Integrated Approach to the Introduction of Blended Learning in Higher Education

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to present the results of a study of the possibilities of an integrated approach to the introduction of blended learning in higher education. The issue of applying new forms of creating the educational process is still relevant. The pandemic has intensified the discussion around the variety of software tools and methodological techniques that are used in distance and blended learning. At the same time, the normative, technical and psychological limitations of their application remain, and the very concept of blended learning is still being refined. The article summarizes the theoretical developments on the issue of blended learning, emphasizes the relevance of the problem of its implementation, specifies the stakeholders and their positions, and formulates proposals for options for teaching in a blended format.Materials and methods: the first part of the article was written in line with a review study, namely, a quantitative analysis and comparison of the content of scientific publications on the topic under study. To prepare the second empirical part, the authors conducted a survey of students on popular options for the implementation of blended learning, the results of which were processed by systematizing the collected data, working with specialized software products, Internet sources, and graphical presentation of the results.Results. Internal and external stakeholders in the implementation of blended learning in higher education have been identified. It is emphasized that with the unity of the goal - improving the quality of the educational process - their requirements are somewhat different and form a peculiar set of tasks that should be taken into account when introducing blended learning, with the unconditional priority of the positions of a lecturer and a student. Based on the bibliometric analysis of the definition of “blended learning”, a rapid increase in the number of publications on the topic is shown, which clearly illustrates the interest of the pedagogical community. The data characterizing the opinion of students about the introduction of blended learning are given. To improve the efficiency of the educational process, it is proposed to use integrated solutions for the implementation of blended learning in higher education, taking into account the opinions of all interested parties, and above all lecturers and students.Conclusion. The results of the study contribute to the specification of directions for further work to improve the practice of introducing and using blended learning by higher education institutions.

Keywords

• blended learning, blended learning implementation, integrated approach, e-learning, distance learning, higher school, university.