How to create effective online trainings for interactional skills

The need for adaption – a new urgency

Effective education and professional training are key contributors to a company’s ability to stay ahead of the competition. Furthermore, fostering interdisciplinary competencies within the work force not only leads to more resilience of the organization to challenges like the current events around Covid-19. It can also improve the workflow due to better understanding of individual contributions to processes and productive output. Especially in times of agile and Lean principles and other “New Work” initiatives the need for education is even more relevant as it raises the challenge for individuals to take ownership based on a broad set of competencies.

At the core of all these possibilities lies the need for corporations to successfully translate their existing educational (mostly face-to-face) formats into online formats where different rules apply. Certain questions arise immediately: Are MOOCs (like Coursera, LinkedIn Learning, etc.) the only way to go or is there a better way to achieve learning output equivalent to existing learning formats? How can we account for the lack of face-to-face interaction? Are there key factors in online didactics to take better care of different teaching goals? And how can we facilitate social interaction within a group of learners when everybody is “alone” by themselves?

Christian W. Franz, an expert on group trainings and online learning technology, and I are providing some thoughts on how to better answer these questions on online education that are taking the corporate world by storm.

Effective online formats need translation – but good didactics prevail

Online technology has been successfully integrated into a variety of applications aimed at personal development and learning for years (e.g. cf. Boratto et al., 2017; Gegenfurtner & Ebner, 2019; Jackson & Bourne, 2020; McKinney, 2017; Singh & Hurley, 2017). Although the amount of tools to facilitate interactional workshops online is ever increasing, digital adaption of highly participatory learning formats like workshops (so called “synchronous learning formats”, because of synchronous feedback and interaction between all people involved) is progressing slower than those formats that facilitate self-paced learning (“asynchronous learning formats”). First and foremost, the adaption of face-to-face synchronous learning formats to an online setting highlights the necessary requirements for successful interactional learning designs:

1. a clear structure of the learning format (tasks, timeframes, etc.)
2. defined roles for all participants (expectations, rules of conduct)
3. outlined learning goals and comprehensible purpose (didactic clarity)
4. ability of the facilitator(s) to lead the group and intervene within the group’s team dynamics

Scientific state-of-the-art: webinars supplement traditional face-to-face learning well

These aspects enrich the synchronous learning formats both online and offline and can – if designed purposefully – enhance both learning outcome and satisfaction of the participants. The main goal of the learning design, the application of learned competencies (“longterm transfer”), is achieved by sustainable combination of learning design and multiple organizational variables like peer support, supervisor support, etc. (cf. Testers et al., 2019).

Focussing on learning design there is clear empirical evidence for the use of webinars as synchronous online learning formats (cf. Ebner & Gegenfurtner, 2019):

1. The comparison of synchronous formats shows equivalent learning outcomes between offline formats (face-to-face, like workshops) and online formats (e.g. webinars);
2. Asynchronous online formats like learning management systems (e.g. self-paced learning platforms that offer textual/video content) show significantly worse learning outcomes than synchronous online formats like webinars

The empirical evidence above can be interpreted in a very straightforward manner: if there is an offline learning format that aims at increasing individual competencies with an interactional aspect (e.g. empathetic or conversational skills), synchronous online formats (e.g. webinar) are superior to asynchronous formats (e.g. self-paced learning) in realizing the transfer goals.

Exemplary applications for these types of interactional topics are:

• Social skills (e.g. as part of Leadership trainings);
• Need Finding (as part of the research & empathizing process in Design Thinking);
• Interview skills (e.g. designing open questions to harvest customer feedback)
• Training & developmental competencies (e.g. rhetoric and conversational skills)
• Research skills (e.g. scientific methods training)

Theory in practice: Translation of an offline synchronous learning format (workshop) into an online format

Starting with a workshop on certain interactional research methods for postgraduate students that is proposed with the following outline:

• Duration 1,5 days
• 1 tutor, 14 participants
• Learning format: expert lecture with integrated discussions, one participatory practice
• session in teams of 3 to 4 participants per topic (est. 1-2 hour duration)
• 3 main topics to cover (each 0,5 days): how to conduct interviews, research planning and scientific collaboration

Looking at it from a didactic standpoint this workshop is based on a “traditional” design, with a mix of learning from example (lecture & demonstration) and problem-based learning (mini projects in teams).

Solution: Steps for a successful translation into an effective online format

When translating offline formats like the proposed workshop above into online counterparts certain “general roles” will always apply.

