What is a Mobile Learning Management System?

A Mobile Learning Management System provides your learners with a single on-demand learning portal and gateway, on the mobile devices (phones and tablets) that they are using today..

A mobile LMS lets your learner community use all the features of your LMS on their portable devices.  Learners can search for and enroll in classes, and report their progress.  More importantly, learners can take courses and engage with instructors and other students on their devices.  Learners can view video, audio, documents, tests and assessments and online courses. Each learner can follow a personalized learning track, if that is the way your system is set up.

In other words, a mobile LMS lets your users do everything they used to need a PC for, on their phone or tablet.

Mobile iLMS’ new interface updates the entire learner experience.

Sign-up with Social Login

By enabling social login, you can make the registration process easy. New users can sign-up with their Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+, or Twitter IDs, instead of  asking them to set up yet another new profile and new login credentials to remember.

Side Menu Navigation

The menu navigation now offers easy to use side navigation that may accessed from anywhere in the mobile iLMS App. This solves the problem of having many menus on the main app screens that take away much screen space. Users can see where they are and where they can go.

Content Purchasing Made Easy

If your implementation of the mobile iLMS supports retail sales, the new mobile interface makes the process of buying learning content easier for your clients.

A new shopping cart icon shows the number of items in their shopping cart. Learners can access the shopping cart at any time from catalog listing or from the content details page. Also, users have the choice of paying online with a credit card option or offline (with a purchase order, check, etc.).

Browsing Content by Category

Users can filter learning content by categories and sub-categories. The “tree view” category structure helps users browse content easily.

Alphabetical “People Listing”

The “People listing” interface has been improved to search people by alphabetic order. Users can just scroll down to see users’ names by letter of the alphabet.  Names can be sorted by first name or by last name.

Improved Catalog Interface

The catalog interface has been redesigned to keep easy navigation in mind. Items in the next page of the catalog are loaded when users reach the end of the scroll. This approach reduces bandwidth consumption and loads catalog items faster

We are excited about the new Mobile iLMS features and usability.  You can continue to expect innovation from Instancy as we make our entire system easier for both your learning users who consume your learning content, and for your management and support teams who acquire, create and provide this content to your community.

The iLMS received a major overhaul of the user interface, which makes the entire application much easier to use.

Instancy LMS’ new Home Page

Instancy LMS’ new Home Page

Browse Catalog

Action links have been improved across all the Administrative areas by removing multiple pop-up browser windows, which have been replaced pages that appear as overlays on the browser window. The new interface makes it easier to manage content, from both the administration (uploading) and the user (downloading and consuming) sides.

Browse Catalog

Portal Design Options 

The new user interface is cleaner with neutral color and is streamlined for ease of use. In addition, straightforward website design choices allow administrators to customize the look-and-feel of their own installation of the portal. These tools are as easy to use as other familiar tools like WordPress. Users can add corporate or institutional branding elements to make the portal integrate seamlessly with other websites.

Portal Design Options

User Administration

The menu structure has been improved to consolidate the user and content administration under a single Administrator role.

You can organize users in groups or build group hierarchies, such as regions, departments, schools or classes

User Administration

User Reporting 

The graphical reports help you visualize learning progress and completion at a specific learner, course, user group or entire site level.

User Reporting

Read More…

Traditional eLearning standards like SCORM (conceived in the late 1990s) are inadequate to meet the demands of digital and distributed learning today. We need a more flexible learning architecture that can enable learning to occur anyplace, anytime, with any device and support myriads of learning opportunities from traditional courseware, games, simulations and social interactions and sharing.

Instancy and its Tin Can API integration is now the answer. Implementing Tin Can API Integration within the Instancy Learning Management System (iLMS), along with Instancy Learning Content Management Systems (iLCMS), can create an integrated learning environment that interoperates data with other learning systems and legacy enterprise applications.

