Until recently, “blended learning” described all teaching/learning concepts that provide a didactically meaningful combination of classroom events and virtual learning based on new information and communication media.

The Leibniz-Institut für Wissensmedien (IWM) offers the following definition on its portal, www.e-teaching.org:

“All teaching scenarios that do not exclusively take place face to face or online may be deemed blended learning or hybrid learning; i.e. a combination of virtual and non-virtual teaching settings and methods”.¹

As pandemic times prevent or severely restrict the possibility of classroom teaching, we understand blended learning as a didactically meaningful combination of:

• synchronous² “in-person” classes in a virtual or physical classroom (or in a hybrid classroom; i.e. some students in a physical classroom with a live webcast for those not present)
• with independent asynchronous³ learning based on new information and communication media.

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¹ Source: www.e-teaching.org, 15 June 2020
² Synchronous: sharing a physical, hybrid or virtual location at the same time
³ Asynchronous: not dependent on time or location