Web Based Training – Does it Work?

Does Web Based Training Work?
Absolutely. We offer web based training, but we create short videos and documents based upon real-world scenarios intended to drive home important concepts with immediate effect. It sells and works well.

But what about extended classes, 3-Day or 4-Day classes? The decision to choose Web Based Training (WBT) over more traditional classroom venues is often based on the need for more flexibility and convenience than classroom training provides. But is it effective? Before we answer the question, it’s important to understand how adults learn.

Studies have shown adults learn in three key ways:
1. Learn by doing
2. Learn in small chunks
3. Learn gradually

Confucius said: “I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand.”

The younger you are, the easier it is to learn. Younger students are more flexible, adaptable, eager and less afraid to make mistakes. There is a certain freedom to learn that comes with being young that regrettably, we lose the older we get. In an article entitled 30 things we know for sure about adult learning, Ron and Susan Zemke had some interesting observations regarding adult learning:

1. Adults learn by doing. Adults have a need for application of “how to” as the primary reason to begin a learning project. Regardless of media, straightforward how-to is the preferred content orientation.
2. Adults prefer single concept, single theory courses that focus heavily on the application of the concept to relevant problems.
3. Adults prefer self-pace over group learning led by a professional. They select more than one medium for learning and they desire to control the pace and the start/stop times.

Web based training courses overlook the founding principal of the Socratic Method, discussion. During our years as students, we were encouraged to ask questions. But the best instructors didn’t simply answer our questions, they created environments where we could seek out multiple answers through open discussions and the sharing of ideas. Creating and maintaining such an environment is the essence of the Socratic Method and is what our teaching philosophy at I.II.I is founded on.

Our classroom experience is fostered through careful encouragement, and facilitated by creating and maintaining a learning environment where knowing “the answer” takes a back seat to the process of arriving at the answer.

Web base training has a place, certainly. It’s inexpensive to purchase, it’s inexpensive to deliver, and there is no doubt It can be a cost effective method for introducing singular concepts in a short period of time. Learning broad concepts takes face-to-face interaction with a Subject Matter Expert that knows how to foster communication and encourage growth within a firm.

In the end, Web Based Training is not as effective as face-to-face instruction when training soft-skills (interpersonal communication, leadership, mentoring). And soft-skills are absolutely as important as hard-skills. WBT for broad concepts simply lacks the crucial practice and feedback elements. Use WBT as a pre-requisite for a classroom training, or over the shoulder training. Use WBT for overview training on a wide variety of pointed topics. Use WBT or open-enrollment classes taught by resellers as a refresher, or an introduction to new software. But for those, like me, who learn by printing, copying, stapling, underlining, highlighting, practicing specific tasks outlined in digital documents, and asking questions, offer short seminars or look for online tutorials. Customize the information to the students’ corporate culture or specific interests. Make it personally relevant — don’t just deliver the facts. Supplement training with videos outlining specific topics in detail, and reinforce with over-the-shoulder time with a Subject Matter Expert. In the end, you want to create an environment that fosters communication and teamwork, and teaches employees to be the “out of the box thinkers” that are so crucial to the success of a firm.

Scott McEachron

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