BLENDED CLASSROOM IN ENGLISH WRITING CLASS: A PILOT PROJECT

Abstract: The digital shifts in academic world have been widely used to enhance language learning. This paper describes a pilot project on the adoption of a blended approach, i.e. the physical and virtual classroom approach, in learning writing skill for the second semester university students majoring in English language and literature. The purpose of using the blended learning approach is to increase the participation and understanding of the students in the learning process. In addition, it aims at encouraging students to be more active in discussions which can be quite difficult in large-sized classes. The physical classroom is used, in a traditional manner, e.g. physical interactions between teachers and students. Meanwhile, the virtual classroom is used, among others, to allow a class to have online discussion (with text) (Whitney, 2002), either with the whole class or with smaller groups. It is as well possible to share documents, such as essays or summaries with other students in the virtual classroom. The blended learning method is especially useful for language teacher as well as curriculum designers. Keywords: blended classroom, physical classroom, virtual classroom, writing skil