Instancy’s Tin Can API support allows you to:

• Package your eLearning content with built-in support for Tin Can API after creating it within Instancy’s easy-to-use Authoring tools
• Deliver the content through Instancy LMS and track user progress through a Learning Record Store (LRS)
• Have it all translated into a learning progress report or a dashboard  

Instancy Learning™ platform supports this new interoperability specification from Advanced Distributed Learning (ADL), Tin Can API also known as Experience API, to help any organization create, deliver and track learning content seamlessly on the web and mobile devices like smartphones and tablets.

The Instancy web-based authoring and Learning Content Management System (iLCMS) are designed to help you create SCORM compliant content. The iLCMS not only supports traditional SCORM (eLearning specification for content packaging and interoperability) but also supports the latest Tin Can API.

Instancy Tin Can-based Learning Management and HTML5 Authoring Platform

Tin Can API based eLearning content developed with Instancy web authoring tools & LCMS can be:

• Delivered onto the web and mobile devices
• Tracked within Instancy LMS for learner progress reporting 
• Exported as SCORM packages with built-in Tin Can API calls for third party LMS/LRS delivery

The mobile learning content resources can be:

• Delivered through a mobile browser
• Downloaded on the mobile device via Instancy Native App framework.

Tracking offline and synching the learner experience and progress are also critical ingredients:

• Instancy Platform and the Mobile App framework support learner experience supports offline tracking and synching with an LRS
• Learning content may also be downloaded on a mobile device within the Instancy native learning app
• The downloaded content can be launched in offline mode
• The student experience and progress data is recorded locally on a mobile device, then synched back with the LRS when Internet access is available.

Next generation learning is here now – freedom to learn anywhere and on any device is what your audience expects. With Instancy, all the pieces of the next generation learning architecture puzzle come together. Tin Can API is a key component of next general learning architecture and Instancy is mission is to help you get there faster and better.

The future of learning is mobile. If you haven’t noticed it yourself or among your friends and associates, you’ll read the reports. People are wanting their information whenever they want, where ever they are. You’re paying attention. You know this is the direction everyone is moving towards.

You’re in the online learning business. You already have an online training platform with one or more courses. You’re not going to wait any longer to take your online training mobile. You’re figuring out how to create a mobile learning app, and what choices are out there.

It’s the next step to take. You’ve seen that iPhones, iPads, Android and Windows Mobile phones are everywhere. Your training needs to be available on all those medium and small devices.

You’re asking questions and doing research. What is the pain-free way to make your online learning platform into an mlearning platform? What solution will be quick, easy, affordable, and efficient? Is there a way to utilize all the work you’ve done for your computer based training? What kind of learning curve is involved? What service has the kind of flexibility and responsiveness you need for my business? How much research will it take to find? How many dead ends will you go down before you find something that will work that way you need it to work? You need a solution as soon as possible.

If you’re not a programmer, or you don’t want to hire a programmer, you’re going to want to check any potential solutions for the following features:

• Can you create the mobile learning application without programming?
• Will it create a mobile website? Will you be able to update it from a mobile device?
• Will it create a mobile app with ability to down load and access content offline? Will you be able to update it yourself?
• Will you be able to leverage mobile notifications to push learning and knowledge to your learners?
• Will your mobile app be made available for the Apple store? For the Google Android store?
• Is it easy to convert your MS Documents for use? What about your other training content?
• Will you be able to customize your own menus, and add your own logo?
• Will it deliver quizzes, tests and assessments with all the traditional online answer choices?
• Will it deliver mobile surveys that can be completed on a mobile device, desktop or both?
• Will it handle a full catalog of your training, offerings and digital content?
• Will it allow for registration and payment for courses and events, even with coupons?
• Will it provide analytics and reporting of registrations, sales, student performance and more?
• Is there any document sharing capability, as well as document reading via mobile device for PDFs, word documents, spreadsheets and PowerPoint slides?
• Will there be a user database showing the profiles and access privileges?

Does that look like it covers what you’d be looking for?

These are just some of the many dimensions of the solution we developed to create mobile learning apps for you. We have customized our solution to offer what providers of online learning will need.

Our solution gives you the flexibility you need. Fast. Easy. Affordably. Efficiently. Our solution creates mobile learning apps without coding.

