As we enter the New Year, I keep having the feeling that all the shiny, brand new objects in the learning world are just today’s reinterpretation of all the right stuff that we’ve been doing all along. A cynic would say that somebody else is getting all kinds of credit for inventing something that really isn’t new, but in the spirit of the New Year, I think I’ll choose to be excited that I can bring so much existing life experience to these “brand new” trends.
There’s an article in this month’s CLO magazine about the buzz around “flipped” classrooms. Author Bob Mosher rightly points out that classrooms aren’t going away any time soon and they need help. He discusses three ways to flip classroom learning: before, during, and after the classroom experience. What amuses me is the third way: flipping after the classroom experience. Mosher explains that this most misunderstood approach “uses the classroom to teach only the critical skills needed to survive, and tools such as performance support, along with methods such as coaching and mentoring.” And guess what? It works! How do I know? We’ve been using this approach for 20 years to significantly reduce classroom training time while increasing learners’ ability to produce critical job outcomes. Nice to know it now has a name!
So what have I learned over 20 years about making this misunderstood flipping approach work?
- An effective approach to prioritizing content is key. The assumption with the flipped approach is that much of the learning will occur back on the job or as learners complete a blended learning journey following class. But just how do you decide what should be covered in the classroom? We use a structured approach to prioritize content based on required job outcomes and the nature of the tasks performed to complete those outcomes. How complex are they, how critical are they, what happens if they are done wrong, and how different is this from how things were done before? We also make sure that from an instructional design perspective, our classroom training enables learners to be successful with critical tasks on day one while providing them with a structured approach for learning more back on the job. This concept of a learning journey is an important element of the flipped approach.
- Design of the solution must support sustainment. Many organizations invest significant funds in developing learning and performance support content that is good for “go live” but then gathers dust on the shelf. How many of us know that there is help out on the network somewhere, but have no idea how to get to it and whether it is up to date? For the flipped classroom, or any learning solution, to work, it must be sustainable: easily accessed, maintained, and used by new learners. This long-term usage must be taken into account from initial design.
- If you don’t introduce and use performance support in the classroom, it won’t be used on the job. An important aspect of a flipped classroom is the use of performance support (help) back on the job to continue learning. One of my first lessons about performance support is that if you don’t introduce it in the classroom and help learners see how useful it is, they will never access it back on the job. If you are trying to teach learners to fish, you must show them how to use the fishing rod. You would be surprised how often this simple rule is ignored.
- Nothing can replace hands-on practice in a safe environment—especially when you are talking about learning new processes and systems. Much of the work I do is related to teaching people to use new technology, and many of my clients are very keen to replace live system exercises with system simulations. While simulations make things much easier from a technical perspective (no need for a training database), very few provide a rich experience to learners. Part of learning is learning how to fail and recover, and simulations give a false sense of security about that. Hands-on practice with support from an instructor is one of the very best ways to use classroom time.
- Follow-up discussion and support are critical. Because so much learning in this flipped approach occurs back on the job, it is critical to provide a means for learners to get questions answered as they learn. There are many ways of providing this support—formal coaching and mentoring, an online community of practice, informal follow up sessions, or super user programs—but the key is that communication between the learner and those teaching must be two-way. Adoption will not happen if learners become frustrated.
Best of luck in applying this “new” learning trend and Happy New Year!