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January/February
2003 - Are Your Classes as Successful as They Could Be?
By: Christina
Morfeld (christina@affinitybizcomm.com)
Keywords: Virtual
Classes; Success; Blended Learning; Collaborative Learning
“Blended learning” is the carefully-managed integration
of formal training programs and informal knowledge-enhancing opportunities.
It is becoming an increasingly popular business strategy for two primary
reasons:
- As opposed to traditional training, which tends to be a series of
isolated or unrelated events, a blended approach is self-reinforcing.
Additionally, as an important first step in communicating learning as
a core corporate value, it has the power to improve performance at both
the individual and organizational level.
- Thanks to the Web’s robust collaborative capabilities, face-to-face
gatherings are no longer a prerequisite for knowledge transfer, brainstorming,
and teamwork. This translates into significant cost savings for employers,
particularly those with geographically-dispersed workgroups.
There are many Web-based applications on the market that support synchronous
(“virtual”) meetings and classes. These include Centra, HorizonLive,
and PlaceWare, to name just a few. While several noteworthy differences
(http://www.learningcircuits.org/jun2000/thinclient_grid.pdf)
exist between them, most of their features and functions are quite similar – and
specifically designed to mirror the activities of a traditional classroom.
That being the case, why is learner engagement such a tough challenge for
synchronous trainers? It’s not that the necessary tools and utilities
aren’t available; in fact, they’re built right into the software
we’re using! Instead, it seems that we’re simply not leveraging
them to their fullest extent.
PrimeLearning (http://www.primelearning.com), a leading provider of business
and professional skills eLearning, utilizes Centra for its synchronous events,
and has graciously allowed me to share information included in a virtual class
I designed for them. Its goal was to demonstrate “best practices” for
developing and delivering training via Centra, but the advice – which
focuses on strategy rather than mechanics – applies equally well to
other platforms.
- Strategy #1: Vary the "look and feel" of
the presentation
- Strategy #2: Capitalize on the power of the
questions
- Strategy #3: Take advantage of the system's
interactive capabilities
All links removed on 22 November 2004 by Virgil Varvel as they no longer
functioned. Contact author for more information.
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