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Coaching and mentoring have drastically changed since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. While some have thrived since the implementation of virtual classrooms, many learners do not seem to be engaging in it. In some cases, learners have a hard time even showing up for the virtual classrooms!

Many trainers of the instructional design courses and learning and development programs are trying to replicate what they do in the in-person classrooms. Most of us won’t even think about how hard it is for the trainers to shift their learning sessions to virtual lessons. The adaptation is not easy, just like it isn’t easy for the learners.

To better understand why your learners are not showing up for virtual classrooms, let’s first get into what virtual learning is.

What is Virtual Learning?

vILT (virtual instructor-led training) is where the trainer is live, with participants remotely learning via Zooms, Microsoft Teams, WebEx or another platform.  Participants engage in the learning much as they would in an in-person learning, as well as use technology tools such as chat, polls, surveys, and external collaboration tools such as Miro, Slack, ClickUp, Lucidspark and more.

Six Reasons Why Learners Aren’t Showing Up for Virtual Classrooms and How to Enhance Engagement

It can be pretty hard to get a hold of learners when they are not present in front of you physically. Following are six reasons why learners are not showing up for virtual classrooms for their learning and development sessions:

1. Unstable Internet (not available entirely in some cases)

The COVID-19 pandemic brought along a dire need for internet access to every home around the world. Schools, offices, and many more industries adapted to the virtual world for safety reasons. This meant learners needed to have proper, uninterrupted access to the internet. However, this is not the case for many learners.

One of the many reasons why learners do not show up for virtual classrooms is because of how unstable their internet is. While many might intend to attend the virtual sessions, the volatile nature of their internet makes it hard for them to do so. Furthermore, some learners have no access to the internet at all, which makes it impossible for them to show up to the virtual classrooms. Internet service providers have faced a surge in web traffic, making it hard for them to keep up with the demand leading to unstable internet in many households.

An excellent way to tackle this problem is for the organizations to provide their employees – the learners – with internet access at home to keep up with the learning sessions. Furthermore, the instructional designer must provide learners with self-paced learning to access the content when they have a stable internet connection.

2. Learners Need More Structure and Support

It is easy for the learners to ask for structure and support in the in-person learning sessions. However, distance learning and virtual classrooms mean the learners must be more independent and aware of their own learning.

Because the learners are juggling many things simultaneously – office work, virtual learning, and household work – it can lead them to engage less with the virtual classrooms. They can find it daunting to keep up with so many things at once, which means less engagement with the learning sessions. So, to combat this problem and ensure engagement, trainers must provide the learners with more structure and support online. Provide learners with strategies that make attending the virtual classrooms more manageable. Furthermore, provide learners with self-paced learning so they can have access to the instructional design content whenever it is possible for them.

3. Inadequate Workspace

While some trainers might think of this as a poor excuse for not showing up to the virtual classrooms, it is a crucial problem. How can learners focus if they do not have a workspace or a proper work environment? Being at home does not provide the same work environment an office does. So, an inadequate workplace can lead to learners not showing up for the virtual classrooms.

In the traditional learning session spaces, trainers have the presence and authority to make the environment as learning-oriented as possible. However, virtual learning means each learner’s workspace will vary.

So, to help ensure learners engage with virtual classrooms, the trainers can instruct them to set up their workspace in an area at home with minor distractions. This can help ensure the learners show up to the virtual classrooms as they will focus more clearly.

4. No Collaboration or Socialization

One of the many downsides of virtual learning is decreased socialization and no collaboration. Humans have the innate desire to socialize and engage with other humans. With virtual classrooms, learners do not have access to social stimulation like they do at in-person learning sessions.

To ensure the learners engage with virtual classrooms, the instructional designers must design the learning and development sessions to allow the learners to engage with others online. Provide the learners with opportunities to engage in collaborative learning in virtual classrooms.

5. Ensure Learners Have Access to You

It can be frustrating for learners to engage in virtual classrooms if they do not have proper access to you when they need help. So, to ensure your learners show up to the virtual learning sessions, you must adjust your availability accordingly. It can also help to set up an after-hours “hotline” or a discussion box where the learners can have access to you and ask for help when they need it. This can lead to the learners showing up for the virtual classrooms as they can have their questions answered quickly, leading to enhanced motivation.

6. “Chunk” the Learning

Long training sessions can make the learners lose interest in the virtual classrooms. So, to ensure your learners show up to the virtual classrooms, turn the long two-hour sessions into 10-minute informative chunks. Provide learners with self-paced learning so they can access these informational chunks whenever it is possible for them. Furthermore, to ensure engagement, trainers can add visuals to the chunks of information such as images, videos, gifs, and much more.

Conclusion

The shift to virtual classrooms has been difficult for many people. Learning via virtual classrooms has its own problems. However, trainers must know how to combat these problems to ensure learners show up to the virtual sessions. The six tips mentioned above can help instructional designers and trainers create learning programs that lead to enhanced engagement from the learners.

Because of the coronavirus pandemic, most organizations have adapted to vILT (virtual instructor led training) or eLearning for their corporate learning programs. If you wish to enhance your learning programs and eLearning methods, using a proven LXD (learning experience design) system is the best option. ID9 Intelligent Design can help increase your corporate learning programs and create more meaningful experiences for the employees.

Contact us now if you wish to find out more about how ID9 Intelligent Design is beneficial for your learning programs!

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