Blended learning just might be the best new thing in education. It’s undoubtedly one of the things that got a leg up by the COVID-19 pandemic, and many hope never to return to the old ways.
As a result, educational reforms that are long overdue might be starting right now. The reality of the worldwide social distancing pushed out the fear of the unknown fast. So, blended classrooms seem to be the answer everyone needs.
The good news is:
Both short and long term, combining online content and face-to-face instruction does the trick.
Blended learning statistics show engagement is higher when we use the techniques and methods that keep up with the students’ interests instead of the slow-paced traditional lecture-based approach.
Now:
One of the facts about learning is that 100% of online models aren’t anywhere close to ideal. However, the blended and flipped approach, where remote and in-person teaching is combined, proves to be very successful.
That’s why at Mark in Style, we decided to study the latest stats and shed more light on the matter.
Let’s dive right in.
Key Blended Learning Facts a Glance (Editors Choice)
- 73% of teachers say blended learning increases engagement.
- 60% of teachers notice blended learning improves academic ability.
- 59% of students are more motivated when using blended learning models.
- 82% of students prefer blended teaching to classic teaching environments.
- 30% to 79% of lessons are delivered online in blended learning models.
- 48% of students think interactive polls and quizzes are the most useful online tools.
- 60% of students prefer using separate social media channels for learning and private life.
- 74% of UK teachers were confident about digital teaching at the beginning of the 2020/2021 school year.
- Blended classrooms save around $2,400 per student.
General Blended Learning Statistics
What is blended learning?
Blended learning is a combination of online and face-to-face learning. It is also known as ‘hybrid learning’, ‘technology-mediated instruction’, ‘web-enhanced instruction’, ‘mixed-mode instruction’, or the ‘flipped classroom’.
1. Blended learning combines online and in-person instruction, with online content ranging from 30 to 79%.
(Cambridge Assessment, Springer Link)
Online learning is considered to be anything with over 80% of online content. The blended learning definition by Boelens, Van Laer, De Wever, and Elen (2015) says it is:
earning that happens in an instructional context which is characterised by a deliberate combination of online and classroom-based interventions to instigate and support learning.
It has to be a proper mix of both, though, as just sending prepared lectures to a virtual learning environment platform doesn’t make the programme blended learning.
2. Ideally, 50% to 70% of teaching should be delivered in person.
(Springer Link, Hot Lunch Tray)
Recent definitions of blended learning stress that 30% to 50% of the course material should be delivered through online activities, while 50% to 70% of the teaching should happen face to face.
According to Staker and Horn, there are four models:
- The Rotation Model – students rotate between several ways of learning. Those are online learning, group projects, individual tutoring, and full class instruction.
- The Flex Model – students follow the content online and at their own schedule. Teachers and other adults support and conduct small group activities, projects, and individual exercises.
- The Self-Blend Model – a student chooses to take one or several courses online in addition to other traditional courses they attend.
- The Enriched-Virtual Model – a combination of remote online learning and attending the campus.
3. Up to 73% of teachers have noticed that blended learning increases engagement.
(E-Learning Infographics, EdTech Review)
Students are often bored by the slow pace of traditional learning, which leads to lower engagement. In a study done by the Center for Digital Education, 73% of teachers who use blended learning reported increased engagement.
4. 60% of teachers say academic ability improves with blended learning.
(E-Learning Infographics)
As many as 59% of students show more motivation for learning in this type of education setup.
Around 60% of teachers believe the blended learning models have helped improve their students’ academic ability.
5. Blended learning shows 8% improvement in mastering high school algebra.
(EdTech Review)
Blended learning was a success among high school algebra students, with some performance improvement. The best practice for this type of subject that requires a lot of focus is a combination of two online and three classroom days a week.
6. 62% of participants in blended learning programs have high scores on Advanced Placement tests.
(Method Schools)
It’s easy to see the impact of blended learning on student outcomes through completion rates. Up to 94% of all students engaged in a blended learning programme finished the selected course successfully.
Blended learning success rates on AP tests are also high, as more than six in ten students coming from blended programmes had high scores on Advanced Placement exams.
7. 70% of students say they learn best in blended learning classrooms.
(Macro Connect)
Additionally, up to 82% of students prefer a blended learning environment to a traditional one.
But it’s not only them – the parents want it too.
Check this out:
Over 36% of parents asked that their children have more online classes. Around 48% of high schoolers’ parents say they wish the schools offered more online content.
