Title: About Blended Learning
Course: BAC300: Management Accounting I (PEBL)

Welcome to this unit that is part of your course.  The unit is being offered through blended learning. Blended Learning is a mode of course delivery that involves the Integration of Face to Face and Online Teaching and Learning to help enhance the classroom experience and extend learning through the innovative use of Information and Communication Technology.
The Online Learning component of Blended Learning will comprise both Asynchronous and Synchronous Digital tools to support learning.
Asynchronous tools – asynchronous learning will be undertaken not in real-time.  The use of this tool will enable the students to create, synthesize, explain and apply the content or skills being taught.  The main asynchronous tool that will be used is the Discussion Forum

- Discussion Forum – A discussion board is an asynchronous communication tool in which discussion forums are created for students to post and reply to messages over time.  This forum will enable the students to share information or debate and discuss ideas pertaining to content topics and guided by the facilitators.  The discussions will be organized into forums and threads.
- Quizzes and Assignment- the students will be given online quizzes and assignments. The latter helps identify gaps in learning and understanding of the course content whereas the former will be used as part of the formal assessment (CAT).

Synchronous Tools – these learning tools are real-time – a virtual classroom.  It allows the students to ask questions, seek clarifications on course content and the lecturers answer to questions instantly through instant messaging. The students can easily interact with fellow students and their lecturers during the course.  The synchronous communication tool to be used will be any of the following: The Online Chat, the BigBlueButton or Google Meet for video conferencing.
Online learning through the use of asynchronous and synchronous tools will offer you the following opportunities.

1. Live events – learner participation in the ‘virtual classroom’ through the synchronous instructor-led learning activities.
2. Online Content – learning experiences that the learner completes at their own pace, schedule, and time by engaging with interactive course modules.
3. Collaboration – opportunities for the Virtual and Open Learning students to communicate with fellow students through threaded discussions and online chat.
4. Assessment – Assessment of learners understanding of course content through quizzes and assignments
5. Reference Materials – accessibility to open Education Resources and other materials that enhance learning retention and understanding.

To Note:
You will be required to participate fully in the online class for you to earn online points. Your progress online will be monitored through the following:

- A timestamp tool – This tool shows the number of minutes or hours that all participants were active in a unit
- Course completion – through a completion progress bar, the tool tracks if activities in a course have been attempted and/or completed and give the percentage of the progress
- Ranking and level up – Assigns points to each activity or event done in the system. It totals the points ranking students on a leaderboard