The “flipped classroom” model
It is a new educational model that is increasingly being used in both students’ and adults’ education and can be adopted with great success in corporate training, in particular through e-learning, combining asynchronous with synchronous distance education.
This new educational model, differs from the traditional “frontal teaching”, since virtually reverses educator’s “in class” instruction (synchronous e-learning) with homework (asynchronous e-learning). In fact, lessons studied at home, give the opportunity to save time for discussion, learners’ questions and collaborative activities with the supervision and assistance of the trainer, during the synchronous e-learning.
The particularities of corporate education
Regarding particularities of corporate education, those are identified in adult education and especially in employees who are asked to acquire new knowledge and skills or to adopt a new attitude or behavior to cope better in their work field, something that will contribute to the development of their company, too.
Consequently, as the learners are adults, the framework in which they are asked to acquire the new knowledge and the learning outcomes should be known from the beginning. Moreover, as workers have little free time, education should be designed in a way that will allow learners’ to use this little time effectively, but also attractive in order to motivate employees to spend this valuable time in learning. Another feature that must be taken into account regarding corporate training is that of collaborative learning, as cooperation and communication are key elements of running a successful business.
Benefits from the implementation of the “flipped classroom” model
This model combines benefits such as:
- Attracting the interest of the learner, as instead of just keeping up with a trainer’s lecture, learners’ time is exploited creatively with the collaborative work in groups. In this way, trainees gain experience through activities that are required to carry out during the synchronous course, but also through communication with other learners and the teacher, who has a supporting role.
- The personalized learning, as each learner has the opportunity to study the new lesson at home through video-lectures, presentations, quizzes (asynchronous distance education) in his own time and pace, depending on his own needs.
- Saving time. Learners, after having studied the educational material, are now able to utilize the time of synchronous lesson to exchange views and solve any possible questions through discussion with the instructor and other learners and also to exert new knowledge in practice through the activities assigned by the instructor in real time.
- More effective learning. A framework, which places emphasis on active, experiential learning through drill and practice, but also on communication and cooperation with others, has proved very effective in comparison with traditional teaching, while simultaneously simulates to the model with which operate successful modern businesses (knowledge / skills – working in groups – communication).
