Blended Learning: The Road to Inclusive and Global Education

The evolving student expectancy on the quality and accessibility of education has resulted in a new landscape of delivery modes of educational programs. This chapter presents two case studies that demonstrate the blended learning models as a mean to enable students in distributed locations to gain access to programs not otherwise available. The first case is about a mixed-mode course for Aboriginal students in British Columbia where the course format was tailored to be culturally sensitive to the Aboriginal ways of knowing. The second case is about a French Master’s program delivered in a hybrid mode to offer educators in remote parts of Canada access to this specialized degree. By applying the blended learning model, instructional designers assisted in establishing a learner-centered approach rather than an institution-centered approach, which made the programs more inclusive and meaningful for learners.

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