Chapter - II

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

2.0 Introduction

The purpose of a literature review is to place each work in the context of its

contribution to understanding the research problem being studied and describe the

relationship of each work to the others under consideration. There is considerable

literature available on hybrid technology in accessing the learning content online as

well as face-to-face interaction. Appropriate use of ICT in school education is

considered a key factor in improving quality at this educational level. Integrating

ICT tools enhances the quality of in-service trainings and to minimize the time

duration and cost effective. This research focuses on the development of appropriate

strategies to enhance the quality of in-service training in terms of develop hybrid

model and evaluate the outcome of this model. Proposed model includes sequential

steps emphasizes the meta-learning of the participants and ensures the active

participation and follow up process.

2.1 Studies Conducted In Foreign

According to McFarlin (2008), the definition of hybrid is a course that

combines “face-to-face classroom instruction with educational technologies often

using online devices. A significant amount of learning in a hybrid course occurs

online” (p. 86). In this definition, as is the case with most definitions of hybrid

learning, there is no mention as to what percentage of the class should take place
online versus in the classroom. Therefore, variations in time allocations could have a

significant impact on student achievement in a hybrid course.

Charalambous, Kyriacos & Karagiorgi, Yiasemina. (2002). In-service

education and training (INSET) is considered a crucial issue for the implementation

and institutionalisation of new information and communication technologies (ICT)

in educational systems worldwide. A pilot programme for ICT implementation has

been running since 1994 in a number of Cypriot primary schools. The provision of

INSET in relation to this particular programme appears problematic. Therefore, two

studies were independently conducted in 1996 and 1998 to highlight teachers'

training background and needs. This indicate that the majority of teachers are shown

to lack an ICT training background while the approach to training appears

piecemeal, focused mostly on off-site training and oriented towards the acquisition

of basic computer skills. However, teachers report that they prefer school-based

courses, as well as courses that focus on the pedagogical dimension of ICT

integration. Based on the outcomes, a national plan for teacher training in ICT is

proposed, focusing on coherence, availability, efficiency and diversification

Kyriacos Charalambous & Yiasemina Karagiorgi (2002) have reported that

the responsibility of the decision-making centres to make sure that sufficient in-

service training is provided on a systematic basis to meet teachers’ needs and

expectations; however, to move to a real integration of computers into practice, there

is a need for inclusion of special pedagogical/instructional aspects in teacher

training.
 Liou et al. (2003) incorporated listening, speaking, reading, writing, and

translation language activities to construct a computational learning scaffold. In the

hybrid e-learning model used in this study, the process approach was used, combined

with media-rich illustrations to provide scaffolding for learning a specific body of

knowledge.

Ijab et al., (2004) highlighted the first hybrid e-learning model course of

electronic commerce was developed at a university in Malaysia. He also described

the importance of integrating heterogeneous e-learning systems, and proposed a

framework for an e-learning system characterized by an integrated platform. In our

hybrid e-learning model an integrated platform to fit the application was also

proposed.

Linn, Davis, and Bell (2004) were described that the providing learners with

support, guidance, and assistance, that then helps them complete the task

independently in order to improve their ability is termed scaffolding learning. They

also described how scaffolded knowledge integration could be used in network

learning, mutual discussion online, and for expression of learner thought.

Brewer and Klein (2006) and Dewiyanti et al. (2007) described the benefits in

an asynchronous collaborated learning environment; and in the hybrid e-learning

model used in this study an online workshop environment was built to facilitate

students’ collaborative learning.

Vengroff and Bourbeau (2006) compared achievement and participation of

students taking an introductory comparative politics class in the traditional format,

completely online, and through a hybrid class. The online and hybrid courses

utilized the same materials as the traditional format for consistency, with the online
and hybrid courses were implemented via an online platform. Student performance

was measured with examinations, short research papers, and discussions (online and

in class.) The results indicate exams between online and traditional formats were not

significantly different, but that traditional students did considerably better on the

research papers than online students. However, students in the hybrid classes did

significantly better on both examinations and research papers. It should be noted

that the hybrid classes consisted of honor students, which potentially skewed the

results. However, the authors indicated that subsequent testing of hybrid classes

with regular students yielded similar results. The traditional classes in this

investigation, unlike traditional courses in other studies, had access to online

materials to complement the lectures.