You have two easy choices: You can do it yourself with our code-free, template-based system that will lead to a fully equipped and business-ready mobile website and a mobile app for your online training. Or, you can engage our expert services to prepare it on your behalf. Your choice. Whatever works best for you.

Have you heard of Instancy, Inc.? We’re an expert online training and online learning company. We host hundreds of businesses and educational organizations’ trainings on our platform. Now we’re able to offer them and you, one of the easiest and more affordable ways to get your online learning content into mobile devices.

Email us now at info@instancy.com to discuss your specific needs and find out how Instancy can extend the reach of your online training through a state-of-the-art mlearning application.

Find out how Instancy can extend the reach of your online training through a state-of-the-art mobile learning app platform.

Ever since the first Smartphone arrived on the market with the Apple® 3, those in the eLearning community have been discussing how this will change the way we deliver education. While mobile learning, also known as mLearning, hasn’t replaced our current methods of delivering training, it certainly can and will add an interesting depth. More and more companies and educational institutions are either researching or becoming early adopters to mLearning, and Instancy is poised and ready to take you there!

Both third party vendors and internal instructional design and content development departments are expected to specialize in many aspects of learning. Now they are also expected to know how to use an increasing number of authoring tools, understand the different ways to publish those courses, deliver and track the content, and now provide users/students access to this information on iPhones, iPads, and various tablet devices running the Android or Windows operating systems. There are even specialized trade shows that deal only with mobile learning and handheld education, such as Mlearn, IADIS, and WMUTE.

Instancy has been busy – very busy! While other companies are shaking their heads and trying to determine how to do this, Instancy has gone one step further….not only have we done it, but we have integrated everything into a suite of products – the iLMS and the iLCMS. Most of you understand the LMS – the Learning Management System. Some of you may understand a LCMS – a Learning Content Management System. But just in case…the LCMS, especially Instancy’s iLCMS has a great authoring tool built in that will energize your training content through multimedia presentations that synchronize audio or video with animated content, interactive simulations, and mobile output.

It is so difficult to find people who are experts in instructional design AND have the expertise in graphics and programming knowledge to make your training courses come alive without writing complex HTML, XML, software programming scripts, or code. Instancy helps solve this problem by the advanced authoring functionality in the tool.

An example of NOW technology is the HTML5 support for operability across SmartPhones, Tablets and touch interfaces on mobile devices.  And a real key for mobile output is the ability to resize to both larger and smaller form factors – resizing done dynamically – no more worries about your content displaying correctly.

The ability to convert content from Microsoft Office products continues to be a popular feature of Instancy products. You can convert content from MS PowerPoint, MS Word, and MS Excel and create mobile learning modules and quizzes.

The Instancy Mobile LCMS (iLCMS) allows you to reduce training costs because of the powerful framework of the product suite. Use the collaborative functionality to create content within a team environment and allow contributors and reviewers to work together to get a final product ready much faster. Collaboration is very important in learning or mLearning projects as it is important that the data, information, reviewers, subjects matters experts, and writers/developers are all working together, in sync, and produce quality content across the supply chain.

At a glance, the iLCMS provides:

• SCORM Compliant Learning Object Repository (LOR)
• Collaborative and web-based access
• XML based content repository
• Configurable content development workflows
• Multiple and configurable roles including author, designer, reviewer and publisher
• Meta-data search
• Reusable multimedia asset library

Yes, there are many great authoring tools available today; however, when one of the best authoring tools is integrated, it saves time which equates to money and makes the process of ensuring a course deploys across the LMS seamlessly. Once again, Instancy doesn’t disappoint.

