Focus on blended learning, the perfect blend of technology and teaching methods
Collaborative learning, social learning, microlearning... in the large family of training, we now demand blended learning.
Behind this " hybrid learning " lies a combination of online and face-to-face training methods, enabling learners to benefit from the advantages of each method. It's a promise of flexibility that's more than welcome in an ever-changing professional world!
But what is the reality behind blended learning? What are the main benefits? And how can you implement blended learning in your company, and using which tools?
Welcome to this masterclass. 🧑🏫
Blended learning: definition
What is blended learning?
Blendedlearning is defined as a training method that combines :
- face-to-face training, with lessons given in a classroom ;
- distance learning such as e-learning, i.e. via an online platform.
Blended learning therefore takes on many faces, since it is up to each educational designer to decide on the scheme, the 'mix' that suits them best, with the most appropriate face-to-face/distance ratio according to their objectives and target audience.
It is therefore a format that appeals to many organisations, as training courses become more accessible and flexible, without detracting from the necessary interaction between learners and trainer.
💡 Please note: blended learning is often referred to in the context of professional learning. However, it is also developing within our school system, as demonstrated by the provision by some schools of digital teaching tools that can be accessed at home and used to complete certain exercises.
What are the differences with e-learning?
First of all, what is e-learning?
E-learning refers to the use of digital technologies to deliver distance learning courses via dedicated platforms that support different formats (videos, interactive text modules, audio, etc.).
On the other hand, as we have just seen, blended learning combines this approach with face-to-face teaching sessions.
Whereas e-learning takes place exclusively on the internet, blended learning alternates between virtual and physical learning, thereby enriching the educational experience.
The characteristics of blended learning
In reality, blended learning manifests itself in many different ways, and it is possible to encounter many different configurations.
For example
- The flipped classroom, i.e. courses that are mainly delivered online, followed by face-to-face sessions, such as workshops to put the knowledge acquired into practice or to answer questions.
- Tutored face-to-face sessions. In this case, the training takes place mainly in the classroom, with modules to be completed at home to supplement, deepen and anchor the learning.
- A more or less equal mix of the two methods.
At the same time, thanks to e-learning platforms and their collaborative tools, learners can continue discussions with each other or with the teacher, via forums or video conferences. Blended learning therefore goes hand in hand with social learning, encouraging more interaction than a 100% e-learning course.
👉 Regardless of the configuration chosen, the main characteristics of blended learning can be summed up in a few words:
- combination of methods ;
- flexibility ;
- interaction and collaboration
- diversity of resources ;
- continuous assessment.
When should blended learning be used?
Who is blended learning for?
Blended learning is aimed at all learners, students and employees alike.
However, because of its flexible nature, it is an undeniable opportunity for people with time constraints or travel problems:
- working employees who want to upgrade their skills
- people undergoing professional retraining
- teleworking employees
- expatriate workers
- individuals with disabilities, etc.
😀 It is therefore a very attractive solution, offering the best learning methods for a wide range of profiles.
Use case: example of blended learning for onboarding
To understand how and under what circumstances to implement blended learning in your organisation, there's nothing like a little use case. 😉 And today, the focus is on onboarding. 👉
💡 Did you know? One in five employees leaves their new company after three months. The issue of onboarding employees is therefore becoming increasingly central, all the more so at a time when talent is in short supply.
That's why it's important to put in place a real programme to help new recruits integrate smoothly, and avoid them feeling overwhelmed after just a few days.
This is where blended learning comes in:
- You provide the new employee with all the necessary resources, such as internal procedures, even before they arrive at the company. So they can consult them easily and at their own pace.
- At the same time, you organise face-to-face sessions, in particular practical training, which is essential for answering the many questions that employees may have as they discover their new role. What's more, in this way they start to build a bond with their team.
- Finally, you can set up dedicated forums/shows in your internal communication tools, to encourage collaboration and enable the newcomer to quickly resolve any problems he or she encounters.
Blended learning: advantages and disadvantages
The advantages of blended learning
Blended learning benefits from the advantages of both distance and face-to-face training. Here are the main ones to remember:
- ✅ Flexibility of training and adaptation to time constraints; you can follow the lessons from wherever you want, whenever you want.
- ✅ Accessibility of online courses and resources, promoting learner autonomy.
- ✅ Customised learning paths, adapted to the level and pace of each individual. For example, the trainer can decide to add or modify content to compensate for the difficulties of certain students. At the same time, face-to-face interaction enables more detailed monitoring and real-time adjustments.
