While beneficial to students, blended learning remains a resource-intensive pedagogical tool

Throughout their coordination of the IBCoM mandatory course CM2006 – Qualitative research methods in media and communication, dr. Delia Dumitrica and dr. Jason Pridmore often felt unhappy with the existing resources for teaching qualitative data analysis. With the help of a CLI Fellowship, they turned to blended learning to improve students’ experience of learning about the most common methods of data analysis in media and communication.

The pedagogical innovation consisted of the development of six online modules allowing students to learn and practice with qualitative data analysis. Building upon existing research expertise of Media & Communication and Arts & Culture faculty members, the online modules were made available on Canvas and combined readings, video-lectures, formative assessments, practical activities, and student reflection. The modules were subsequently integrated with the lecture and the tutorials, in order to create a blended learning environment for students.

Was the project successful? Speaking from the perspective of the teaching team, dr. Dumitrica felt that “the amount of time and effort that we have put in this project may not be immediately visible to either faculty or students. Each module involved countless hours of designing and developing expert videos, practical activities, peer learning, and formative assessment. When it came to their implementation, the modules required a complete re-thinking of the lectures and the tutorials. Without adequate financial support from the Community for Learning and Innovation, such ambitious innovation projects are simply not possible.”

Students seemed to enjoy and appreciate the modules. While helping assess the results of this pedagogical innovation, research assistant Paulina Jarmula noticed that “students variously discussed the digital modules as beneficial to their learning, but also in disciplinary terms. I suppose the skeptic in me expected students to perceive the modules as a burden or a necessary evil; yet, what became clear was that the addition of digital modules really helped students to engage in the material in more flexible and creative ways that opened them up to thinking 'outside' the course.”

An executive summary of the assessment of the blended modules can be read here.