As society moves further into the 21st Century, digital learning and teaching using technology continues to increase. Students are becoming digitally literate and technologically-savvy. Blended learning is approximately 60-70% face to face and about 30-40% online (Karam, et al., 2017). According to Melton, Graf, and Chopak-Foss (2009), blended learning is mixture of traditional classroom instruction and online learning. There is debate on whether or not blended learning pedagogy is more effective than traditional, non-technology teaching methods. In a 2017 study by Luna and Winters that compared blended learning classrooms with lecture classes, the blended learning classes had a significantly greater improvement overall from pretest to posttest.
The purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of blended learning on student achievement in a high school social studies class. Specifically, this study is testing the use of the learning management system Canvas as the main tool in blended learning. In addition, the study is investigating whether student time spent on Canvas correlated with students’ posttest scores, and it is surveying student attitudes toward using technology in the classroom. The results of this study will add to existing studies on comparing blended learning pedagogy with traditional, lecture based teaching using minimal technology.