This study explores blended learning in a Spanish for Specific purposes course. In this study learners preferred face-to-face sessions over independent online sessions. Learners seemed to be better able to take control and make sense of the learning materials after interacting with a more experienced other.
Out-of-class learning is often associated with autonomy in language learning as learners are encouraged to engage with the second/foreign language (L2) independently. This paper reports on an experience delivering a Spanish for Specific purposes course for the aviation industry in the English-speaking Caribbean. From the perspective of complexity (Larsern-Freeman, 2011) the paper describes an L2 teaching implementation that catered to the linguistic needs of a corporate client who approached a language centre seeking a Spanish course for 293 of its employees to be delivered in a blended mode. The data featured in this case study are derived from teachers’ field notes, in-depth interviews with both teachers and learners, and student evaluations. This study investigates blended learning in a Spanish for Specific purposes course in the corporate sector. Given the client’s request, a blended course was designed and implemented to cater to employees-learners’ schedules and to offer a flexible learning experience. The course had a total of 45 contact hours, 30 hours face-to-face with a tutor in-situ, and 15 hours of independent learning on an e-learning platform. Preliminary findings suggest that learners in this study tended to prefer face-to-face sessions with the tutors over learning independently on the e-learning platform. Learners reported being able to better engage with the online activities and explanations after having interacted with the tutors in class. Face-to-face interactions with tutors mediated learners’ relationship with the online content. As such, learners seemed to be better able to take control and make sense of the learning materials only after interacting with a more experienced other. Reference Larsen-Freeman, D. (2011). A Complexity Theory Approach to Second Language Development/Acquisition. In D. Atkinson (Ed.), Alternative Approaches to Second Language Acquisition, (pp. 48-72). New York, NY: Routledge.
