Development and validation of a tool to explore the perspectives of the health sciences faculty towards blended learning

Background: Faculty members' perceptions of blended learning are critical to developing effective strategies to improve its quality and prepare for its implementation under the new normal conditions. This study introduces a new FBL scale to address this issue, as no exclusive tool focuses on health sciences faculty members. Materials and methods: The development and psychometric evaluation of the FBL scale was chosen as the study design. Two hundred and forty faculty members employed in selected health science colleges of Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University in Saudi Arabia were randomly selected and administered the FBL tool. The tool consists of 25 items with four subscales that measure faculty’ perceptions of convenience, engagement in blended learning, satisfaction, and student learning progress on a five-point Likert scale. Reliability was examined using Cronbach alpha reliability and validity was determined using confirmatory factor analysis. Results: The FBL tool has a Cronbach alpha coefficient of 0.867. Structural equation modeling analysis revealed that each item had a significant positive relationship with its respective FBL factor. Conclusion: This study provides a 25-item FBL tool with four subscales consisting of CBL, EBL, SBL and PB, which is well suited to assess faculty members' views on blended learning specifically in the Saudi Arabian context under the new normal conditions. These factors enable policymakers to assess faculty members' perceptions of blended learning and develop appropriate strategies that improve the overall quality of education through the effective use of technology.