Blended Virtual Classes: Can it be done successfully?

Recently at TrainingCity we tried a "Blended" virtual/"real" training class. All of the students were from one company, and the client had two employees who could not travel to the designated training location.

We decided to try a "blended" virtual classroom configuration: Live students in the classroom with the instructor and two "virtual" students logged in using our "Best of Breed" Virtual Classroom toolset.

The results of the experience? Mixed... Not a failure, but not a success either. We learned a number of lessons from the experience. In the end, we solved a critical problem for the client whose employees could not travel to the classroom, but at the same time, this "blended" delivery method is something TrainingCity feels needs much more "soaking" before it will be ready for Prime Time.

Here are a few of the lessons we learned:

1. Outstanding hardware is critical: We felt the Instructor needed to be able to move around the classroom and that the virtual students needed to be able to hear the various conversations that occurred naturally in a classroom setting. The solution was to purchase a set of outstanding microphones from Sony (check back later for a link). These mics were amazing and allowed virtual students to hear everything without the usual "echo chamber" effect of cheaper products.

2. The instructor needs a full time assistant. Virtual students have their own set of challenges in a live class. Someone other than the instructor needs to be available at all times to assist them with technology trouble shooting and general support issues.

3. Blended classes need to be smaller than either "all real" or "all virtual" classes. This is a case of 5 + 5 does not equal 10. Where a "real" class of 10 students or a virtual class of 10 students is readily manageable, a Blended class requires more attention to each detail. 10 total students is probably too many, from our experience a Blended class, especially one where there is no full time assistance for the instructor, should be limited to 6 - 8 total attendees.