At a glance, the authoring tool provides the following features to create blended learning curriculum:

• These tools are web-browser based and don’t require any installation or set up.
  • Create Content Repository: Import documents, media files, SCORM & AICC (eLearning Standards) course packages into your content repository.
  • Create Learning Module: Create a learning module with multimedia elements and quizzes.
  • Create Assessment: Create an Assessment (Test) using single choice, multiple choice, fill in the blank, true/false and drag and drop question types.
  • Create Learning Track: Create a learning track by assembling learning modules, assessments, events and references, etc.
  • Create an Event: a class-room training, virtual classroom or webinar or meeting with date, time, duration and presenter.
  • Create Reference: Create a reference to online learning resources or link to other sites.
  • Import and automatically convert a Document into Mobile learning: Import word, excel, PowerPoint and PDF documents into the content repository.
  • Exam Preparation: Create and deliver online exams to the students preparing for professional or continuing education exam

]]> http://blog.instancy.com/2012/05/instancy-web-based-authoring-tool-authoring-elearning-courses-for-mobile-delivery/feed/ 0 http://blog.instancy.com/2012/04/creating-elearning-content-html5-versus-flash/ http://blog.instancy.com/2012/04/creating-elearning-content-html5-versus-flash/#comments Tue, 24 Apr 2012 08:47:07 +0000 Harvey Singh http://blog.instancy.com/?p=127 ... Read More]]> Learning professionals are increasingly thinking about how to achieve their interactive content. Do you continue to use Flash or start migrating to HTML and more specifically HTML5? We are also finding that there is confusion on exactly what the technology is…is it Apple versus Adobe or Flash versus HTML5? Don’t spend too much time fretting about the terminology. Spend time thinking about the functionality and the end result you wish.

At Instancy, we are different from other eLearning providers because our focus and approach is the durability of your content. Once you make the investment in content, the length of time it is able to be viewed without special software upgrades is important. Instancy also wants to ensure that as delivery technology change, your investment in content is preserved.

If you are an Instancy customer, you already know the power of our Learning Content Management System (LCMS) which includes a powerful authoring tool. If not, we look at what technology can bring now, but also look into the future of where we feel technology is going so we can do everything we can to advise our customers how to invest their Learning and Training budgets. If you are using our authoring tool, your investment in content is preserved and you do not have to recreate or reprogram the course. You just republish the course/content through Instancy’s automation engine. Instancy separates the content from the presentation without sacrificing content quality, interactive features, etc.

Now, let’s talk about the difference between HTML5 and Flash. There is both good and bad news when discussing this subject. Although we’re finding HTML5 to be a significant technology for the future, Flash is alive and well and will be around for the foreseeable future.  HTML5 is NOT a Flash killer. Flash is still the best way to deliver ‘reliable’, interactive content for distribution over the web. From what we can tell at Instancy, our research department feels that the HTML5 standards, once completed, will continue to support browser plug-ins. This means that there is no reason to think Flash will not continue to be supported.

What about video capabilities? Will HTML5 allow you to design the same interactive learning experiences as Flash? We think so, but until the standards are complete and we see what Adobe does with Flash, we just don’t know yet. Let’s see what industry leaders feel are the pros and cons of HTML5 and, of course, we just must add some of the comments from the Instancy developers!

HTML5 – The Good:

• Improves video and audio quality – and the improvement is extensive.
• Social Learning and Social Media is a much richer experience.
• Vivemo, Blip.tv, and a beta of YouTube are already offering HTML5 players.
• Improved interactivity over Flash.
• The code is Open Source and not proprietary like Flash.
• Supports enhanced multimedia.
• Full featured APIs and Localization support.
• Uses 20% of computer resources compared to 40% for Flash – this makes a big difference when someone is trying to view anything, regardless of their internet connection (DSL, Cable, Modem, T1, etc.)
• Works in the IPad Tablet and will work in other manufacture’s tablets, and Smartphones phones too. This will take mLearning to the next level and will support eReaders soon.
• The code is more stable than Flash which can be buggy at times and it MAY eliminate plugins as we know it.

HTML5 – The Not So Good:

• Right now, the only downside are video codecs.  Sadly, there is not one standard. Video codecs enable you to view video on your computer (they exist in your player for example), and are already installed. Sometimes, you may see the infamous, “unable to play video” or “codec not installed”, which means you are missing that codec.   So, you have to go online to a codec directory and download the appropriate codec.  Codecs exist for audio and video.

