Online or in person? Modern learning means creating your own personal journey

For most of us at work today, our learning was more traditional than not. We were educated in classrooms and lecture halls, with teachers, tutors and professors. We know the smell of chalk on a board, probably remember transparencies and the hum of fluorescent tubes above.

The transparencies and fluoro tubes aside, classrooms are pretty much the way education has happened for thousands of years. But despite the validity of tradition, it doesn’t mean there isn’t room for change and that’s why there are multiple online learning resources at your fingertips today. Those with children in school or Uni will recognise it: a tablet or a laptop is often standard equipment, where we had to make do with a scientific calculator.

These are signs of the enormous and ubiquitous impact of technology on our lives. At home, at school and at work, technology is part and parcel of every one of us. The pace of development, though, means we are constantly under pressure to keep up, if not with the Jones’, then certainly with the Jetsons. This theoretically boils down to two fundamental choices you can make in your formal quest for knowledge (we’ll see in a moment that this is a false dichotomy). You can do it online, which has the advantages of learning in your own time, where you have the power to choose the pace, the content and the context. Or you can do it in more traditional settings.

Enhance online learning advantages with in-person exchanges

Here’s the thing, though. Online learning DOES offer multiple advantages over in-person training. It’s on-demand, it’s always available, it’s easily accessible from ‘anywhere’. And yes, you can make use of ‘micro-moments’ (more on that in a moment).

But at the same time, the human element is really important. The way we collaborate with colleagues and partners in user groups, conferences, meet-ups and more is a crucial component of quality learning.

In many of these instances, you’ll be gaining knowledge without it being a formal session. A conversation with someone new, or a keynote from a noted luminary, might be more effective by far than watching the same interaction on YouTube.

It’s just the way we’re wired as humans. This is where we get to that false dichotomy. The fact is that learning isn’t only something you sit down and do deliberately. Learning happens constantly through experience and interaction. In other words, I believe a hybrid learning approach is probably the best – and creating the ideal hybrid is up to you.

Combining theory and practice

A practical example of how online and in-person learning can combine for the best outcomes is emerging technology (and there is always something new!) With concepts like Artificial Intelligence, its subset Machine Learning, or the Internet of Things, the first essential step is grasping the concepts. At this point, online learning provides probably the best option for most people as it about understanding the theory. This forms the basis for partners to establish ‘horizons of the possible’ in terms of what they can do to create solutions for their customers. Coupled with the practical Kiwi ‘can do’ attitude and in-person engagement with those end users – which are themselves learning engagements - that’s when magic happens.

More on micro-moments

Oh, micro-moments? Our lives have seemingly become an endless progression of them, thanks to smartphones, tablets and PCs never being far from our reach. The prevailing idea is that you can put micro-moments to better use by logging on to online learning while on the bus or over your morning cuppa. Now, that probably does work just fine for a lot of people – but on the other hand, it might not be for you, just as it isn’t the case for me (I’m busy with an online learning course right now. It’s something for which I set aside specific time, rather than popping in and out of it).

I’m also busy listening to an audiobook ‘Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World’; it suggests a difference between being highly focused (deep work) on certain tasks which require substantial brain power, and shallow work which are routine jobs. This makes sense to me: being focused on learning (or indeed, a complex work assignment) isn’t going to happen in the bus station. Carving out a set time for learning works best for me – but as the millennials like to say, ‘Your Mileage May Vary’. Which works best for you?

It’s another perspective and another choice you get to make.

Taking solutions to market depends on knowledge

As Microsoft New Zealand's One Commercial Partner Director, I’m in constant contact with partners around the country. Many face similar challenges: increasing customers’ satisfaction and retention, optimising processes and securing the right talent to sustain business growth. All of this depends on skilled and experienced people. Now, more than ever, success depends on knowledge.

Whatever your personal approach to how you engage with it, online learning is an endlessly flexible option for your personal learning journey. The availability of multiple means of learning, including Microsoft Learn, is an absolute boom because it provides more choices from which everyone can draw. And there is one final major advantage to online learning which I haven’t yet mentioned. A lot of it is entirely FREE, outside of the time you must commit.

So what's stopping you?

Get started on your personal learning journey today by checking out Microsoft Learn Partner Hub.