HomePsychology and Education: A Multidisciplinary Journalvol. 3 no. 3 (2022)

Readiness in Adopting a Blended Learning Approach in Science: Challenges Encountered and Breakthroughs

Elsa Cajucom | Ivy Lopez | Jimmy Valdez | Julieta Villanueva | Weyalein Balonquita | Judy Ann Sonday

Discipline: Education

 

Abstract:

The aim of this research was to determine the teachers' and students’ readiness on blended learning. Also, the struggles encountered by the teachers as well their best practices in the blended learning modalities were identified. To attain the level of readiness of the students and teachers to the new normal educational learning methods, an adopted but modified survey instrument was used. To determine the personal experiential accounts on the challenges and difficulties encountered under the new normal educational learning modalities and their breakthroughs or good practices in providing solutions, open-ended questionnaire was employed. Data revealed that the most available gadget of the respondents was mobile phone while the least was desktop computer. The level of readiness of the teachers and students in blended learning modalities was generally high. Among the six dimension of readiness, only online learning scored low for both teachers and students. Teachers most common difficulties encountered in blended learning were unstable internet connectivity, insufficient time to prepare learning materials, captivating students’ focus in learning, and difficulty in addressing individual needs of their learners. The most common worst experiences they had were the following: online engagement thru chats, teaching problem- solving skills online, unavailability of materials for the experiment, and the academic dishonesty of the students. From the difficulties that the teachers have encountered, all of them looked for better internet service provider, trained themselves how to do the recording for the video lessons using online resources or through departmental tutorials, used alternative household materials for the experiment, and consistent online interaction to the learners thru personal chats via messenger and text as well as sent emails. For them, the best practices that are worth sustaining are preparation of pre-recorded video lessons and the extensive use of the features of the SMU LMS. As an output of this study, recommendations towards an enhanced blended learning thru the SMLP features in teaching and learning science were provided.



References:

