EVALUATING VIRTUAL CLASSROOMS & WORKSHOPS
Best Practice Points from CHERYLE WALKER
Evaluation of Virtual Classrooms or Workshops is similar to evaluating any learning intervention or program. Some differences exist – the technology, the facilitation skills, the design of the online session, the participant comfort and confidence levels in the virtual environment, the specific web-conferencing software and tools, and certainly aspects of the blended learning program need to be considered.
The following is a round-up of common areas and associated questions that could be relevant when evaluating virtual classrooms or workshops. It is vital to understand at what level of familiarity or maturity your organisation and your learners are with virtual environments in order to select the right areas and questions to use for evaluation. For example, in the early days of deploying virtual classrooms or workshops, the focus may be on connecting and communicating. Once virtual classrooms and workshops are more common in your organisation and amongst your learner cohorts, then the evaluation questions may be more focused around quality of learning interactions, engaging design of learning activities, and getting the ‘blend’ right when utilising multiple channels for learning.
What follows is a list of suggested areas and questions for evaluating virtual classrooms and workshops. The aim is to improve the experience for the learner, the facilitator, and ultimately to improve the learning outcomes.
Connection Issues
How did you find connecting to the session?
How long did it take to connect to the session?
What, if any, on-screen error messages did you receive?
What were any other issues you experienced in connecting to the virtual session?
Other Technology Issues
How would you describe your technology experience of the virtual session?
What, if any, technology issues did you experience in the virtual session?
What technology tips do you have to give to the next participants who will be participating in a virtual session?
Information Provided Prior to the Session
What information did you receive to prepare you for the virtual session?
Was this information sufficient/understandable/confusing? (ask participants to comment or rate on a scale)
How did you feel about preparing to attend the virtual session?
Looking back now, is there anything else you think we could have communicated prior to the session?
Interaction Experiences
How did you feel participating in learning activities in the virtual session?
Was the level of interaction suitable to you for this session? (ask participants to comment or rate on a scale)
What suggestions do you have to improve your interaction experiences in the virtual classroom or workshop?
Comfort and Confidence
How comfortable did you feel learning in this way?
How confident are you to participant in a virtual session again?
How would you describe the learning experience in the virtual classroom or workshop to another potential participant?
Quality of Audio and Visuals
Was the Audio in the virtual session clear for you?
Did you have any trouble with the Audio component of the virtual session?
How would you rate the quality of the visual learning graphics in the virtual classroom or workshop?
How did your expectations of Audio and Visual components measure up against your expectations of the virtual session?
Web Conferencing Software
Have you used web-conferencing software before, and if so, please let us know your experiences?
How would you rate the ease-of-use of web-conferencing software used in this session?
What other web-conferencing features would you like to see utilised?
Start and Finish Times
Was the start time of the virtual classroom or workshop convenient for you?
What would be any suggestions you could make about start and finish times for this virtual classroom or workshop, considering your working environment and commitments?
Length of Session
How did you feel about the length of this virtual classroom or workshop?
Supporting Materials
What supporting materials did you receive for this learning program?
Were the supporting materials explained sufficiently for you to understand their context and use?
What, if anything, do you think is missing in this virtual learning program?
What other supporting materials do you think we could provide to learners in this program?