Trends in my field with hybrid or blended learning

There are several trends in business, corporate and professional training with the introduction of technology and Learning Management Systems (LMS) and the expectation that these tools can make training more cost effective and more comprehensive in terms of availability and participation throughout the workforce.

Where I work we are early in the implementation of an LMS and the automation of some basic training. We have a large diverse workforce who are spread across a dozen locations across the Lower Mainland and work shifts to provide our services every day of the year including all statutory holidays. Some of our service is available at differing levels a full 24 hours per day while others covers multiple shifts up to 20 hours per day and only a small proportion of staff in administrative and support positions work a regular Monday to Friday day shift. A number of our staff are required to undergo periodic re-certifications of particular skills such as dangerous goods handling and operating forklift or mobile equipment. For employees in technical or trades positions there is a variety of vendor or supplier training that is available on line that employees are required to take to keep up their certifications on particular engines or vehicle technologies. To deal with normal attrition we hire and train over 100 new bus operators each year plus new apprentices and replacements for regular, part-time and casual staff throughout the organization. In addition to new employee training there are regulatory training requirements (e.g. WorkSafe BC directives), new technologies and business processes training (e.g. automated fare collection) and basic business practices training for employees (e.g. cyber security risks and proper use of computing equipment) that all have to be planned, coordinated and delivered as efficiently and cost effectively as possible.

To address these trends we have taken a number of steps to date with more to come. A first step was to provide computers and access for the 70% of our employees who don’t use a computer in their normal duties. For those employees there are computers provided in the general work area for their use and many employees have home computers that they can use to access training. This involves creating new user IDs and corporate computer access which is an ongoing process. Another step was the introduction of some less complicated on line basic knowledge training through a third party provider and a new employee orientation self-directed training regime developed internally on our own intranet website. The biggest step is the implementation of a formal LMS system first used to deliver a large orientation and training program to thousands of our front line staff on the new automated farecard system. Previously, training of this type required bringing all front line staff into a training facility with the associated logistics of backfilling their positions for their time away. One of the major issues with large scale training is the logistics and costs of having staff attend classroom training so this was the first major attempt at on line training with employees getting training time paid upon completion of the course.

Our training department has had to shift the focus of several staff from regular classroom training to the preparation and development of on line content. The continued growth of computer based training and expansion of the LMS will change the job requirements and technical skillsets of the some or all of the training staff who are instructors and do course development, classroom and field training that currently is lecture based with a ‘Tell me, Show me and Have me do it’ teaching process. Currently, some of the basic introductory concept learning has been automated with on line user testing prior to the classroom training where the focus is on reinforcement and application of the concepts. Another technology trend that we are looking at is the acquisition of a bus simulator. This equipment is a fully enclosed, wide bus cab/driving station with authentic bus dash, side instrument panel, and seating configuration that closely replicates the real life driving environment. The bus simulator can enhance new operator and existing operator training with repeatable scenarios to improve driver judgement and safety. It also frees up real buses and saves travel time, fuel and vehicle running maintenance costs. This is another type of hybrid or blended learning change that will require a redesign of the existing training regime to incorporate the simulator effectively and impacts the instructors with newly required skills and training on how to train with the simulator. The implementation and integration of technology requires an upfront investment in planning, training, content development and overall change management to deliver the business value and expected outcomes.

 

 

Learning Partner on Hybrid Learning

My partner is currently teaching adults at night school so he is more attune to younger students and their learning habits and requirements. His instructing is still more traditional with the delivery of content and material primarily by way of classroom lecture. From the material he highlighted the concepts of students as individuals and how blended learning can enable the students to work independently and move at their own different pace. Blended learning and the potential for more independent or self-directed study on the part of the student will benefit them from learning how they learn best and then using the resources, including the instructor and classroom time, to their advantage.

As far as trends, with his experience teaching young adult learners he is aware of their technological focus with tools like Facebook. Instructors also face teaching to students who may not have English as their first language. These students may contribute and benefit through participating in on line activities rather than in a classroom setting. Hybrid and blended learning techniques and the integration of technology in the learning process can be advantageous for less mature students and those with English as a second language who are at a disadvantage in the traditional classroom learning process.

New Insights on the role of adult educators

In reviewing the material on hybrid teaching or blended learning it seems clear that the introduction of on line components and asynchronous learning requires a different overall approach and skillset on the part of the instructor. The articles emphasize the instructor’s role shifting to more of a facilitator rather than a traditional lecturer. There is also a shift to a more independent role for the student to undertake the on line content and be prepared for a more participatory role in the classroom to apply the learning and leverage the instructor’s experience. The adult educator needs to be able to apply a number of teaching strategies to decide what content should be delivered on line and what activities are best covered in the classroom. The instructor also needs ensure the on line material and instructions are providing the required learning experience and that the classroom time is structured to enforce key concepts and deliver those learning activities that require face to face or direct interaction. For hybrid or blended learning the instructor has to plan differently to effectively use on line and classroom time and communicate with students through the process, use and incorporate additional technology and tools, plan for the shift to a more student-centered and asynchronous learning, adjust to more facilitating and application of key concepts in the classroom and finally develop the appropriate assessments to evaluate the students’ learning, understanding and successful completion of the course.

Prior to the research on this topic I thought the introduction of Learning Management Systems and on line learning was to replace or substitute the factual learning portion of existing training, more of an automated lecture and testing of concept uptake than anything else. I hadn’t really considered the impacts of a more comprehensive hybrid or blended teaching system that more fully integrates the technology with changes to the roles of both the instructor and the student and how the actual learning process takes place. The research made me aware that the extent of the change for instructors is much larger in terms of planning, delivering, monitoring, interacting, classroom focus and evaluation of the learning outcomes. To be successful in this new environment will require instructors to do some learning of their own, probably acquire some new skills and adapt to a different and changing learning environment and student approach.