  1. Aparajita, R.D. (2021). Importance of blended learning in the era of digital education.
  2. Adams, D., Sumintono, B., Mohamed, A., Mohamad, N., Nur, S. (2018) E-learning readiness among students of diverse backgrounds in a leading Malaysian higher education institution. Malaysian Journal of Learning and Instruction (MJLI), 15 (2). pp. 227-256.
  3. Adnan, M. (2020). Online learning amid the COVID-19 pandemic: Students perspectives. Journal of Pedagogical Research, 1(2), 45–51.
  4. Ahmed, G., Arshad, M., & Tayyab, M. (2019). Study of effects of ICT on professional development of teachers at university level. European Online Journal of Natural and Social Sciences: Proceedings, 8(2), 162-170.
  5. Albiladi, W. S., & Alshareef, K. K. (2019). Blended learning in English teaching and learning: A review of the current literature. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 10(2), 232-238. DOI:
  6. Ali, S. (2019). Social Media Usage among Teenage Girls in Rawalpindi and Islamabad. January 2018, 0–9.
  7. Baclig, Cristina Elois. 2020. The promises and pitfalls of blended learning in the Philippines.
  8. Bakia, M., Shear, L., Toyoma, Y., & Lasseter, A. (2012). Understanding the implications of online learning for educational productivity.
  9. Bandura, A. (1977). Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review, 84(2), 191–215. doi:10.1037/0033-295X.84.2.191
  10. Bandura, A. (1989). Human agency in social cognitive theory. American Psychologist, 44(9),
  11. Bandura, A. (2012). Social cognitive theory. In P. A. Van Lange, A. W. Kruglanksi, & E. T. Higgins (Eds.), Handbook of theories of social psychology: Volume 2 (pp. 349–374). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
  12. Bingimlas, K. (2009). Barriers to the successful integration of ICT in teaching and learning environments: A review of the literature. Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 5(3), 235-245. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/75275
  13. Borokhovski, E., Bernard, R. M., Tamim, R. M., Schmid, R. F., & Sokolovskaya, A. (2016). Technology-supported student interaction in post-secondary education: A meta-analysis of designed versus contextual treatments. Computers & Education, 96, 15-28
  14. Bose, K. (2003). An E-Learning Experience: A written analysis based on my experience with primary school teachers in an eLearning pilot project.
  15. Borokhovski, E., Tamim, R. M., Bernard, R. M., Abrami, P. C., & Sokolovskaya, A. (2012). Are contextual and design student-student interaction treatments equally effective in distance education? A follow-up meta-analysis of comparative empirical studies. Distance Education, 33(3), 311-329.
  16. Connie, S. (2015). Blended learning extension in a global collaborative learning environment. 21st Annual Pacific-Rim Real Estate Society Conference Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 18-21
  17. Contreras-Castillo, J., Perez-Fragoso, C., & Favela, J. (2006). Assessing the use of instant messaging in online learning environments. Interactive Learning Environments, 14(3), 205-218.
  18. Cudis, C. (2020). Davao teachers learn new skills amid Covid-19 crisis.
  19. Custodio, A. (2020). Blended learning is the new normal in Philippine education.
  20. Catapang, C. (2018). Blended Learning: The new norm.
  21. Dela Pena, M. (2009). E-Learning in the Philippines: Trends, directions, and challenges.
  22. Deped Order No. 37, s. 2004 – Implementation of the direct release of funds to DepEd regional offices and implementing units amended by DO 46, s. 2004 – Amendment to DepEd Order no. 37, s. 2004. DepEd Central Office, Metro Manila.
  23. Department of Education. (2020). DepEd employs Learning Support Aides
  24. DepEd Memorandum No. 067 s. 2020. “Guidelines on the implementation of alternative learning system programs in the light of basic education learning continuity plan”.
  25. DepEd official: Close to 4 million learners did not enroll for next school year due to COVID-19 crisis. 2020.
  26. Gnaulati, E. (2014). Why Girls Tend to Get Better Grades Than Boys Do. The Atlantic
  27. Graham, C.R. (2006). Blended learning systems, The Handbook of Blended Learning, Pfeiffer Publisher, San Francisco, CA, USA.
  28. Graham, C. R. (2013). Emerging practice and research in blended learning. In M. G. Moore (Ed.), Handbook of distance education, (3rd ed., pp. 333–350). Routledge
  29. Hrastinski, S. (2008). Asynchronous and Synchronous E-Learning.
  30. Kazu, I., & Mehment, D. (2014). The Turkish Online Journal of Educational Technology. Effect of Blended Learning Environment Model on High School Students’ Academic Achievement. Vol. 13, Issue1, pp. 78-87
  31. Kearsley, G. (1995). The nature and value of interaction in distance learning. Proceedings of the Third Distance Education Research Symposium, Pennsylvania.
  32. Keukenhof, H. (2000). Asynchronous learning. knowledge? Contemporary Issues in Technology and Teacher Education, 9(1), 60-70. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ904583
  33. Kritz, I. (2020). PH not ready for online schooling. The Manila Times.
  34. Larsen, L.J. (2012). Teacher and student perspectives on a blended learning intensive English program writing course.Unpublished dissertation.
  35. Llaneta, A. (2020). Plans, Possibilities and Progress: UP academics m o v i n g i n t o t h e “ n e x t n o r m a l ” . https://up.edu.ph/plans-possibilities-and-progress-up-academics-mo ving-into-thenext- normal/C
  36. Lichoro, D. M. (2015). Faculty readiness for transition to teaching online courses in the Iowa Community College Online Consortium (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). Iowa State University, Iowa.
  37. Loeb, S. (2020). How Effective Is Online Learning? What the Research Does and Doesn’t Tell Us. EdWeek.
  38. Martin, F., Budhrani, K., & Wang, C. (2019). Examining faculty perception of their readiness to teach online. Online Learning, 23(3), 97-119
  39. Mendoza, J. (2020). ‘Challenges’ await blended learning
  40. Mondal, Gourish Chandra, et. al. (2019). Cosmos Impact Factor. Effect of Blended Learning Strategy for Secondary Science Students. Vol. 6, Issue 1, pp 381-387
  41. Montemayor, M.T. (2020). Education goes on amid Covid-19 thru DepEd's continuity plan.
  42. Okita S.Y. (2012) Social Interactions and Learning. In: Seel N.M. (eds) Encyclopedia of the Sciences of Learning. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-1428- 6_177
  43. Owusu-Agyeman Y., Larbi-Siaw O., Brenya B., Anyidoho A. (2017). An embedded fuzzy analytic hierarchy process for evaluating lecturers’ conceptions of teaching and learning. Stud. Educ. Eval.;55:46–57. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.stueduc.2017.07.001
  44. Pappas, Christopher. 2015. The history of blended learning.
  45. Plans, Possibilities and Progress: UP academics moving into the “next normal”. (2020, July 3)
  46. Sari, I., Pinaga, S., Hernani, Solfarina (2020). Chemistry Learning via Distance Learning during the Covid-19 Pandemic. Tadris Jurnal Keguruan dan Ilmu Tarbiyah 5(1):155-165
  47. Sriwichai, C. (2020). Students’ readiness and problems in learning English through blended learning environment. Asian Journal of Education and Training, 6(1), 23-34, 2020 ISSN(E): 2519-5387
  48. Stevens, K. M. (2011). The distribution of instructional leadership in elearning clusters: An ecological perspective. Unpublished master’s thesis, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand.
  49. Tupas, F. P. & Linas-Laguda, M. (2020). Blended Learning – An Approach in Philippine Basic Education Curriculum in New Normal: A Review of Current Literature. Universal Journal of Educational Research, 8(11), 5505 - 5512.
  50. Ventayen, R. J. (2018). Teachers’ Readiness in Online Teaching Environment: A Case of Department of Education Teachers. PSU Journal of Education, Management and Social Sciences, Volume 2, Issue 1, 2018, https://ssrn.com/abstract=3331115
  51. Ventayen, R. J. M., Salcedo, R. E., Ventayen, C. C. O., Ventayen, l. M.,Ventayen, T. J. M. 2020. Senior high school teachers’ practices and readiness in blended learning environment: Basis for A blended learning preparedness framework.
  52. Vonderwell, S. (2004). Assessing online learning and teaching: Adapting the Minute Paper. TechTrends, 48(4), 29–31.