8. 60% of students like to have designated online communication tools for their courses.
(Macro Connect)
Having specific resources and tools to communicate in a blended learning environment is important to students. The blended learning approach to class communication is one of the factors that influence students’ satisfaction with the programme.
Now:
Schools tend to use existing social media platforms. Still, up to 57% prefer to lead separate school and social lives, and 60% respond better to having a different blended learning platform from the ones they use for entertainment, socialising, and social learning.
Except when it comes to YouTube.
9. 25% of students choose videos as their favourite form of online learning
(Click View)
Video is the preferred way of learning for many young people today, and school material offered through YouTube is rather popular. However, they do have high expectations in this field as they consume a lot of video content on social media and can often create high-level quality content themselves.
Blended learning statistics for 2020 show one-quarter of students think course-related videos are the most useful online learning tool.
What’s more:
Some 48% of students say interactive polls and quizzes are their favourites. Finally, the same percentage of students report practising online questions is their prefered way of learning.
10. 76% of educators think blended learning is beneficial.
(EdTech Review)
Just over three-quarters of teachers think blended learning is good for students and believe in its benefits. As support for these programmes grew, the early predictions were that half of K-12 in the United States might be online by 2019.
11. 85% of educators cite improved personalised learning experience as the reason to turn to blended classrooms.
(EdTech Review)
More than four-fifths of participants in the blended learning research report that the district goal offered a better-personalised learning experience, while 73% report the goal was raising engagement.
K-12 programmes in the US mostly use these three learning models:
- 43% a combination of online and traditional classes
- 43% the flipped classroom model
- 38% the rotation model, where multiple ways of learning are combined with online learning
12. Around five million college students had at least one course online.
(EdTech Review)
Babson Survey Research Group data shows that over five million students took at least one course online back in 2016. Around 75% of all districts in the United States offer one form of blended learning or another at the time.
13. Massive open online courses sometimes have up to 100,000 students.
(EdTech Review)
Aside from classic blended learning courses, there are also open, free, large-scale online courses called MOOCs or ‘massive open online courses’. Some have verified certification, and some colleges accept them for credit. Around 60% of educators think virtual and flipped learning models appeal to students and motivate them more than traditional delivery.
14. MOOC providers doubled the number of visits since March 2020.
(Class Central)
The situation in which education found itself in 2020 opened the door to a new group of people who weren’t previously considering MOOCs. Blended learning statistics reveal that a wave of new visitors flooded MOOC providers’ websites in 2020 and made the plateau they were facing during 2018/19 disappear fast.
For instance, the number of Class Central visitors went up by a whopping 15 million, doubling from the year before.
15. Coursera had 35 million new enrollments from March to the start of August 2020.
(Class Central)
Providers saw incredible growth in online course enrolment. Some 25% to 30% of all users registered for courses as a result of the pandemic. Coursera is the leading online learning provider, with 35 million new enrollments from March to August 2020.
17. The elearning market is expected to grow to $325 billion by 2025.
(Forbes)
Even without the 2020 boost, the elearning market will grow from $107 billion in 2015 to $325 Billion in 2025.
18. Blended learning saves 90% of the energy needed for the classic learning environment.
(Macro Connect, Allied Market Research)
Blended learning is more affordable. Such classrooms save around $2,400 per student on average compared to the traditional models. Up to 90% less energy is needed, and there are 85% fewer CO2 emissions per person.
19. The flipped classroom method increased the graduation rate in one of the worst schools in the US to 90%.
(Wabi-Sabi Learning)
The flipped classroom method is one of the best successful blended learning examples. The students get their instruction or lesson as online content. Then, they work on it in class, with the teacher free to discuss, help one-on-one, or engage in experiments and live demonstrations.
This is huge:
In a 2011 experiment, Clintondale High School in Michigan switched to the flipped classroom method in full. Desperate for reform, being among the worst 5%, it was the only thing left to try.
The results were astonishing, with the failure rate going down from 30% to 10% and the graduation rate shooting up to 90%. College attendance jumped from 63% to 90%, even though 81% of students came from low-income families, and 10% did not have internet access.
Statistics on Technology in the Classroom
20. 80% of teachers have computers in their classroom.
(The Journal)
As many as 95% of teachers used technology in the classroom in 2019.
- 80% of teachers have computers in the classroom.
- 40% have devices for each student.
- 30% have devices for five or fewer students per device.
- 16% report having BYOD classrooms (20% in well-off areas, 13% in less affluent areas).
