to conquer extracurricular activities which will help to build their social persona. Online tools offer a wider selection of content and information which will help in expanding their knowledge base and give the edge in understanding concepts better.

Enhanced Teacher-Student engagement: The programme will make it easy for learners to communicate and interact with students effectively. The ability to rapidly analyse, review and give feedback on the work, enables the teacher to tailor teaching methods to effectively improve time efficiency.

Preparation for the future: Blended learning programme is a step forward to prepare students for the future as it offers a multitude of real world skills that directly translates into life skills. Through exposure to digital tools, a student learns the art of researching, while inhabiting computer literacy.

Models of Blending to fit the learning environment

Blended Face-to-Face Class

Sometimes referred to as the face-to-face driver model where a significant amount of classroom time is replaced by online activities. This model allows students and faculty to share more high-value instructional time.

The Flipped Classroom

This method reverses the traditional class structure of listening to a lecture in class and subsequently completing the tasks and activities at home. In this method, students watch a lecture video online, and complete the activities such as group work, projects or other exercises in the classroom.

There are various models and approaches included to put institutions to be ahead of time. This transformation in the education sector will make a headway in digitising the learning process and this will bridge the gap between what students are taught in classrooms and what the industry is demanding of its prospective employees. The ultimate solution lies in 'blended learning.'

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 31, 2021 03:41 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).