1.    Adaption of communication:

Limiting aspects like decreased opportunity to empathically embracing colleagues and the trainer(s), lack of full nonverbal communication, as well as a general decrease of sensory modalities during the training due to technological limitations has to be compensated by three major strategies:

•  Over-communicating structure, expectations and goals to give clear orientation and communicate purpose for the participants;
• Concise assignment of different interaction rooms for different target groups (e.g. “whole group” vs. “team of 4” vs. “individual work”);
• Help lowering possible resistance of the participants to the new online medium through actively reaching out for technical support upfront. Where necessary, provide technical means for participation;

2. Updating the success factors of the face-to-face format

• Didactic Structure: The main goal of didactic structure (e.g. training guidelines, manuals for group works, etc.) is to communicate purpose and contain the ever-increasing complexity of the topics. Test your ability to integrate as many varying media as possible into the digital medium to (1) create emotional responses to the learning material and (2) keep participants motivated through grabbing their attention by different modalities.
• Interpersonal Roles: Clear roles, that are explicitly stated and can be observed by others (e.g. role titles), within the training medium help establishing a working relationship between the participants and the facilitator. Define avatars, titles or other media-specific symbols to help communicate the roles in a relatable way. Set rules for interpersonal conduct during the online training in the beginning (e.g. muting of microphones when spectating, etc.).
• Learning Goals/Purpose: Online learning takes more time due to its elevated need for explicit communication. Take the amount of time needed for this kind of communication and realistically adapt your own goals to be successful.
• Master your Tools: Master your tools. The facilitator has to have absolute control over the online tool’s controls, application and its integration with other digital devices (camera, mic, etc.). The authority function of the facilitator is given to him by expertise (and control over the training situation), therefore he has to be able to intervene in group dynamics without the online tool interfering with it.

3.     Selection of suitable online medium & technical gear

Different tools for different goals. The variety of online tools available has grown rapidly. Pick a medium that is 1) easy to handle for the facilitators and 2) easy for participants to enter. Also focus on the gear used to transmit audio-visual content: Use high quality cameras and microphones for the facilitator – as our brain is very sensitive to skin colour and natural sounding voices, seemingly small trade-offs in technical terms can irritate the attention of the participants heavily. A media-psychologically well-constructed recording situation is key to communicating expertise and credibility of the medium. This starts with lighting situation, includes a professional audio recording and camera and, in the end, necessitates a good understanding of the integration into a well-rounded computer setting that communicates the company’s dedication to education.

Give meaning to your efforts

Lastly, it is vital to point out that currently many companies introducing online tools for providing quality education lack the cultural adjustments needed for online education to be truly effective. What we mean by that: In order to “educate” you have to first highlight and define the inherent value in a format that has previously been viewed as a “lesser alternative” to face-to-face interaction. Yes, of course, it is different. But it also holds great potential that can be harvested to great effect for your company. Venture into online territory with confidence and embrace the challenges ahead of others – so that it can be a lot of very productive fun!

Christian W. Franz is a lecturer at University of Salzburg (research methods, group dynamics) and SMBS Salzburg (training & development). In his business consulting work he combines his background in psychology with his broad experience in training and education as well as state-of-the-art technology.

Oliver Kempkens was lecturer at many international universities with an outstanding NPS country-wide for his classes; he is Managing Director at Sberbank in Moscow, responsible i.a. for Sberbank’s DesignersClub.

Literature

Boratto, L., Carta, S., Mulas, F., & Pilloni, P. (2017). An e-coaching ecosystem: Design and effectiveness analysis of the engagement of remote coaching on athletes. Personal and Ubiquitous Computing, 21(4), 689–704. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00779-017-1026-0

Ebner, C., & Gegenfurtner, A. (2019). Learning and Satisfaction in Webinar, Online, and Face-to-Face Instruction: A Meta-Analysis. Frontiers in Education, 4. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2019.00092

Gegenfurtner, A., & Ebner, C. (2019). Webinars in higher education and professional training: A meta-analysis and systematic review of randomized controlled trials. Educational Research Review, 28, 100293. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2019.100293

Jackson, S., & Bourne, D. J. (2020). Can an online coaching programme facilitate behavioural change in women working in STEM fields? 15(1), 18.

McKinney, W. P. (2017). Assessing the Evidence for the Educational Efficacy of Webinars and Related Internet-Based Instruction: Pedagogy in Health Promotion. https://doi.org/10.1177/2373379917700876

Singh, R. N., & Hurley, D. C. (2017). The Effectiveness of Teaching-Learning Process in Online Education as Perceived by University Faculty and Instructional Technology Professionals. Journal of Teaching and Learning with Technology, 6(1), 11.

Testers, L., Gegenfurtner, A., Geel, R. van, & Brand-Gruwel, S. (2019). From monocontextual to multicontextual transfer. Frontline Learning Research, 7(1), 23–42. https://doi.org/10.14786/flr.v7i1.359