Oh & Park, (2009) One relatively new method of instruction at the tertiary

level that helps to minimize the advantages of a pure online environment is the

hybrid, also known as blended, online learning. Hybrid instruction is an educational

approach that combines traditional classroom instruction and online instruction. It

was initially designed to ease students into the online transition and overcome

anxieties related to the online learning environment. In a hybrid classroom,

instructors utilize technologies, specifically online instructional components, to

replace and augment portions of classroom instruction. One of the biggest

drawbacks is a lack of personal interactions and face-to-face communication that

exists in a traditional classroom. In one study, students enrolled in an online course

noted that with the elimination of face-to-face time with their teacher and peers, it

was posited learning usually gained from assimilating information and interacting

with other students and faculty was somehow appeared.

 Sun, Joy, and Griffiths (2007) presented a new approach to the incorporation

of learning style theory in developing an adaptive e-learning system in which the

adaptation into education systems was improved. Following this approach, in the

hybrid e-learning model developed in this study, adaptive e-learning was realized

by providing customized e-learning content, tailored to learners’ individual learning

styles.

In a related study, Collopy and Arnold (2009) examined student learning in a

hybrid and completely online format for teacher education students. Surveys were

administered to determine how well the students learned the content and to

determine their overall satisfactions with the course. The results illustrated that

participants showed an increase in learning in both hybrid classes as compared to

the completely online class. In addition, although the two hybrid classes varied in

the amount of traditional class time, they reported similar levels of content learned,

which emphasizes the importance of the classroom experience.

Ghavifekr, Afshari & Amla Salleh, (2012) stated that in this 21st century, the

term “technology” is an important issue in many fields including education. This is

because technology has become the knowledge transfer highway in most countries.

Technology integration nowadays has gone through innovations and transformed

our societies that has totally changed the way people think, work and live . As part

of this, schools and other educational institutions which are supposed to prepare

students to live in “a knowledge society” need to consider ICT integration in their

curriculum.
 Arnseth & Hatlevik, (2012) argued that the Integration of Information,

Communication, and Technology (ICT) in education refers to the use of computer-

based communication that incorporates into daily classroom instructional process. In

conjunction with preparing students for the current digital era, teachers are seen as

the key players in using ICT in their daily classrooms. This is due to the capability of

ICT in providing dynamic and proactive teaching-learning environment. While, the

aim of ICT integration is to improve and increase the quality, accessibility and cost-

efficiency of the delivery of instruction to students, it also refers to benefits from

networking the learning communities to face the challenges of current globalization.

Process of adoption of ICT is not a single step, but it is ongoing and continuous steps

that fully support teaching and learning and information resources.

Garnham & Kaleta, (2012) acknowledged the advantages to hybrid

instruction include student and instructor convenience, increased participation,

flexibility, decrease in dropouts, and minimized costs. Hybrid instruction is being

used as a tool to effectively teach content material to students with varying learning

disabilities and preferences. Potential challenges for hybrid instruction include

training instructors to teach hybrid courses, allowing appropriate preparation time

to modify their course, and training students in the new format. In addition, the

success of hybrid courses depends on the perceptions of students and faculty

towards this design. Since the emergence of online education, studies have been

conducted on the impact of this form of education with regard to student

achievement. The studies illustrate that students in an online setting performed

equally as well.
 A. Masson, Á. MacNeill, C. Murphy and V. Ross (2008) The Hybrid

Learning Model is an interactional model that encapsulates teaching and learning.

The effectiveness of this Model in articulating, reflecting on, designing, evaluating

and sharing academic practice is investigated. Findings on the Model’s suitability in

influencing learner centred practice, enhancing the learning and teaching experience

and assisting students to adapt to new learning situations are reported.

William Young, Linda Allen, and Kimberly Warfield (2016) stated that

academic ramifications for such a transition in instructional delivery must be well

thought out and careful consideration must be given. Defining instructor roles and

adjusting instructional focus in order to adequately utilize the technology available

to them takes patience, preparation, and education; none of which are quick or easy

habits to transform.

Poveda, Jorge & Benosman, Mouhacine & Teel, Andrew. (2017). This survey

paper studies deterministic control systems that integrate three of the most active

research areas during the last years: (1) online learning control systems, (2)

distributed control of networked multiagent systems, and (3) hybrid dynamical

systems (HDSs). The interest for these types of systems has been motivated mainly

by two reasons: First, the development of cheap massive computational power and

advanced communication technologies, which allows to carry out large

computations in complex networked systems, and second, the recent development

of a comprehensive theory for HDSs that allows to integrate continuous‐time

dynamical systems and discrete‐time dynamical systems in a unified manner, thus

providing a unifying modeling language for complex learning‐based control

systems. In this paper, we aim to give a comprehensive survey of the current state of

the art in the area of online learning control in multiagent systems, presenting an

overview of the different types of problems that can be addressed, as well as the

most representative control architectures found in the literature. These control

architectures are modeled as HDSs, which include as special subsets continuous‐

time dynamical systems and discrete‐time dynamical systems. We highlight the

different advantages and limitations of the existing results as well as some

interesting potential future directions and open problems.

