Objectives

Valorisation objectives
The ultimate goal of the present Strategic Basic Research (SBO) project is to improve the quality of online and blended learning (OBL) in formal adult education (AE) and continuing vocational education and training (CVET). Online and blended learning is increasingly applied in adult education to enhance the accessibility and the flexibility of their education programs. However, the dropout, quality, performance, learning design, and competences of both learners and teachers are key issues that determine the success of online and blended learning. Available international literature provides insufficient evidence-based knowledge to support and improve the quality of online and blended learning in the adult education and vocational training sector. Based on a broad and in-depth consultation with the social stakeholders, the needs, questions and challenges of the stakeholders are analysed and synthesised.

Specifically, the following four valorisation objectives are central to this project:
Quality assurance & monitoring: developing and implementing a quality assurance system to improve the teaching and learning strategies and to ensure a consistent high quality of online and blended education for adult learners; measuring the key predictors and barriers that affect the success of online and blended learning in adult education.
Learning design & learner support: providing a model and specific guidelines for learning (re)design and support for adult learners in online and blended learning environments at both course level and program level.
Teacher professional development: providing training models for professional development of teachers and staff of the adult education centres and other AE and CVET providers.
Policy support: providing recommendations for evidence-based policies for quality assurance, learning design and teacher professional development in adult education and vocational training in Flanders.

In short, the valorisation objectives of the project are to provide a quality assurance framework and monitoring instruments and procedures for online and blended learning in formal adult education and to provide learner and teacher support as well as policy recommendations to improve the quality of online and blended learning in adult education and vocational training.

The central research question of the project is: Which strategies and specific approaches can improve the quality and effectiveness of online and blended learning for formal adult education and CVET?

The main academic objectives of this project include the following aspects:
Institutional quality assurance: a Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) framework is constructed, tested and validated to improve the quality of online and blended learning in adult education;
Learning design at course level: theoretically sound and empirically valid guidelines and instruments are developed, tested, and implemented to support the (re)design of online and blended learning environments at the course level for adult learners;
Learning design at program level: theoretically sound and empirically valid guidelines are developed, tested, and implemented to support the online and blended learning program arrangements;
Monitoring learner characteristics & outcomes: monitoring instruments and tools are developed, validated and applied to assess learner characteristics, other relevant input and process variables, and learning and social outcomes;
Teacher professional development: teacher competences related to integration of online and blended learning are monitored and assessed; teacher professional development models for implementing online and blended learning are developed and validated.