Virtual Classroom Starter Guide
By Bob Maiden

You’ve heard the debate for years: classroom verses online. Only a few years ago, instructor-led training required a face-to-face event in which participants traveled to a single classroom facility, and e-learning usually equated to self-study content loaded onto a CD or Website. Enter virtual classrooms. Web collaboration technology permits the best of both delivery options: real-time access to a live instructor or subject matter expert right from the user's PC.

There are several terms for live online events: Webcasts, Webinars, and virtual classrooms. Whatever the term, there are similarities among nearly all synchronous online events. Nearly all programs are short in duration, ranging from 30 minutes to 2 hours. They often are led by a live instructor, with a facilitator assisting the main presenter. The number of participants or learners varies depending on prerequisites, level of content, blending with other modalities, and so forth. Although, the technology permits hundreds of people to participate in a single event, the average number tends to be 25 people. Handouts, typically in electronic form, are made available to participants prior to the event. Whether it’s a complete manual or a quick reference guide, everyone receives the same support tools as in a physical classroom event. Many offerings use an online post-course evaluation with results tabulated in a database.

Features

Most Web events and virtual classrooms falter because they fail to take advantage of all the features the software tools have to offer. I’ve participated in some poor online events, so I certainly know the meaning behind the phrase voice-over PowerPoint. Because Web collaboration technology is simply software, the more you know about its features, the more engaging you can make your events. And you don’t have to be a multimedia developer to pull together effective content. As with any training event, an effective presentation starts with creativity and the designer's capability to use as many of the tools at his or her disposal to develop an engaging learning experience.

Here’s a quick look at some of the common features and activities—many of which can be traced back to the traditional classroom.

What participants see

What participants do

Hardware

If your computer has an Internet connection, it’s a safe bet that you have the equipment to participate in a virtual classroom. For the most part, even participants with slow dial-up connections—down to 28.8 Kbps—can join an online event. The minimum PC requirements are the same for the instructor and learners, but most suppliers recommend more memory and a faster processor for instructors, particularly if they plan on using application sharing as part of the curriculum.

The first time someone participates from a new PC, there’s often a relatively small client download. Also, most products offer VOIP, so a sound card and PC microphone enable you to take full advantage of the technology. As an alternative to VOIP, many organizations use teleconferencing for voice communication. The downside of the teleconference option is that there’s an additional cost and each participant needs two phone lines. The downside of VOIP is the newness of the technology and that it requires a sound card and optional microphone.

Staffing

Staffing will include roles for internal and external participants.

Instructors. If you have an internal team of instructors, one of the first priorities is to provide them with virtual leader training. My experience has been that approximately 15 hours to 20 hours of practice ensures that the instructor is comfortable with the program and technology. If you contract staff with the supplier or outsource some of your courses, you still need to include similar train-the-trainer resources.

Facilitators. Frequently, a facilitator assists the instructor with managing chat, addressing technology problems, and providing any required event support. This enables the instructor to focus solely on the course content. Like the learners, facilitators don’t require physical proximity to the instructors, often assist from remote locations. It’s common to use junior instructors as facilitators.

Help desk. Most suppliers that license Web collaboration technology offer some form of standard help desk service. However, you should consider whether your internal help desk can play a role in supporting learners, and if they need any additional training.

Content development

A common strategy for many organizations is to use Web collaboration technology for pre- and post-event support. For instance, if you’re launching a major computer-based training initiative, you may use an online tutorial or meeting to launch the project. By offering a 30 to 60 minute live event, you can demonstrate the product, review the benefits, and allow for Q&A. Virtual classrooms also are commonly used as follow-up to live traditional classroom training.

Another popular option is to transition an existing course to virtual classroom delivery. Though practical, most designers struggle with making online events as engaging as their traditional counterparts. A good rule of thumb is to have a participant perform some sort of action every three to four minutes. Several products on the market support extensive, media-rich development using Flash and other tools. As always, conduct several pilots before your final launch.

Cost analysis and budgeting

The trend is to license Web collaboration technology on an ASP model, and have the server software hosted outside your network. The pricing models vary among suppliers, but the average purchase is an unlimited-use, 24/7 seat-license or blocks of time measured in per-student hours. If you’re just getting started, purchasing a block of time is probably the most economical approach—until you can get a better forecast on your volume. Complete event management services will vary based on such variables as whether you provide an internal instructor or the supplier provides the instructor. A range of US$20 to $50 per learner, per hour gives you some idea of the overall cost of this delivery option.

Also, there’s always the option to purchase and install a system on your internal network and support it with your organization’s IT staff. Your capital investment for this option will probably start around $30,000 and increase up based on the number of licensed seats you purchase.

These quotes may seem expensive, but if you have employees spread across 25 locations around the world, you can have a single instructor teach a live class with employees from each location with a travel budget of $0. And many suppliers offer free, limited-user licenses to get you started.

Challenges

In general, virtual classrooms are easy to use, but potential technology obstacles still await you. Firewalls can interfere with the flow of data from an outside server to a workstation inside your network. Most suppliers use standard ports and protocols, but if there’s a problem your router administrator may need to make a change to allow a specific IP address to access your network. From a security standpoint, most network administrators are comforted by the notion that Web collaboration technology is being used by most of the large financial institutions—and even the IRS. The quality and reliability of the VOIP also can be a problem for older PCs.

Also, global audiences present new challenges in flexible scheduling to accommodate different time zones and the potential need for multilingual instructors or translation services. Indeed, as with any new training model, culture change is still the biggest hurdle to overcome. The good news is that once your learners participate in their first event, they will be hooked—assuming you’ve created a quality event. Nothing will kill the introduction of a new delivery platform quicker than inadequately trained instructors or poor content. Take the time to provide your staff with virtual leader training, plenty of hands-on practice time, and pilot courses before they’re put to the test in a major virtual training initiative.

Published: October 13, 2003