- 12% said a large portion of students don’t have internet access or a computer at home.
- 60% of teachers use video streaming services in the classroom (YouTube and similar).
- 54% use productivity and presentation tools (Microsoft Office, Google G Suite).
- 13% use social media platforms.
21. Health and wellbeing tools are the least used in the classroom yet are 75% effective.
(The Journal)
The most effective tools, which get the engagement to the highest levels, are strangely the least used ones.
Here’s the breakdown:
- 25% of teachers use health and wellbeing tools, but they are deemed effective by 75% of respondents.
- 25% of teachers use digital creation tools, while it’s considered effective by 73%.
- 29% uses assistive technology, such as text to speech, voice recognition, digital recorders, iPads and tablets, electronic spell checkers, or word prediction. Some 69% rate it as effective, but 24% think it gives an unfair advantage over students who don’t use it.
22. 35% of teachers fear students don’t know how to evaluate online info critically.
(Common Sense Media)
According to blended learning statistics from 2019, one-third of all teachers are concerned that their students don’t have the skills to evaluate the online information they come across critically. Around 26% of teachers believe technology in the classroom is distracting and affects learning negatively.
23. Six out of ten teachers in the US teach digital citizenship skills.
(Common Sense Media)
Digital citizenship, the skills one needs to navigate the virtual world safely and responsibly, is taught in many schools. Six out of ten teachers do this at least once a month.
What’s more:
Around 46% of educators teach about cyberbullying, hate speech, and digital drama, while 44% teach privacy and safety.
Many teachers think teaching digital citizenship skills is helping students stay safe and make ethical decisions online.
- 91% say it is ‘moderately’ effective.
- 52% chose ‘extremely’ or ‘very’ effective as their answer.
- 10% believe it’s ‘slightly’ or ‘not at all’ effective when it comes to making responsible online choices.
24. Only four out of ten teachers think their professional development was enough to support the demands of the technology they use.
(Common Sense Media)
Professional development is one of the critical factors in blended learning success, right alongside basic connectivity. After making sure students have internet access to the needed technology, the first thing is ensuring the teachers know how to use it.
Still, only 40% are confident the skills they acquired through the professional development they had was ‘very’ or ‘extremely’ useful when it comes to supporting the demands of the technology they use. Without a doubt, this contributes to rising levels of teacher stress.
Blended Learning Statistics UK
25. 100% of UK students have some form of internet access.
(Cambridge Assessment)
The success of blended learning methodology largely depends on all students having access to the internet and teachers having the proper training and knowledge to deliver a blended course.
Here’s the deal:
Around 86% of UK households have access to the Internet. But while some 14% don’t, studies going back as far as 2013 have showed that 100% of students have some form of internet access.
Up to 92% of students access the internet from more than one device, which shows that blended learning in the UK is not in danger of being hampered by accessibility issues.
26. Up to 96% of teachers think the use of technology positively impacts participation and learning.
(EdTechnology)
Virtually all UK teachers believe the use of technology positively influences how children learn and participate in school activities. Around 56% noticed that their students are more engaged if the use of technology is involved.
Over 50% of general further education colleges in the UK are a part of the Blended Learning Consortium.
27. The use of technology makes the classroom more fun, 53% of teachers say.
(EdTechnology)
One-third of teachers say the use of technology in teaching makes marking easier. Some 49% acknowledge the impact technology had on their efficiency at planning and delivering lessons.
Next:
54% say they’re able to create better, more exciting lessons through the use of technology. And last but not least, fun.
28. 93% of parents consider technology to be a valuable tool in education.
(EdTechnology)
64% say it’s present and an important part of teaching and learning. But only one in three think schools are ‘doing an excellent job’ when it comes to technology use in the UK education system. At the same time, up to 68% of parents report being able to help with school work more due to technology.
29. 74% of teachers felt confident about digital teaching at the start of the 2020/2021 academic year.
(The Pie News)
Before the 2020 pandemic, very few universities in the United Kingdom had online-oriented teaching. The delivery of courses had to change dramatically fast, and the balance between online and in-person instruction might not be fully reestablished again until 2022.
Now:
Around 49% of lecturers reported feeling confident to teach using digital technology when the lockdowns started, compared to 74% at the beginning of the 2020/2021 academic year. Some 37% report being unclear on teaching plans during 2020/2021, which is worryingly up to 71% for 2021/2022.
