"We Had a Blast!": An Empirical Affirmation of Blended Learning as the Preferred Learning Mode for Adult Learners

AsmanyimportantissuespertainingtoblendedlearningwithintheSub-SaharanAfricancontext remainunexplored,thisstudyimplementedablendedlearningapproachinagraduatelevelcourse ataprivateuniversityinGhana,withtheobjectiveofexploringadultlearners’attitudes,experiences andbehaviorstowardsthislearningapproach,aswellastheirperceptionstowardsblendedlearning ingeneral.Forty-eightgraduatestudentsparticipatedinthestudyastheyengagedinasix-weeklong blendedlearningcourse.Qualitativeresearchmethodswereusedtogatherdatawhichwereanalysed usinggroundedtheorycodingtechniques,descriptivestatisticsandcontentanalysis.Findingsreveal highlevelsofstudentengagementandsatisfactionwiththelearningprocesses,andanoverwhelming endorsementofblendedlearningasapreferredmodeoflearning.Implicationsofthesefindingsfor furtherresearchandpracticearediscussedwithinthecontextoftechnologyadoptionanduseinthe GhanaianandSub-SaharanAfricanhighereducationcontexts. KEyWoRdS Adult Learners, Blended Learning, Exploratory Research, Ghana, Grounded Theory, Higher Education, Learner Behavior, Learner Perceptions, Learning Management System, Web Server Log Analysis INTRodUCTIoN & PURPoSE BlendedorHybridLearningisanapproachtolearningwhereInternettechnologiesarestrategically integratedintoface-to-facelearningactivitiessoastofacilitatestudentlearningandthusachieve learningobjectives(Graham,2006).Allen&Seaman(2013),however,pointoutthatacoursecan becategorizedasblendedif30-79%oftheproportionofcoursecontentisdeliveredviatheInternet. Duetoitsexponentialgrowthoverthepastdecadefollowingtheincreasedadoptionofeducational technologiesbyinstitutionsworldwide,blendedlearningisnowbeingdescribedasthe“newnormal’ inhighereducation(Norberg,Dziuban,&Moskal,2011), Thisincreasinguptakeofblendedlearningisnotsurprising,giventhatitisamodeofteachingthat integratestheinformation-accessmethodsofaweb-basedenvironmentwiththesocialaspectoffaceto-faceenvironment(Delialioglu&Yildirim,2007),andthuseliminatestime,place,andsituational barriers,whilstfacilitatingqualityinteractionsbetweenteachersandstudents(Kanuka,Brooks,& Saranchuck,2009).Blendedlearningalsohasthepotentialofassistinghighereducationinstructors totransformpredominantlyteacher-centeredinstructionalstrategiestolearner-centeredapproaches (Barr&Tagg,1995).Furthermore,pressure isbeingexertedonhigher education institutions to educatemorestudentswithfewerresources(Lack,2013),andblendedlearningisknowntobeone suchcost-effectivestrategy(Lothridge,Fox,&Fynan,2013;Maloneyetal.,2015).