I have been having a discussion with my collegues in work about the role and future of classroom based training. At Virgin Holidays we have stripped back the amount of classroom based training that we do and replaced it with a virtual classroom which allows us to bring our training to the desks of our people either in head office, in our retail stores or any of our locations around the world.
So my question is, does classroom based training still have a place in todays technology driven world?
Above is an interesting theory which might help you think
I look forward to seeing what other businesses are doing
Thanks
Chris
Replies
There will always be a place for classroom based training - we humans like human contact. Bringing people from different areas in the business creates a dynamic you cannot recreate anywhere else. Something sparks off when people interact face-to-face and it is well worth our while remembering this!
All those Klingons out there ...... keep loving the virtual everything .......
My view is that it is not about 1 particular intervention, it is about a blend. Whilst virtual does suit some scenarios, classroom may be better for others. I think it is not about 'having its day' but more about how it can work with other interventions.
Hi Chris!
I would love to talk to you about this in some more depth when we meet on the 13th as this is an area that I really struggle with.
I agree with Mike in that it definitely has it's place but in no way is it the only solution. It is how I deliver the most but mainly because I am based in the site that most delivery happens. I had to deliver some training this afternoon via video conference which was really hard I would be interested to see how the virtual classroom varies from this and the standard webinar
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My L&D boss told me something interesting today on this subject. When preparing a training program on a new machine that noone in the organization has seen (besides from the R&D of course) it's much quicker to just have the training instructors just learn the machine and then do classroom training than create content like documentation, assessments, virtual sessions, job aids, checklists etc. In essence, it's much faster to do classroom training the old fashioned way than to do a multi-level delivery of learning according to 70-20-10.
Unfortunately it's that much less impactful at the same time... However, this is the reason Classroom training still exist in my opinion.
We use software called Go To Training which is a fully interactive virtual platform which allows us to bring classrooms to peoples computer screens.
A mixture of screen sharing, VOIP, Web cameras and online interactivity has meant our feedback and usage has been brilliant, especially for our people out in store and overseas.
Cost saving has been phenominal also as we save so much on travel expenses and venue hire
We train everything from systems, coaching, recruitment, compliance etc at no detrement to the learners experience
That's useful cheers and great to hear Chris - do you fancy writing a blog sharing some your experiences as it sounds like it's been a great success so far. It might help other people get their foot in the door of virtual classrooms, I'm more than happy to support in anyway.
I'm keen to understand how the design of your learning solutions have changed from being face to face to being virtual and how it affects group dynamics etc.
Here is an interesting link to a McKinsey publication on unlocking productivity using social technologies
Unlocking potential using social technologies
Whilst these tools won't replace the need for the classroom they can certainly provide other options for us to facilitate learning and help being share and learn.
Hi Chris,
Great question! The short answer is yes classroom training does still have a place in today's world but I agree technology is changing the landscape of organisational learning. Classroom approaches should still be used when they are the best option and most suited to the learning need. They should however stop being the DEFAULT approach for L&D teams and individuals who still consider themselves to be trainers.
The modern workplace should provide plenty of opportunities to broaden the skill set and tool set of the L&D dept and L&D should be driving this change themselves. The 702010 framework describes how we learn as much as 90% through informal means so if all L&D focus on is the classroom then we aren't being very effective and really meeting the needs of the people we are there to help.
L&D is a really exciting place to be as we have a great opportunity to challenge thinking around training and more importantly learning. How we bring this to life and demonstrate value using other methods and approaches and move from delivering training to facilitating learning. In most organisations this means changing the culture around learning from "I only learn in a classroom" to "I learn through everything I do". We can help shape this and create the conditions and opportunities for learning to take place and in doing so become more focused on performance and on the job support using technology as an enabler.
Here's a good post by Krystyna Gadd that touches on this
Facilitator or Trainer?
Here is also a great diagram and post by Jane Hart (recommend you to take a look at her social workplace blog), the diagram shows classroom is only a very small proportion on what L&D should be doing to support workplace learning
5 stages of workplace learning
I'd also recommend you join the informal learning group for more discussion on the topic of 702010
What tools do you use for virtual classrooms Chris and what sort of feedback have you had?