Morrow, Donna & Bagnall, Richard. (2010). One approach to hybrid learning

is to hybridize online learning through recognizing and including external

interactivity. This chapter examines that possibility. After reviewing the nature of

interactivity and individual learner experience in online learning communities, it

presents a recent study of interactivity in online professional development learning

by practising teachers. From that study emerges the importance and scope of

external interactivity between the learner and his or her local community of

colleagues, friends, and family in a learning community beyond the traditional

online class. Building on that case study, and indications from the literature that its

implications may be generalizable, the chapter suggests ways in which external

interactivity can be recognized and included in the online learning environment - as

a way of hybridizing on-line learning through its inclusion of learners' interactive

engagements in the external learning communities that they bring to their studies.
 Berry, Sharla. (2018). In this qualitative case study, the researcher draws on

interviews with 13 faculty in an online doctoral program to find out how

professional development offerings strengthened distance instructors’ technical,

pedagogical and content knowledge. Findings suggest that guided practice sessions

in the virtual classroom strengthened newer faculty members’ technical knowledge.

Biweekly meetings turned into a community of practice where newer and more

experienced faculty could build content knowledge. Faculty in the distance program

desired more professional development in the area of online pedagogy.

Lee, Gordon & Fong, Wilfred & Gordon, Jennifer. (2013) have been many

attempts to define blended learning or hybrid learning. The purpose of this article is

to present the views of the authors on defining the concepts of blended learning

based on the perspectives of instructors, students, and administrators. Depending on

the perspective model used, there can be implications on budgetary and support

issues to institutions. Developing successful blended learning programs requires a

sound institutional strategic plan. Best practices will be presented as reference for

instructors to plan and implement a successful blended learning program.

Biddix, J. & Chung, Chung & Park, Han. (2014). College students

progressively come to campus with mobile devices and increasingly use them for

academic work. We propose that student appropriation of mobile technology

transforms classrooms, regardless of structural format, into online environments

where students engage, network, and re-structure in-class learning. Such activities

may be facilitated by faculty and intentional interventions, but is principally driven

and organically defined by students. This study represents a first step in identifying

and understanding this trend, we refer to as a hybrid shift, in which student use of
mobile technology restructures traditional face-to-face classes by adding a vibrant,

and organic, supplemental learning component. Data informing this research were

drawn from qualitative responses from 620 students in Korea and the U.S. Findings

from textual analysis evidence student appropriation of technology for academic

purposes, their desire for more supportive structures and instructional practices, as

well as teaching and learning implications stemming from this practice. While

further research into this occurrence is needed, this study was intended as a

preliminary step at identifying the phenomenon to frame and guide continued work.

2.2 Studies Conducted In India

Sambamurthy, V. & Bharadwaj, Anandhi & Grover, Varun. (2003). Studied

that the agility is vital to the innovation and competitive performance of firms in

contemporary business environments. Firms are increasingly relying on information

technologies, including process, knowledge, and communication technologies, to

enhance their agility. The purpose of this paper is to broaden understanding about

the strategic role of IT by examining the nomological network of influences through

which IT impacts firm performance. By drawing upon recent thinking in the

strategy, entrepreneurship, and IT management literatures, this paper uses a

multitheoretic lens to argue that information technology investments and

capabilities influence firm performance through three significant organizational

capabilities (agility, digital options, and entrepreneurial alertness) and strategic

processes (capability-building, entrepreneurial action, and co-evolutionary

adaptation). We also propose that these dynamic capabilities and strategic processes

impact the ability of firms to launch many and varied competitive actions and that,
in turn, these competitive actions are a significant antecedent of firm performance.

Through our theorizing, we draw attention to a significant and reframed role of IT as

a digital options generator in contemporary firms.

Bharadwaj, (2003) studied the hybrid environment in higher education, a

learning service center with a hybrid learning system for improving management

performance in businesses was set up by the Chamber of Commerce.

Agrawal, Vipin & Agrawal, Vijay & Taylor, A & Chau, Ngan. (2019).

