Will 2021 be the year of the breakthrough?

Flemish government is fully committed

Flemish Minister of Labor Hilde Crevits and the Flemish government seek to foster e-learning in 2021. They wish to encourage Flemish people in taking up more courses. A large-scale survey last summer showed that more than 8 in 10 of Flemish course providers have partly converted their offer to online learning because of corona. This was not without its niggles, and generated practical problems as well as legal obstacles. This is why Minister Crevits is currently developing an action plan. Whether this will sufficiently account for the scientific findings on e-learning remains to be seen. We have read more on this topic in ‘A Skeptic’s HR Dictionary’ by Patrick Vermeren, which we discussed earlier in Kader Magazine.

2021 is set to become the year of the training course. Minister Crevits spoke of the start of the ‘learning twenties’. An action plan proposes an additional range of training courses as well as the use of new technologies and a screening of the own regulations. After all, until recently, Flemish training leave was only possible for classroom training. Starting this school year, it will also be applicable to digital courses. In addition, Syntra Flanders will set up a pilot project ‘instructive e-learning network’ to exchange knowledge and expertise on e-learning.

In ‘A Skeptic’s HR Dictionary’, author Patrick Vermeren critically breaks down a variety of HR practices based on the most leading scientific theories and findings. He also devotes a chapter to e-learning. The corona crisis has forced this method of learning down a rapidly accelerated path these past months. Workers who previously received additional training in classrooms had to switch to studying behind their laptop for safety reasons. It seems very likely that this way of learning will continue to expand in the coming years. Through hybrid forms in combination with physical training moments, or otherwise.

Will this lead to better results, higher success rates, enhanced participation and increased efficiency? Will e-learning lead to lifelong learning gaining a real foothold? Possibly. But it is by no means an easy task.

Indeed, research shows that e-learning can only be successful under very specific conditions and for certain types of subjects. For example, e-learning works well for teaching facts and data and to e-learners with specific personality traits: meticulous, methodical, goal-oriented, and motivated. Unfortunately, the vast majority of potential e-learners does not meet those characteristics. Research shows that as many as 95% of workers who start an e-course do not finish it.

Moreover, online training courses also lack elements that course participants can only experience in a real physical classroom environment: the teacher’s passion, questions from the teacher to the group or individual participant, individualized feedback from the teacher to the course participant, etc.

A human is by definition a social being from an evolutionary point of view. This also has consequences for the way we learn – including in a professional context. As scientific research shows that people still learn best as part of a group. And that certainly applies to matters related to interpersonal soft skills. People mostly learn these from each other.

If the government and/or the social partners therefore want to focus more on e-learning for safety or efficiency reasons, they should not lose sight of a number of key considerations. For what themes is this feasible? To what audience possessing what basic skills do they want to appeal? Also, what substantiated methodologies can be used. For the time being, research, as mentioned above, shows that only a small proportion of predominantly highly educated and well-motivated workers have the drive to successfully complete an online training course.

The bottom line therefore seems to be: e-learning can sometimes be a step forward, especially in combination with physical group training. However, it is not a good idea to focus solely on e-learning. From a scientific point of view, it is not a good idea for all subjects and for all target audiences. No need, then, to write off traditional training courses in equally traditional classrooms. Not even in the so-called ‘learning twenties’.

Auteur: Vic Van Kerrebroeck | Picture: iCloud