- ✅ Interactivity, thanks to online activities (discussion forums, quizzes, etc.), as well as face-to-face sessions that encourage direct exchanges.
- ✅ Cost and time savings, thanks to fewer trips to a physical location.
- ✅ Increased commitment from learners, as alternating between learning methods maintains their interest and reduces monotony.
- ✅ Effective training. By multiplying both the possibilities and the formats, blended learning provides trainers with all the tools they need to anchor their content in the memory. What's more, the tools needed for the 'online' part often incorporate performance analysis functions, which are very useful for finding out how to improve.
And the disadvantages?
As with the advantages, the disadvantages are also linked to those commonly encountered in both formats.
While blended learning maintains the face-to-face aspect, it also includes a digital component. And this part sometimes proves problematic for employees who are too far removed from digital technology (although less so than for 100% online training 😉 ...). So, at least at the start, you need to consider supporting the less tech-savvy profiles in discovering these learning methods.
Furthermore, the organisation of face-to-face sessions maintains the associated constraints, whether in terms of administration (schedule management, booking, etc.), travel or expenses.
Finally, there's no hiding the fact that implementing blended learning remains complex, particularly for organisations that are new to the subject. It requires rigour in the planning and design of content, and of course the deployment of an appropriate technological environment.
7 steps to deploying blended learning in companies
To deploy blended learning in companies, you need to follow the 7 steps below:
- Needs analysis. First, assess the pedagogical objectives of the blended learning course you want to set up and the skills you need to develop. At the same time, identify the target audience to understand their needs and where they really stand in relation to these skills.
- Design the programme. Next, design a training programme combining online modules and face-to-face sessions. In particular, make sure that these courses complement and reinforce each other perfectly.
- Select the tools required for the e-learning component (a Learning Management System, for example?). We'll come back to the question of software a little later.
- Training trainers in the new technologies and teaching methods of blended learning. They need to be comfortable on both fronts, online and face-to-face.
- Communication with all participants to explain the objectives and advantages of blended learning. This stage is essential to remove any obstacles to change.
- Implementation and management. Roll out the programme on a small scale to a pilot group. In this way, you can gather feedback so that you can adjust your training before developing it on a larger scale.
- Gather feedback from all participants after each training cycle, to ensure continuous improvement.
Which platforms should be used for blended learning?
Blended learning inevitably requires a technological device for the "distance" part.
To choose the right platform, ask yourself a number of questions:
- What are my learning objectives?
- What volume of participants or training programmes will the tool have to deal with?
- What functionalities do I need, whether in terms of content creation, evaluation, planning, etc.?
- What level of collaboration do I expect?
- What is the structure of my training courses? In other words, what is my face-to-face/remote ratio?
Depending on the situation, a simple knowledge-sharing medium may suffice. This is the case for our example of onboarding, where it's just a matter of providing the new recruit with the documentation they need for their induction.
But for more demanding training, it's better to turn to more sophisticated solutions, such as LMSs. These Learning Management Systems are designed to manage, monitor and evaluate online training programmes. With this software, you can create educational content that is much more engaging than that created on a simple Word document: interaction, gamification, variation of formats with video or audio, etc.
🛠️ For example, the 360Learning LMS, aimed at SMEs and large companies, provides effective support for engaging your learners. It incorporates powerful functionalities while focusing on collaboration (collaborative learning) and, of course, blended learning. 360Learning makes it easy to create and manage hybrid training courses, enabling employees to benefit from both online content and face-to-face interaction. And thanks to the flexibility of the software, the course can be perfectly adapted to the needs of each learner.
Finally, what does the future hold for blended learning?
In the final analysis, blended learning is much more widespread than you might think, because today, even in the context of face-to-face courses, we often have resources that can be consulted online. And with good reason: more and more of our lives take place online, whether for leisure, shopping or socialising... so it's hardly surprising that the training sector is following suit!
Blended learning has many advantages, because it combines the best of both worlds: online learning, yes, but not only that. Thanks to face-to-face learning, it's easier for learners to overcome any obstacles they encounter, and they benefit from a collective emulation that contributes to their commitment.
What's more, blended learning, like training in general, takes advantage of technological advances, particularly those relating to AI. The development of adaptive learning springs to mind, allowing us to take advantage of increasingly "tailor-made" courses... and therefore more and more effective! 💪
Article translated from French