Studied the benefits claimed by cloud service providers, many organizations are still

uncertain about the implementation of cloud computing. The purpose of this study

is to gain a better understanding of the factors that are important to the usage

adoption decision of this information technology delivery model and the

implications for organizations in the United States. Decision makers were surveyed

to discover which attributes were important in their determination of cloud

computing utilization. Using a sample of executives from manufacturing and service

sectors in the United States multiple factors contributing to the recent growth in

cloud computing have been identified using factor analysis. Four factors emerged

from the data analysis include extrinsic motivation, intrinsic motivation, perceived

risks, and resource constraint.

Siddiqui, Khan, & Akhtar, (2008). Simulation-based educational products are

excellent set of illustrative tools that proffer features like visualization of the

dynamic behavior of a real system, etc. Such products have great efficacy in

education and are known to be one of the first-rate student centered learning

methodologies. These products allow students to practice skills such as critical

thinking and decision-making. In this paper, a case is presented where a scenario-

based e-learning product namely ‘supply chain simulator’ is developed at KFUPM

for an introductory technology course. The product simulates a supply chain – a

network of facilities and distribution systems that carries out the task of

procurement and transformation of materials from manufacturer to customer. The

product was put to test during four semesters and results of the survey conducted

by the instructors and the students are presented. The results clearly suggest the

benefits of using such a tool in enhancing student learning.

Nidumolu, Ram & Subramani, Mani & Aldrich, Alan. (2001). Knowledge is

now recognized as an important basis for competitive advantage and many firms are

beginning to establish initiatives to leverage and manage organizational knowledge.

These include efforts to codify knowledge in repositories as well as efforts to link

individuals using information technologies to overcome geographic and temporal

barriers to accessing knowledge and expertise. We suggest that Knowledge

Management (KM) efforts, to be successful, need to be sensitive to features of the

context of generation, location, and application of knowledge. To this end, we

highlight the situated organizational learning perspective that views knowledge as

embedded in individuals, in connections between individuals, and in artifacts as a

useful lens to examine phenomena related to the establishment of KM initiatives. In

an ethnographic case study of an effort to change knowledge-work processes in a

market research firm, we apply the situated knowledge perspective to highlight the

factors responsible for the limited success of the initiative in the firm. This study

suggested that scenario learning was not easily applied to the digitalized transfer of

knowledge. Therefore, we used only a few basic scenario-based lessons in our

hybrid e-learning model, to reduce

the cost and time involved in the production process.

2.3 Studies Conducted In Tamil Nadu

Gopu, Magesh & Muthuswamy, P. & Singh, Brijendra. (2015). The main

objective of this paper is to investigate the use of information technology among the

school students in Tamil Nadu education system, their interest in computer science

subject and their perception on computer science careers. The students are the future

of our world. The use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) tools

and advance technologies can play a vital role in order to shape their academic

career. In this paper, we discuss the various Information Technology (IT) tools that

have been adopted by the students for their learning purposes. This paper

investigates the attitude of students towards computer science and related career

choices, their knowledge in computer science and source of motivation towards

computer science. Positive attitude has been found among students in use of IT

tools. Students have a good knowledge and awareness towards computers and the

source of motivation depends on their interest.

Nagamani, Deepa & Muthuswamy, Prema. (2013). Studied the secondary

school teachers' abilities to use Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in

schools in Tamil Nadu, India. Questionnaires method was used for data collection.

Around 200 questionnaires were distributed to secondary school teachers and

headmasters, in which 157 were completed and returned. Descriptive statistics

principles with SPSS software were used for the analysis of the data. The study

reports that use of computer and internet exist between the teachers of different age

groups and various backgrounds. There were evidence of significant difference in

the use of information and communication technology between teachers in different

age group and location. The analysis also reports that there was no significant

difference in the use of ICT by the gender. Thus, the overall finding of the study

reports that teachers are moderately using ICT for professional purposes.

Vijaya, Ram. (2016). Described from the study that almost all the private

schools are having Information and Communication Technology (ICT) facilities and

using interactive smart boards and other modern technological advancements in

their schools. Since it is the digital world and the children of present day are called

‘digital natives’ is very important to provide the ICT facilities to the poor children

who are having educational option none other than the Government schools which

offer cheap education to them. The Central and State Governments are taking

Himalayan efforts to provide ICT infrastructure to schools. This paper tries to

identify the status of ICT facilities and the gaps to be filled in terms of number of

schools and computers.

2.4 Conclusion

Reviewing the related literature requires the researcher to make in-depth

readings of both the research and conceptual literature and pertains to published

reports of actual research studies done previously. The above cited studies paves

researcher to drive out the indeed outcome of the present research.