Now, don’t let all these stats on HTML get you down because Flash is not dead, at least not in the foreseeable future. There are industry analysts and none of them can come to a consensus on the demise of Flash. Some analysts say HTML5 web page development and implementation will be mainstream sooner to 2012 while other analysts say it will be 2021 before Flash is dead. We at Instancy think it will be more like the middle with early adopters really moving ahead with HTML5.

Although Adobe announced they will support HTML5 in the next version of Dreamweaver, it will be interesting to see how they handle the bigger battles, especially since Apple uses only HTML5 and future tablet vendors, plus all the major browsers will support HTML5.

Why should Instancy be your choice for tool vendor as well as content vendor?

• Our authoring tool goes beyond the beyond…provides both HTML and Flash outputs without creating learning content again and again – a huge cost saving.
• Instancy tools create content once and allow you to publish your eLearning content both for HTML and Flash giving you maximum flexibility to offer to your users.
• We realize that some of our customers lay awake at night worrying about how to write action scripts. At Instancy, no action scripting is required.
• Let Instancy’s tools publish the content in HTML5 – no need to tweak the code.
• Have you wished you could offer your users long answer questions for tests or quizzes? No problem, Instancy has you covered. Your students/users respond and the administrators can login to the portal to grade the question and, if necessary, contact them online to ask them to retake the question.
• We provide functionality called Media Sync. You can author media elements like text and images to fly in and out based on the audio. This gives you the web-based control to create simple animations – we’d call it animation for dummies but that might get us into some copyright trouble!

Take the Instancy leap – we go where other authoring tools and Learning Management Systems only wish they went. We’re here to stay and have the personalized service and support you have always wished for.

Anyone who says that HTML5 is the ultimate answer hasn’t tested enough applications and scenarios to see that there are still some major issues because of a lack of standards. What is a content developer to do? As Instancy is a leader in content development and expert programming and learning tools and infrastructure, we have learned that each issue is different and much testing needs to be done before we can assume a product will work across all browsers and on Apple mobile devices. We do face challenges delivering Flash-based content on Apple tablets and the iPhone and have been working on various options. We came across a new app called iSwifter who claimed to play Flash content on the iPad and iPhone. To say the least, we were intrigued.

Our R&D and QA team quickly installed this app on an iPad and iPhone and started testing our portals and various HTML and Flash-based courses on the devices using iSwifter. So far, we are satisfied, but before we tell you more, let’s talk about why Flash does not play on an iPad or iPhone. 

Although most people know Flash is not supported on Apple mobile devices, few know why. One of the main reasons Flash will not work is because it was never designed to work on any touch screen devices. Now we know that the Android operating system has a work around for this, but that is for a future article. There are inherent aspects to Flash code that at the most basic level will never work on the mobile platform used by Apple. There has also been a long-standing feud between Apple and Adobe but one would think that there is enough money in it for Adobe to make it work. There have always been rumors that Adobe never could make it work because Apple would not release their source code. Now that Steve Jobs is gone, it will be interesting to see how Apple evolves. I digress….

Many (if not most) current Flash games, menus, and even video players require a visible mouse pointer. The code knows the difference between hovering over something (mouse over) versus actually clicking. This distinction is not rare. It’s pervasive and fundamental to interactive design, and vital to the basic use of Flash content. New Flash content designed just for touch screens can be done, but people want existing Flash sites to work. They want them to work all the time, and at the moment, that is just impossible.

What is iSwifter?

As we mentioned at the beginning of this article, iSwifter is an application that has been developed to run Flash-based content directly on Smart phones and tablets.

iSwifter is the first known cloud-based content streaming platform that was built specifically for mobile devices. Their application, which is patent pending, converts interactive content such as games that were not originally built for mobile devices and converts them to a form that is optimized for individual mobile devices, complete with touch gestures and different screen resolutions. As an added bonus, iSwifter does not ask developers to rewrite their code on their platform!

iSwifter is easy to use. Simply launch the App Store on the iPad and search for iSwifter. You can get the initial download for free which gives you 30 minutes of compile time. If you like it, you can upgrade to the full version. Once iSwifter is installed on the device, tap on the app icon to launch it where you will be presented with a welcome screen and a browser like address bar. Type in a website URL that you know also has Flash content and you will see that the content, including the Flash, will load. The only caveat is that the mobile device must be connected to the Internet through WiFi or a 3G or 4G network. 

