Principles of Blended Learning: Shared Metacognition and Communities of Inquiry

A necessary framework for blended learning in the post-pandemic classroom.

The rapid migration to remote instruction during the Covid-19 pandemic has expedited the need for more research, expertise, and practical guidelines for online and blended learning. A theoretical grounding of approaches and practices is imperative to support blended learning and sustain change across multiple levels in education organizations, from leadership to classroom. Principles of Blended Learning is a valuable framework that regards higher education as both a collaborative and individually constructed learning experience. The framework considers the interdependent elements of social, cognitive, and teaching presence to create a meaningful learning experience. In this volume, the authors further explore and refine the blended learning principles presented in their first book, Teaching in Blended Learning Environments: Creating and Sustaining Communities of Inquiry, with an added focus on designing, facilitating, and directing collaborative blended learning environments by emphasizing the concept of shared metacognition.

Norman D. Vaughan is a professor in the Department of Education at Mount Royal University. He is co-author of Teaching in Blended Learning Environments: Creating and Sustaining Communities of Inquiry, and Blended Learning in Higher Education. In addition, he is the co-founder of the Blended Online Design Network, a founding member of the Community of Inquiry Research Group, and the associate editor of the International Journal of Mobile and Blended Learning. 

Deborah Dell completed her Doctor of Education in Distance Education at Athabasca University. Debra is a long-time distance education learner and facilitator. 

Martha Cleveland-Innes is professor of Open, Digital, and Distance Education at Athabasca University. She is editor-in-chief of the bilingual Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology, and co-author of open-source publications The Guide to Blended Learning and Participant Experience in an Inquiry-Based Massive Open Online Course. She is currently visiting professor of Pedagogy at Mid-Sweden University. 

D. Randy Garrison is professor emeritus at the University of Calgary.