by Robin Fenton
December 17, 2021
Every learner learns differently. And in today’s classroom — both virtual and real-time — we are seeing the many ways we facilitate those differences through interactive modules, gamification, 3D training, micro-lessons and more. Technology continues to create new opportunities for content diversity and sophistication, as well as how curricula and lessons are delivered. However, it’s important to remember that a student is a human being, and that person-to-person learning and development offers benefits for comprehension and retention not necessarily achievable through a computer monitor or phone screen.
While we are grateful for the options in e-learning that have erupted over the past two years in response to COVID-19, both e-learning and in-person classrooms have a time and place. Traditional classroom learning provides a more readily accessible platform for interpersonal, social and organizational skills development in collaborative learning toward career building.
A study on active learning in the “Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences” shows that, though students felt as if they learned more through traditional lectures, they actually learned more when taking part in classrooms that employed active-learning strategies. We can define active learning strategies as those that directly involve the student in the learning process through small groups, discussions or hands-on training. Essentially, getting together helps us to learn.
Hands-on and hands-up for immediate learning
Motivation is a crucial component for learners to understand and complete their training. When we gather as a group in the classroom, engagement is automatically built in. Students can absorb lessons on a longer-term basis and with greater comprehension because they are focused on one thing — the instructor.
A major benefit of in-person learning is that we are mostly prohibited from multitasking. Learners are positioned to give their full attention to the lesson at hand. The results are increased engagement and even curiosity, which contributes to the motivation to learn. Now more than ever, students need the type of motivation that being back in the classroom with other learners can provide. According to EAB’s 2020 report on adult learners, many candidates delayed their enrollment plans due to doubts about the quality of remote and online instruction during the pandemic.
The pandemic disrupted plans for all types of learners, from school-age kids to adults seeking continuing education and certifications. A study fromStrada found that “many Americans whose work and education changed because of the pandemic are turning to education to get back on their feet.” Part of the fallout of COVID-19 has been shifts in job availability, which has caused more than one-third of adults to change or cancel their education plans.
Though disrupted, these are resilient learners. Among U.S. adults who experienced a work-related change, 7 percent have enrolled in an education program, and 37 percent said they intend to enroll in an education program within the next six months. The study also reports that “among disrupted learners who said they planned to enroll in an education or training program in the next six months, one in four said they were planning to pursue an employer-based learning option.”
An in-person setting offers a more immediate response to disrupted learners to motivate them in their educational pursuits. An in-person presence also helps to foster the type of curiosity that contributes to student motivation. Before COVID-19 arose, a Brookings Institution study found that learners who participated in in-person classes performed slightly better than those who took a course online.
For adult learners, the classroom experience enables practical, hands-on experience and the opportunity to focus without interruption.
Incorporating interactive technology in classroom learning
Classroom learning doesn’t mean a decreased requirement for technology. In fact, interactive technology offers a hands-on and safe way to learn. And with the emphasis on social distancing expected to continue, organizations can safely return to the classroom and still maintain any requirements for social distancing.
The application of technology is a critical part of the foundation for a hands-on, in-person learning experience supported by teacher-led instruction. Reference materials may be the same between online and in-person course offerings, but what is different is the time to market, in terms of certification and qualification. In-person learning promotes the acquisition of knowledge in a shorter time frame. In addition, adult learners who can access technology fare better — a study by Pennsylvania’s largest community college found that a lack of technology was a major deterrent for retention of adult learners.
At SCTE, we recognize access to technology is crucial for training our industry professionals. For example, our DOCSIS® 3.1 boot camp classroom covers deployment, modem provisioning, cable modem termination system configuration, show commands of CMTS vendor platforms, network maintenance and Proactive Network Maintenance in DOCSIS 3.1, troubleshooting network and plant issues using new DOCSIS 3.1 tools, monitoring and testing approaches. The classroom portion of the class is followed by a third section that includes follow-up activities and digital games emphasizing key points to remember, data input/command examples, implementation and troubleshooting tips, and opportunities to follow-up with the course presenters in threaded discussions and webinars.
SCTE’s L&D experience shows that in 2021, it took an average of a little over four months —129 days — to complete an online class. Many of our students are completing this coursework on their own time and may only have one to two hours a week to devote to the class. For companies interested in accelerating their learning qualifications, an intensive three- to five-day boot camp accomplishes that much more efficiently than self-paced study.
Lessons in ROI with in-person L&D
It’s time for all of us to get back out and speak to people in real life. There will continue to be a time and place for online learning and for in-person learning, and as the learning professionals in our industries, it is our responsibility to facilitate those distinctions.
In-classroom learning can accelerate the deployment of technologies, which is what we’re finding with our Boot Camps since we have reintroduced them as in-person offerings. In our Digital Basics and DOCSIS® Fundamentals course, students get an up-close and personal perspective on the models at work in deploying data over telecommunications networks. They learn the principles of digital signals and data transmission, for a better understanding of data transport protocols over local and Wide Area Networks. in the group setting, learners are able to discuss in real-time the benefits of digital, calculate analog-to-digital-conversion, and examine digital modulation techniques as well as high-speed data over cable networks using various specifications of DOCSIS.
While the investment in an in-person boot camp is admittedly higher in terms of dollars, the ROI on technical acquisition is huge. On average, the lessons of a 40-day online class are condensed into a three-day boot camp, with all of the benefits of comprehension and retention already mentioned.
At a time when companies are pressured to upskill their workforce at a faster pace in order to compete in their markets, more immediate results offer a high-value return. And the numbers back that up. At SCTE, there was an average increase of 14 percent in test scores for understanding, knowledge and comprehension from the start of the boot camp to the final test after the boot camp completes.
What this demonstrates is that being back in the classroom works well for the tactile or kinetic learners who want to advance their careers by working with their hands. The classroom also provides the human touch, which often lacks in technology-based training. The classroom for SCTE is often brought to the customer, within their organization, for a more convenient and immediate experience.
A return to the classroom offers an opportunity to return to our professional communities. That, in itself, is also a benefit in helping the lessons of any course to be retained and understood. Developing the expertise and skills of our members is a daily pursuit at SCTE. But we are also cognizant of our community of members and building the self-confidence and knowledge they need to excel in their professions. And we can do that efficiently and immediately in the classroom. As this international research study noted, “Social belonging involves a sense of interpersonal connectedness.” We can find that sense of belonging more readily in the classroom.
