From face-to-face training to online learning

Digital learning

Digital learning has established a permanent presence in an increasing number of organizations – even in their “normal” future. When the primary solution to a need for continuous learning is digital learning, the benefits are obvious: content that has been produced once can now be extensively shared; learning does not result in costs or an organizational burden regarding facilities, travel, or instructor fees; and the quality is consistent.

The coronavirus pandemic introduced Teams training to many companies as either live streaming or recorded services – often both. And they work well – at least when the instructor is enthusiastic, the topic of the training is somewhat known to the learner, and some of the work is done in small groups or discussed. The problem is that these types of hybrid training courses are relatively long, often lasting hours. The temptation to do something else while “participating” is great, and the instructor can even unknowingly have a lecture on their own without knowing whether the participants are listening or not.

Digital courses where you can learn independently and in your own time – the ones that we have successfully produced for a long time here at MPS Prewise – are a more agile option for both learners and the organization. When you can learn everything essential in 30 minutes, and you can continue learning with a more in-depth digital course, the courses can smoothly become a part of your workday. This will provide a better opportunity to schedule the learning when you need it the most.

Many organizations decide to produce their own online learning content. As the experts and the instructor-coaches can make their own digital courses with an easy tool, the temptation to replicate the contact teaching material may become great. After all, it is already made and proven to be good!

As a tool, a digital course is completely different from a face-to-face situation or a spoken lecture. Next, we will provide some tips on tackling this issue and utilizing the features of a digital tool:

1. Change the perspective: see the world from the perspective of a learner

Digital learning is an individual experience. The perspective of planning must be changed: the primary point is not the topic but the benefit that the learner gets from it. When we understand the daily life of a learner, we can find issues that we can influence by altering learning goals.

2. Introduce the topic to everyday life with storytelling

A good contact teacher brings out their own persona. Ideally, the participants will also learn from each other – and more about their organization while they’re at it. This contact does not exist in digital learning, which is why it must be simulated by the means available. A human being cannot internalize bullet points by just reading them. Telling a story and introducing daily examples helps bring the human approach to digital learning.

3. Dare to be creative

If you are just going to “throw together” the contact teaching material, the digital course may become bland and boring. Dare to be creative: different interaction types and exercises can be used in a variety of ways. Ge rid of corporate jargon, and make technical language easier to understand. And don’t forget the visuals: the world can be conveyed through pictures and videos.

4. Design the overall package together

The easier the tool you use for content design, the greater the demand for digital courses, from both the parties concerned and the learners. This is why you should design the package in cooperation with the entire organization: what kinds of learning paths should be created; how can you define target groups in regard to, for example, necessity; and how do the digital courses relate to other communication, materials, and training courses? Once a preliminary roadmap and goals have been drawn, it is easier to specify, organize, and complete individual measures, and keep the entity under control.

The tool MPS Prewise offers for digital learning production is Prewise Learning. Courses and other training material produced in Prewise Learning can be shared, and the learning outcomes can be monitored, for example, through the Gimlet LMS learning environment.