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Hybrid Courses at Abington
Instructors who wish to teach a course in a hybrid format must have the approval of the division head. Instructor’s should be prepared provide a comprehensive course plan to the division head, with consultation from the office of instructional design to ensure that it meets the Abington College’s requirements for hybrid course offerings.
The requirements for a Hybrid course offering at the Abington College are as follows:
Participation in OL 2000 and/or blended learning workshops which are offered at Abington and by world campus once a semester are highly recommended
All hybrid course offerings must be designated as such on the course schedule by the registrar with the approval of the division head
All hybrid course offerings must adhere to the quality assurance standards (listed below)
(click on the table below for a pdf version)
Blended Learning Definitions
(Penn State Online's approved definitions)
Web-Enhanced Course: A web-enhanced course may be a traditional classroom course that incorporates on-line elements to facilitate communication and discussion and/or to provide students with enhanced content, extend communication, and provide links to other resources. The purpose is to enhance quality within an otherwise traditional environment by promoting communication and interactivity among students and faculty. The number of class sessions does not change. Development of such courses is a responsibility of individual faculty and colleges.
Hybrid Course: A hybrid course is a specific package of online and face-to-face content and processes organized to reduce or replace the number of required class sessions in order to improve effectiveness and flexibility for instructors and students and/or to achieve other efficiencies. Hybrid courses reduce by approximately 40% or more of the number of required classroom sessions, although some classroom sessions are required. Hybrid courses do not lend themselves to participation by students at multiple locations in a single course section, although the hybrid course package may be made available for use by faculty at other campuses. The online elements may be made available to faculty at multiple locations to improve delivery of local courses or to ensure coherence in a curriculum.
On-line Course: An online course is delivered entirely online, with no required classroom sessions. Some courses may require one or more proctored exams. Students may be enrolled in courses offered by a single campus or in courses originated by multiple campuses.
Blended Program: A blended program is one in which students take some courses on-campus and others on-line to complete a degree or certificate program. It allows campus college locations to collaborate with the World Campus or other campuses to offer degree programs that they would not otherwise be able to support.
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Why develop hybrid courses & blended programs?
Click here for further information and research on the benefits of hybrid courses & blended programs