Most teachers agree that face-to-face contact is significant when it comes to building interpersonal connections, as building relationships with students is a lot harder online.
30. Only 8.6% of university staff in the UK thought they would be back to face-to-face teaching by January 2021, blended learning statistics confirm.
(Pie News)
Around 70% of staff at UK universities anticipated learning to be mostly online in January 2021, and 19% believed the ratio between face to face and remote learning would be 50:50.
Only 8.6% thought the courses would be back to primarily classroom attendance with a bit of online supplementation. Finally, around 36% expected their campus to be completely open by then.
31. 77% of students believe in-person teaching is still important.
(The Pie News)
Students like the convenience of the online courses, flexibility and time saving, and having content accessible and easy to review at all times.
Still, more than three-quarters acknowledge the importance of physical presence and personal interaction with their teachers. This suggests where we can make improvements after the need for distancing has passed.
Key takeaway:
32. Around 36% of UK students reported not feeling safe to return to classrooms in September 2020.
(Times Higher Education)
According to a National Union of Students survey, over one-third of students reported not feeling safe returning to classrooms at the beginning of the 2020/2021 academic year.
- 36% said they would feel ‘not at all safe’ going back to face to face learning.
- 28% reported feeling ‘somewhat safe’.
- 17% chose ‘fairly safe’ as an answer.
- 7% would feel ‘extremely safe’.
Up to 40% of international students chose ‘not safe at all’ as their answer.
33. 64% of students feel very safe attending university with blended models.
(Times Higher Education)
Most UK universities have been using online learning models since the pandemic broke out.
The same research found that students felt safer when it comes to blended learning. When asked about blended learning in January 2021, only 4% reported feeling unsafe.
34. 59% of UK students expected blended learning in term two of 2020/2021, blended learning statistics reveal.
(Times Higher Education)
Around 47% of UK students expected online classes in 2020/2021, and 59% expected it to turn to a blended learning model by the second term.
Next:
Some 47% expected to go back to the classrooms by term three, and 14% thought they would be taking lessons online.
35. Only 3% of students that chose not to return to studies would change their mind for blended and online learning models.
(Times Higher Education)
For students who wanted to leave university studies, potential online and blended models did not change their opinion much, the study shows.
Three in four students said they would continue their education in the next academic year. Out of those who didn’t, 73% said they wouldn’t change their decision to not return for the next year or defer the start date if the universities introduced online lectures. Around 12% said they were ‘somewhat likely’ to return, and only 3% responded with ‘very likely’.
The Bottom Line
Why are blended learning courses more successful and have better outcomes than the classic learning methods?
The thing is:
Many see this as the result of a better distribution of tasks and find that the effectiveness of blended learning is directly related to the strategic use of classroom time. When you take away the lecture-oriented approach from the classroom and transfer it to online content, either for revision or in preparation, classroom time can be better utilised for activities that improve understanding and retention.
What’s more:
Information retention statistics suggest that problem-based learning in the classroom leads to higher engagement, resulting in better overall performance. The advantages of blended learning are visible not only in science and math but also in art, writing, music and critical thinking.
Key takeaway:
FAQ
Q: How effective is blended learning?
Blended learning has proven to be very effective. Teachers report higher levels of engagement among students and an overall increase in motivation. Even schools that were once ranked the lowest have bounced back upon introducing the flipped classrooms, despite being in historically underperforming and poor neighbourhoods. The failure rates went down, graduation rates went up, and college enrollment jumped to 90% regardless of learners characteristics.
Q: What is the percentage of online content in blended learning?
According to the Sloan Consortium (now the Online Learning Consortium) definition, the percentage of online content in blended learning ranges from 30% to 79%. Terry, Zafonte & Elliott’s 2018 definition states that blended learning does 30%-50% of coursework in other ways than face to face.
Q: How does blended learning affect students?
Blended learning is beneficial for students in many aspects. Teachers report higher engagement and better motivation. Blended learning effectiveness statistics show high scores on test results. Besides, most students prefer the blended model to the traditional one. Parents largely agree and wish schools would offer more online content for their children as they develop additional skills, aside from mastering the course material, such as self-management, goal setting and self-pacing.
Q: What is the goal of blended learning?
The goal of blended learning is to offer students a personalised learning experience, flexibility, and control over the pace and learning style. The objectives of blended learning include providing remote learning opportunities while maximising the benefits of in-person teaching. It leads to a better understanding of content, higher engagement and motivation, and, as blended learning statistics show – higher test scores.
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