Implementation of Blended Learning in Teaching at the Higher Education Institutions of Pakistan

Abstract

Abstract-Blended learning has emerged as one of the solutions to address the various needs of Higher EducationInstitutions around the world. Blended Learning is the combination of traditional classroom and online endeavour. It provides advantages of both face to face learning and e-learning. The main purpose of this study is to assess the adaptation level of blended learning in teaching process at Higher Education Institutions. This study carried out mixed method approach by using explanatory sequential model. Teachers of general public universities were included as the sample for this study. Questionnaire and interview techniques were used as data gathering tools. The main findings of this study showed that teachers have a positive perception for technology usage in teaching process. Most of the teachers possessed expertise in the use of different software and equipped with internet skills. The study concluded that in blended learning implementation, universities are still at awareness level and a lot of efforts are required for effective implementation of blended learning. It is recommended that the universities' administration should provide an extra computing infrastructure (e.g. servers, bandwidth, and storage capacity) to run the courses in blended format. We recommend that in strategic plan of the universities the blended learning should be well defined and highlighted.

Transforming universities in interactive digital platform: case of city university of science and information technology

“…Whereas, cultural dimension was not focused in this research, therefore, there are no evidences available to discuss cultural issues. Soomro et al (2018) also acknowledges that faculty and students in Pakistan's HEIs are equipped with the technical knowledge and skills required for utilizing ICT. However, there is still a great deal to be done to increase the productivity, efficiency and effectiveness of digital technology and its utilization in HEIs.…”

“…ICT has not only revolutionized and transformed the classroom learning and teaching methods, but also mutated distance learning programs, leading to reshaped libraries as well as accessibility towards learning materials (Farid et al 2015). Thus, persistent upgradation of technology aided the access to the digital world of information (Soomro et al 2018). Hence, the digital world has beneficial accessibility information to different fields.…”

Gender-Wise Perception of Students Towards Blended Learning in Higher Education: Pakistan

“…From the analysed data and interviews, it was concluded that sample universities secured the initial stage of a framework given by Graham et al, (2013). The participants cited various reasons for not being able to implement BL properly, such as limited computing infrastructure in comparison to student population, no training or official guidance for implementation of BL in classrooms, no model of BL nor any international established framework adopted and no course being designed to offer students the benefits of BL (Soomro et al, 2018).…”

“…It has also established the Directorate of Distance Education, which encourages e-learning and distance learning. A study was conducted on teachers' attitudes towards BL in Pakistan (Soomro, Soomro, Bhatti and Ali, 2018); the findings of this study show that there is the need for a study to be conducted to explore the thoughts of higher education students. Through the adoption of a BL model in the university system, Pakistan will have many advantages; for example, students can use online platforms, pre-recorded lectures, peer-to-peer and peer-to-faculty interaction instructional models and real-time discussions with experts and experienced people online.…”

El software como apoyo didáctico en la enseñanza de la electrónica digital en la educación superior en México [Software as a didactic support in the teaching of digital electronics in higher education in Mexico]

“…La coyuntura abierta por la pandemia del COVID-19, ha mostrado una serie de vulnerabilidades y riesgos (Luna-Nemecio, 2020) ante los cuales se requiere desarrollar habilidades y competencias en tecnologías que se encuentren en constante actualización. Actualmente, con la llegada de la Industria 4.0 las universidades se han convertido en el elemento principal para el desarrollo de las naciones (Soomro et al, 2018); son ellas las que deben adaptar sus programas de estudio, así como sus métodos y herramientas de enseñanza, para la formación competente de sus ingenieros (López Ríos et al, 2020;Romero-Rodriguez et al, 2020).…”