It wasn’t too many years ago that any course that an employer sent its workers on was based in a traditional classroom, maybe even with a blackboard. To say that things have turned on their head would be an understatement.
Virtual classrooms are the big thing on the block now and when it comes to the tech industry, they are growing at an unbelievable rate. For example, if you were to look at the Check Point cyber security training which is available, you would quickly find that a virtual classroom is one of the most commonly used methods of learning.
Despite its popularity, there are a lot of misconceptions surrounding the training – most probably because it’s so misunderstood. Here, we will take a look at some of these myths and debunk them once and for all.
Myth #1 – It’s just a video
This is probably the primary misconception that is associated with the virtual classroom environment, and it mainly exists due to the emphasis on the “virtual” element of the name.
However, let’s get away from the thought of sitting back in front of a video right away. This isn’t what a virtual classroom is in the slightest. If you were merely watching a video, it’s more of a tutorial – not something that resembles a classroom.
The virtual classroom is much more interactive and even though the instructor is behind a screen, you will have regular contact and be permitted to ask questions along the way. Not only that, but any questions which are asked tend to be documented in a chat-style format, meaning that a lot of people find discussions easier to follow and log anyway. In other words, users don’t have to rely on their trusty notepad.
Myth #2 – There’s little sense of community
This somewhat interlinks to the previous point we made about interaction. One of the big worries, particularly amongst the tech community, is that there is such a small sense of community. This concern exists in the traditional environment, where the tech community is renowned to be quite quiet at times, so in the virtual classroom it’s no surprise that such thoughts are simply exaggerated.
Well, it all comes back to the way in which communication occurs in these virtual classrooms. While some industries might not like it, the general consensus is that it suits those involved in tech down to a tee. There’s no social awkwardness – all communication occurs via messages (or a headset, if you desire).
Similarly, a lot find it easier to contact other users and talk about the project digitally, than they would in a traditional environment.
Myth #3 – Users can’t pick up soft skills
This is a perfectly understandable misconception, but again it doesn’t really occur to the tech industry. Sure, soft skills are essential in some roles, but a lot of the time these virtual classrooms are being used for courses for highly technical topics that don’t really require an enhancement of such skills.
