Emanant themes of blended learning in K-12 educational environments: Lessons from the Every Student Succeeds Act

Abstract

Blended learning (BL) is an instructional design structure that facilitates the benefits of technology, paired with face-to-face instruction, to address the variance in student learning. BL has been widely utilized in education with the rapid development of technology. While the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA, 2015) of the United States emphasizes supporting states to implement BL by facilitating the use of technology, it is unclear how states intend to operationalize BL in practice based on the federal statute. Therefore, this study investigated how many states referenced BL and how they operationalized BL in state ESSA plans by using thematic analysis. Results suggested a total of 17 states addressed BL in their finalized state ESSA plans. While these states referenced BL in various titles and parts, the researchers identified three major themes that operationalize BL, including (a) BL leveraging technology to support learning, (b) BL in professional development, and (c) BL as an alternative pathway. In the discussion, the researchers noted the ambiguity of the definition of BL among stakeholders (e.g., states) as well as the possibility of the use of BL towards enabling personalized learning in K-12. The researchers also discussed how to empower educators in the context of BL.