Proposals should focus on effective and/or innovative blended course/program models and design(s), with an emphasis on research-based best practices, effectiveness, efficiencies, and scalability. Proposals for this track may also include research methods and evaluation of outcomes in blended course/program design and development. Such proposals should provide innovative approaches and methods for evaluating instructional models for blended learning, such as analytics, survey methods, and institutional data protocols. Proposals that focus on research, which are strongly encouraged, should include research design, methods, or results.

Examples of topics for this track include:
 

Best Practices

• Blended learning instructional design (or course re-design) strategies and approaches
• Instructional designer (or technologist)/faculty partnerships for blended course design & development
• Effective blended course/program design models

Innovation & Experimentation

• Technology tools for delivery of blended courses & programs
• Use of open educational resources in blended course/program design and/or delivery
• Models for incorporating MOOCs into the design of blended courses/programs

Research & Evaluation

• Assessment of efficacy of blended course or program models (e.g., learning outcomes, faculty satisfaction, student satisfaction)
• Research on blended teaching and learning models or course/program design

Faculty development and student support are a priority for institutions offering blended programs, and the cost of providing these opportunities can be significant. Proposals submitted to this track should address approaches to and models of faculty development and/or student support specific to blended teaching and learning, with an emphasis on research-based best practices, effectiveness, efficiencies, cost savings and scalability. Proposals must focus on the opportunities and challenges specific to blended learning development/support (versus fully online development/support). Proposals that focus on research, which are strongly encouraged, should include research design, methods, or results.

Examples of topics for this track include:
 

Best Practices

• Strategies to motivate and engage faculty in blended teaching and learning
• Strategies to motivate and engage students in blended courses and programs
• Blended learning faculty development program models
• Blended learning student support program models
• Building blended learning faculty communities of practice
• Fostering community among students in blended courses and programs
• Best practices in blended faculty development, training, and support
• Best practices in supporting students in blended courses and programs
• Student services for blended learners, i.e., advising; career counseling and services; library & information resources; tutoring; remediation; accessibility and ADA adherence (moved from "Institutional Leadership" track)

Innovation & Experimentation

• Promoting the production and use of open educational resources in faculty development for blended teaching and learning
• New models for faculty development in blended learning
• New models for student support in blended learning

Research & Evaluation

• Research-driven approaches to blended faculty development
• Research-driven approaches to student support in blended learning
• Research on faculty development for blended teaching and learning (e.g., faculty satisfaction, learning outcomes of faculty development programs)
• Research on student support in blended learning
• Quality assurance in blended faculty support and development programs
• Quality assurance in student support in blended learning

Proposals submitted to this track should relate directly to the role of institutional leadership for the strategic implementation of blended learning to meet institutional goals. Blended learning is transforming all aspects of higher education. However, blended learning is also one way that higher education institutions are responding to social change. Proposals for this track should focus on institutional-level blended learning benefits, models, and effective practices. Proposals may also focus on blended learning governance, policy, strategy or programs, and should be supported by examples of practice. Proposals that focus on research, which are strongly encouraged, should include research design, methods, or results.

Examples of topics for this track include:
 

Best Practices

• Sustainable financial models for blended programs
• Scalability strategies in blended programs
• Institutional policies that clearly identify the characteristics of blended learning
• Strategies for the development of fully blended academic programs
• Institutional strategies for improving the quality of blended learning courses
• Marketing and communication strategies regarding blended programs
• Blended programs and offerings designed to reduce the cost of education by providing flexible degree options
• Retention strategies for students in blended programs
• Blended professional programs and offerings for working adults
• Blended programs and offerings to increase enrollment capacity in high-demand general education courses
• Campus initiatives to prepare students to learn online, e.g. assessment of readiness, orientation programs
• Prior learning assessment and competency-based assessment policies for blended programs
• Community building, governance and engagement of blended learners
• Digital literacy and the blended learner

Innovation & Experimentation

• Institutional support for mobile learning initiatives that impact blended learning
• The impact of open educational resources on blended learning initiatives
• Leveraging MOOCs to create blended campus programs
• Institutional partnerships or consortia to deliver blended learning programs

Research & Evaluation

• Lessons learned from blended learning program evaluations
• Toward ubiquity: The future of blended learning programs
• Successful examples of the use of learning analytics to promote student success
• Measuring and/or providing evidence of institutional effectiveness in blended teaching and learning

Proposals submitted to this track should address the many facets of blended teaching and learning with an emphasis on evidence-based pedagogical practice. Proposals should focus on innovations in blended teaching practices that promote learning effectiveness, generalizable concepts, and scalable practices. Submissions must focus on opportunities and challenges specific to blended teaching and learning (versus solely online teaching and learning). Proposals for this track may also include research methods and evaluation of blended learning outcomes. Such proposals should provide innovative approaches and methods for evaluating technology-based blended instruction, such as analytics, survey methods, and institutional data protocols that might be incorporated into summative and formative studies in a wide range of blended learning contexts. Proposals that focus on research, which are strongly encouraged, should include research design, methods, or results.
Examples of topics for this track include:
 

Best Practices

• Pedagogical strategies that enhance learning in blended courses/programs
• Integration of activities across online and face-to-face components of blended courses/programs
• Assessment of student learning outcomes and/or satisfaction in blended teaching and learning environments

Innovation & Experimentation

• Emerging technologies for blended teaching and learning
• Use of open educational resources in blended teaching and learning

Research & Evaluation

• Evidence of impact on the OLC pillars
• Research design (quantitative or qualitative)
• Instrumentation design
• Survey methods
• Institutional methodologies
• Evaluation models
• Learner analytics