In the article “HyFlex: Teaching and Learning in a Hybrid and Flexible Way in Higher Education”, published in RIED – Revista Iberoamericana de Educación a Distancia, Manuel Area-Moreira, Anabel Bethencourt-Aguilar, and Sebastián Martín-Gómez examine an educational innovation initiative implemented over three academic years at the University of La Laguna.
The authors propose an alternative interpretation of the HyFlex model that goes beyond simply allowing students to choose between attending classes in person or participating online. Their approach combines face-to-face sessions with autonomous learning in an asynchronous virtual environment and, most importantly, gives each student the opportunity to choose between different learning pathways according to their preferences and needs.
The initiative was implemented in the ICT in Education course within the Bachelor's Degree in Primary Education, offering two learning pathways: collaborative project-based learning and individual learning organized around study topics. Both pathways covered the same content and competencies but differed in their activities and learning strategies.
Approximately 40% of the course time was devoted to face-to-face sessions and 60% to autonomous work in the virtual learning environment. Based on questionnaires completed by 136 students and an analysis of the grades of 320 students, the researchers reported highly positive results: more than 90% of students expressed satisfaction with the experience, and a similar proportion passed the course. Students particularly valued the autonomy, flexibility, practical nature of the activities, and personalized guidance provided by their instructors.
The study shows that hybrid education can be more than simply combining face-to-face instruction with technology: it offers an opportunity to transform teaching methodologies and place students at the center of their own learning. The experience also demonstrated its adaptability during the pandemic, facilitating the transition to fully online education.
Although the study's descriptive nature and its implementation in a single course limit the generalizability of the findings, it provides a practical reference for promoting more flexible, active, and personalized models of university education. Its main contribution is the argument that genuine educational flexibility is not merely about choosing where to learn, but also about having a say in how to learn, provided that the necessary institutional conditions and teaching competencies are in place.
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How to Cite: Area Moreira, M., Bethencourt-Aguilar, A., & Martín-Gómez, S. (2023). HyFlex: Teaching and Learning in a Hybrid and Flexible Way in Higher Education. RIED-Revista Iberoamericana de Educación a Distancia, 26(1), 141–161. https://doi.org/10.5944/ried.26.1.34023