We found one limitation to iSwifter which was disappointing; however, once we thought about it, we knew that what we discussed earlier in this article still held true…technically, any Flash content that requires rollover or drag-n-drop or multiple tap events would not work because of how Flash works. Apple prefers not to add or include any feature that is either broken or only works partially. They hold customer expectations to the highest standards and want all customers to have the best experience possible. If they allowed Flash applications to run, they would not consistently run well.

iSwifter really runs fairly well and is better than anything else we have seen. Just remember that you need an Internet connection and performance can be slow as the program converts the code from the server in the cloud. You may notice some degradation in quality as well.

Because converting Flash-based content to work on tablets is expensive, iSwifter may be an option but it does have limitations. Instancy prefers the direction HTML5 output is going and will continue to use that medium for interactivity on mobile devices. We also use Instancy’s authoring tools and suggest our customers do as well so content can be authored once and viewed by many. The Instancy authoring software provides the flexibility to deliver the same content in both HTML and Flash without have to reauthor the same content multiple times. Instancy’s goal is to provide our users the ability to access content anytime, anywhere, at the right time, right place, and on the right device. As an alternative, we give a thumbs up to iSwifter.

Our goal in design and delivery of training and education is to efficiently and effectively move the knowledge from experienced subject matter experts (SMEs) to people who need that knowledge to perform their jobs. eLearning is one good approach to achieve this goal.

eLearning can be produced at many different interactivity, engagement, multimedia and pedagogical levels. However, in practical terms, eLearning designers are constantly challenged with cost and time constraints in producing high quality eLearning content.

Consider a scenario where:

• knowledge and associated content is constantly changing,
• the audience receiving that content is not very large (at least multiple thousands) and/or
• the budget to produce that content is limited.

For example, in sales training programs, content changes frequently and new content is frequently introduced when new product features and product promotions are introduced to increase sales.

In such scenarios, we need to look for ways to create and update eLearning rapidly without expending a huge amount of time and money.   One of these ways is to convert the existing PowerPoint presentations into eLearning. In other words:

Leverage the in-house experts to create the eLearning content.

Most of our experts and trainers are comfortable with MS Office and many of them have already been using PowerPoint to develop and present content in classroom settings.

In fact, a lot has been written about PowerPoint based eLearning – some training experts and instructional designers have called it ‘page-turner’ eLearning.  However, an eLearning course created through conversion of PowerPoint may be enhanced considerably go beyond a slide show.

Depending on the time, budget and audience size, you have two options for converting PowerPoint to eLearning.

Option A (Simple Conversion):

Simple Conversion

Take your existing PowerPoint presentations from your classroom presentation and convert them into Flash for web presentation.

The conversion of PowerPoint presentation to an eLearning course is extremely rapid and quite inexpensive. Services of an instructional designer are not used for creating such a course. The only input is the PowerPoint presentation and possibly audio narration files.

The web-based content generated from this simple and direct conversion may be enhanced by simple features including:

1. Basic navigation through a simple Table of Contents  and Previous, Next, Exit buttons or links
2. Usage of templates including company logo and brand colors, etc.
3. Audio narration for each slide; the SMEs can record audio the way they would present the content in the classroom
4. Test questions made available at the end of the presentation or after every major topic

Tools like Instancy can be used to put together the content and the aforementioned enhancements.

To see a sample course created through simple conversion of a PowerPoint presentation to Flash,
click here.

This type of conversion of content focuses on transfer of the SME’s knowledge to the audience, that is, it gets the job done.  However, it doesn’t really focus on:

Conversion with Enhancements based on Instructional Design Principles

This option can be considered in a scenario where you don’t want a simple page turner, and your timelines and training budgets allow you to hire an instructional designer and a graphics/media person.

