Blended Learning Symposium: Designing Blended Learning Experiences

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Brief Abstract

This live, on-site session is part of a custom blended learning experience designed for engagement before, during, and after the on-site OLC Blended Learning Symposium. Participants will collaborate using a design studio approach which starts by curating and defining a collection of blended learning design challenges, and then leverages the community’s expertise, ideas, and creativity to develop innovative solutions to these challenges. This live session uses these challenges as the catalyst for designing collaborative and practical solutions. Through this interactive session, participants will create and share practical, community-designed solutions to the most important challenges facing blended learning educators and institutions. 

This onsite and live-streamed session is available only to participants registered for the Blended Learning Symposium. 

Presenters

Lead Presenter: Kiran Budhrani, University of North Carolina at Charlotte

Kiran Budhrani is the Director for Personalized and Adaptive Learning at the Center for Teaching and Learning at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

Co-presenter: Bucky Dodd, University of Central Oklahoma | LX Studio (Virtual Presenter)

Bucky Dodd, Ph.D. is the Assistant Vice President for Education Strategy and Innovation with LX Studio at the University of Central Oklahoma. Dr. Dodd is an innovator, master teacher, and visionary of the future of education. He holds a Ph.D. in Education from Oklahoma State University and graduate and undergraduate degrees in Adult Education and Corporate Communications and maintains an active research and development agenda in these areas. As a prolific writer, teacher, and speaker on the future of education, his research focuses on visual planning and collaboration systems, innovation, and the design of learning experiences. Dr. Dodd is the creator of Learning Environment Modeling®, an award-winning visual collaboration system for the design and evaluation of learning experiences, and has been recognized internationally for his research and design expertise. He has a proven record of leading innovation initiatives in corporate, government, and education organizations and is consistently sought out as a thought leader on the future of learning.

Extended Abstract

Many organizations are realizing the benefits and opportunities that blended learning experiences afford learners. Blended learning encourages teams to re-think the design of learning experiences and innovate to enhance flexibility and quality. While the initial drivers of blended learning may be flexibility, scale, or access, blended learning strategies provide a wide platform for the innovation of learning experiences and re-designing the spaces and places where people learn.  

The goal of this workshop is to help participants explore common challenges associated with designing blended learning and discover new ways of envisioning, exploring, and designing blended learning experiences. During this workshop, participants will: 

  • Explore common design considerations and models for blended learning experiences.  

  • Create a blended learning program design canvas. 

  • Develop learner personas for blended learning experiences.  

  • Create blended learning experience maps.  

The workshop will explore common design patterns and models for blended learning experiences. Facilitators will highlight current effective practices and promising practices emerging from the field. Next, participants will use a program design canvas to create a collaborative vision for a blended learning program. Using the program canvas, learner personas will be created to help build empathy and guide design decision-making processes. Finally, experience mapping techniques will help visualize and communicate the design of blended learning experiences with other constituents.  

Active learning and collaborative techniques will be used to engage and involve participants throughout the workshop. Participants will also gain access to templates and that can be adopted for their own design needs.