AbstractFrom the new millennium to the present, colleges and universities have experienced
increased pressure by government-funded agencies, academic administrators,
and the technology industry to integrate technology into higher education
for the purpose of reducing instructional costs. On the surface, the concept of
blended learning (BL) may appear apparent, but actual application is complex,
particularly for large multiple section foreign language (FL) elementary and intermediate
university-level programs. Few published accounts exist that examine
issues of curriculum and pedagogy as these play out in BL instruction in this context.
This chapter documents the evolution of BL up to the present time, surveys
past and present BL programs across the nation, considers the discourse present
in disseminating information about them, and gleans characteristics of the
programs based on the available public and published documents. In an effort to
move beyond the current discourse used to describe BL instruction in this context
and as a way to reflect on curricular and pedagogical issues, we examine the variables,
processes, and considerations that go into redesigning a large multisection
Spanish course at this level. Our purpose is not to provide a model for curricular
and pedagogical decision making in BL instruction for elementary or intermediate
FL programs but to reflect on the unique contexts in which curricular and
pedagogical issues are considered. Without curricular planning and careful consideration
of pedagogies, we cannot adjudicate whether and how BL instruction
should or can be judged positively. Without reflection on the various contexts and
pedagogies, programs will be reacting to outer circumstances rather than reflecting
deeply on issues pertaining to adult instructed language learning.
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