In this type of conversion, you can engage the help of an experienced Instructional Designer to extract the text and graphics from the PowerPoint and re-author it using instructional design strategies. You can leverage all the features of an option A course described above, but you can further enhance the output by including an instructional design process:

1. Defining learning objectives and outcomes and mapping the content to match those learning objectives and presenting the learning objectives to the learner at the beginning of each topic
2. Breaking down the content into smaller lessons or topics
3. Converting static or bulleted text into attractive pages with graphics, video clips or other media elements or interactions (including simple simulations) that engage the users
4. Making the text content succinct and brief
5. Creating a test or quiz at the end each lesson or end of the course; question types may range from multiple choice to fill-in-the-blank, drag and drop exercises etc.

You can use eLearning authoring tools and templates to convert eLearning content without investing in custom programming.  This will ensure that your course can be developed fast and the costs can be optimized.

To see a sample course created through option B, click here.

While converting PowerPoint to eLearning is simple and cost effective in many cases, it is not a universal solution for all eLearning and knowledge transfer scenarios and business needs.

Converting PowerPoint to eLearning (following either Option A or B as outlined in this article) does make good sense as a starting point where:

• existing content is already available in PowerPoint presentations,
• the SMEs are comfortable working with PowerPoint and
• budget and time are limited.

Blended learning these days combines structured classroom learning with informal modes of learning that use mobile delivery options, virtual classrooms or labs, social networking tools, enabling students to participate in discussions, share videos, post comments and ideas,  and a whole lot more.

The benefits of using blended learning programs are twofold:

From a learning perspective:

• Stronger learning outcomes: Blended learning provides a more engaging learning experience, and hence a stronger learning outcome for the student.
• More effective learning: Learning occurs over a relatively longer time span, rather than being limited to a learning event. Individuals’ media preferences tend to vary, but combining multiple modes of instructions in a course addresses multiple learning styles.   Therefore, retention rates in blended learning programs are higher since the learners have a greater possibility to applying what they’re learning on the job and sharing their experiences with others.
• Higher completion rates: Compared to an all elearning course, blended learning courses show higher completion rates. Students have higher likelihood of finishing a course which encompasses all aspects of a learning experience including content, discussions, assignments and evaluation mechanism and greater sense of accountability.

From a business perspective:

• Higher perceived value: The audience attach a higher perceived value to blended learning courses because of opportunities to interact with experts. This means that they are willing to pay more for such programs.
• Optimized Development Cost and Time: A totally online, self-paced, media-rich, Web-based training content may be too expensive to produce in all instances (requiring multiple resources and skills), but combining virtual collaborative and coaching sessions with simpler self-paced materials can optimize development time as well as effort, and create programs that are just as effective, if not more. New, fresh content can be added over time to keep students up to date with the information. Therefore, blended learning programs provide more economical scalability in distributing the training programs.
• Higher revenue potential through membership revenue: As these blended learning courses are usually of relatively longer duration, there is potential for subscription based revenue model.  Membership based on monthly subscription can provide recurring revenue streams for training providers.
• Increased reach/accessibility: Traditional classroom sessions require working professionals to be away from work for 2-3 days or longer at a time, which may not always work from the business perspective. In contrast, think of virtual classroom events such as webinars, which are inclusive of remote audiences. When followed up with recorded knowledge objects (ability to playback a recorded live event) and social collaboration, can extend the reach to those who could not attend at a specific time.

Let’s take the example of a 6 month course on Financial Analysis. Using the blended learning format, the basics can be covered using elearning modules, while regular webinars can provide students opportunities to interact with, and learn from experts.

Social networking tools as well as mobile tools can be used to extend reach and encourage collaborative learning. Discussion boards enable students to share ideas, videos, post comments. Assessment modules enable them to test their learning.

The revenue model can be based on a membership program with a recurring revenue stream, where members pay subscriptions every month to attend new webinars and gain access to fresh articles or training modules. Thus, the revenue potential is fairly high.

It is time to give blended a serious look:  to a model of learning which is flexible, which uses formal as well as informal tools of learning, and provides benefits of self paced as well as collaborative learning at lower costs and higher revenue possibilities.