All About Classroom Training vs Online Training

A new academic year has begun after nearly two years of the pandemic. The past two years have been challenging for many of us, especially students. Undergraduates and those in graduate school are no exception. But isn’t it rightly said that a storm makes us stronger and never lasts forever? Aren’t difficulties best known to strengthen the mind just as labour does to the body? Even though the challenges are plenty, it is time to move on, excel, and create new benchmarks.

Across India, we are witnessing this with a preference more inclined toward training classroom from students and their parents. We can notice this with clarity to what is happening to Byju’s and Unacademy, who started as online-only providers during the pandemic, restricting people’s choices. In recent times these providers are seen setting up physical centres as the teaching methodology that has somewhat, though not completely moved back to exactly how it was during pre-covid times. If you are reading this, you must be wondering which is better and why? Is classroom training better or live virtual training?

We at EduPristine, strongly believe that no one format is the answer, but an equal blend of both. As we have observed, different students are comfortable with different ways of learning, be it individually or in groups, in the classroom, or at home. Some prefer a synchronous mode of learning, while some demand an asynchronous delivery. Online learning, which many providers tried to push to the students and their parents for their financial benefit, does not work for most students.

This is because students and their families are ultimately looking out for stronger outcomes such as better learning, better engagement, social interaction (after all humans are known to be social by nature), in-depth & useful learning experiences, but most importantly better outcomes in terms of pass rates and better jobs. To have a positive outcome, one important aspect is studying and clearing the examination, and the second being, able to fetch good job opportunities. Don’t we all have our own preferences, likes, comforts, and so on? To cater to such multiple needs, we as an Institute try to provide flexible options to all our students with a primary and a clear focus on improving the outcomes that can attract better job prospects and thus promise a better quality of life. EduPristine is popularly known to offer both. In-person physical teaching across 7 cities along with synchronous live virtual teaching, anywhere in the world. Both these services are offered at convenient times and all days of the week, to fit into the lives of our students and working professionals without having to change too much and cause inconvenience forcing students to drop out midway due to interference with their working lives or other responsibilities.

Here’s how you can decide which option best suits your needs and works best for you.

If you ask us then, you should always choose the face-to-face physical classroom option over any other mode and we strongly encourage our readers too, to prioritize passing the examination first rather than saving some time and money on travelling. Take a moment and think about it, a failed exam attempt can put you back by maybe 6-9 months resulting in a loss of opportunity and income which is far, far higher than the little extra that you will be investing in attending physical classroom sessions. Let us understand this better with some key differences and similarities between the two modes of learning. So, what remains the same?

Engagement, discipline, curriculum, learning content, and teaching methodology by experienced and passionate trainers remain the same in both modes. What differs?

• Classroom training demands learners to create a specific time for a particular activity and urges them to focus on their studies during that time, and not be distracted by external factors such as what is happening at home, disturbance caused when family members are watching TV, or interruption caused by mobile phones. Don’t we all agree on the fact that greater focus and attention always lead to better learning outcomes leading to better results?
• As the name suggests, live online learning means studying from home. Studying from home cannot always be feasible and may lead to other activities forcing learners to skip or not be able to focus or may result in skipping a part of the class. Other interruptions like children playing, dogs barking, someone talking, someone watching TV, and phone ringing will not only ensure that you learn nothing but also waste all your efforts, time, and money.
• A physical classroom set-up also brings learners in touch with other learners who may be similar in some way or may also be striving hard to perform better for positive outcomes. This facilitates social interaction and forms a network. This network can be a great source of motivation so that when students fall back, they will be able to measure themselves against what their friends are learning and pull themselves back up to be in line with the rest of the class and practice what is required to succeed.
• In the virtual mode, it becomes very difficult to be in pace with others, and one does not have the self-motivation to do so which will surely impact the end outcome, and compromise on the objective of passing the exam, which is the first step to getting a good job.
• In addition, in-person training also allows learners to take help from other fellow students. If there is something that they might have missed, or did not understand, it can be very easy for them to spend some time after the class with other fellow batch mates or even faculty for that matter to get their concepts crystal clear. This will certainly help learners when they get back home trying to revise what they have studied or prepare for what will be taught in the following sessions. Understanding concepts clearly with examples is a great benefit of being together physically.
• In the online mode, it is nearly impossible to implement due to various reasons such as the meeting link may expire, the meeting may end abruptly, and fellow team members or faculty may have other family commitments due to which the doubts can prevent learners from understanding what they spent 4-5 hours studying and may become a hurdle for future sessions as well. Due to such reasons, the classroom has a great advantage of taking help from everyone to be fully prepared for the program.
• While studying, learners may also encounter situations wherein they may require assistance from the customer care team, maybe something happened with the LMS access, maybe some assistance is required with the books, or maybe some from the batch might need to reschedule the classes because there is an important India-Pakistan cricket match scheduled for that day. Being physically present at the centre can help learners speak to their respective counsellors or seek further help. Getting in touch with the concerned team can also help learners change their batch if they would want to take a break due to health reasons or other commitments. Meeting someone in person can always help in getting the job done faster.

  Being in a physical class also helps learners connect directly with the faculty, who are qualified professionals working in the industry where some of them may also be hiring for their companies or know of people who need talented people. Additionally, we also come across students who may find some concepts difficult to grasp, especially in numeric, quant-type subjects. If such a situation arises, students could always get in touch with our customer care team and schedule an extra class or sit back after the class for extra coaching. Is it possible in an online mode? Yes, but very difficult.

I know some of you will be sold the advantages of online learning by people with vested interests who do not offer classes in the physical mode. They are doing it maybe to maximize their profit and sell what they have because they have their own interest in mind, not yours. You can ask those who are recommending online sessions to you because they do not conduct in-person sessions. Ask them how they studied for their professional certifications. How many of them passed their CA/CPA/ACCA/CFA or any other professional program in Accounting or Finance by studying in an online mode? The simple answer is NONE. Now the same people are recommending you to study in an online mode knowing completely well that class participation and pass rates in physical classroom mode are better than that in an online mode. Always choose what works best for you and not get influenced by those who have no credentials to recommend something which is not the best for you.

Another interesting fact that we have found is, globally, the pass rates in a classroom mode of delivery are much higher than that in an online mode. Dropout rates are comparatively higher in the online mode due to people not being able to keep pace and lacking the motivation to study on their own.

So, when somebody pushes the online mode of learning, please ask these questions, and ask for supporting facts.

At EduPristine, we give you options to choose from, for whatever you are comfortable with and what works best for you. We believe a classroom mode is better, with smaller personal classes compared to online with larger student numbers, poor connections, and a lack of social interaction and motivation. But we don’t choose for you. We offer you both options so you can choose. You are the best judge to decide for yourself what you want.

We recommend what we think is the best. Best Wishes on your way to becoming a qualified successful professional. All the best, and happy learning!