Distance Education in Traditional Classes

The constructivist concept of social negotiation of meaning recognizes peer interaction and feedback as an important factor for expanding meaning. This concept has particular relevance in the context of developing habits of reflective thinking in teacher preparation programs. This article describes an approach to increasing opportunities for peer feedback for preservice teachers in a traditional face-to-face course using a hybrid instructional design that combines distance education teaching methods with traditional instruction. The theoretical base, instructional model, course design, and an overview of student participation from 3 semesters of implementation are presented.