Now more than ever, it is important to adopt a learner’s mindset. Humanity is undergoing a global shift, inviting us to discover new ways of working, collaborating and educating ourselves in a virtual environment.
In times of uncertainty and self-isolation, we decided to experiment. We’re transforming all of our learning experiences into hybrid experiences. Part online and part in person when we are able to socialise close to each other again. We have transformed our processes to create a hybrid learning journey. The online portion should not be boring or done alone. That’s why we created an inverted learning experience for our online track.
Head of Learning Experience, Reinaldo Campos describes an inverted learning experience as a ‘flipped classroom’ that challenges the norm of a facilitator transferring knowledge to a participant. Instead, this system places the learner in control to create a participant-centred learning experience. Each person gets access to content in advance before they meet their colleagues or even the facilitator.
Traditional learning elements as a stimulus, challenges and rewards are reversed. Participants engage with hybrid experiences prior to class, allowing face-to-face time for collaborative activities that clarify concepts and contextualise knowledge through doing and problem-solving.
While a participant centred learning journeys is adaptive, there is still a structure that any learner should follow to achieve their own personal best. Reinaldo provides four tips for getting the most out of a self-guided online learning experience.
Learn To Re-Learn Again
It is essential to unlearn old habits and beliefs from a traditional classroom setting. Keep an open mind and open heart to be less attached to old habits and be open to change.
Keep A Journal
A journal is an excellent tool for self-reflection and how you learn best in this new environment. Embrace a mindset of discovery and look at new ways of learning. To do that successfully, you must be aware of what works for you.
Time Management
Examine the times of the day and cycles of energy that support your best learning. It is key to be responsible for your own learning achievements. The online environment provides an opportunity to manage your own schedule and timelines.
Learn By Doing
We achieve the most when we learn by doing. Using our own voices, our hands or experiences is more beneficial than just sitting and listening to a lecture. We learn by doing whether we are in a physical or virtual learning experience. This is an active methodology that embraces using analytical skills, creativity and empathy for understanding someone else’s point of view.
Broaden Your Horizons
The ever-expanding horizons of online tools is an exciting space to operate in. In our exploration of virtual collaboration tools, we would like to leave you with this final thought.
If you’re interested in knowing how we’re adapting our experiences at the School of Design Thinking:
Online learning experience: Each experience starts with materials shared in a digital pack. The pack consists of rich content that is created with the individual participant in mind. The learner becomes the protagonist of their own journey and is in control of their learning routine.
The digital pack batch of content can be videos, articles, podcasts or quizzes. The participant is instructed on how to design their own path and create their own way of getting acquainted with their content. This way, the learner gets familiar with the concepts before they meet with other people. After the allotted time set for self-guided learning, a live meeting is scheduled to take place online.
Live meetings bring all participants together to build new knowledge and co-design on different tasks. Our design thinkers are always there acting as facilitators, assisting each person with personalised content, and guiding the session towards their interests. This is known as adaptive learning. The development of this experience is not static, or one size fits all. It changes according to the performance of the participants.
In-person learning experience: At the School of Design Thinking, we believe in “Learning by doing”. It means rolling up your sleeves and learning through the process; each participant will discover knowledge while they journey towards the understanding of an idea, tool or thought. It means learning by failing, by building and experimenting new things.
After more than 8 years of working exclusively teaching design thinking and innovation skills, we designed our own learning methodology. We call it the Learning Experience Design (LED). At the School of Design Thinking, each experience is designed to be a memorable one. We designed our experiences to have moments of great inspiration, moments of extreme practice and moments of reflection. After 8 years, we discovered that the right portions of inspiration, of practice and reflection, makes the best learning curve. As a design-centred school, we believe a lot in doing, so prepare to get out of your comfort zone and experiment new things.
With a hybrid learning experience, we’re bringing the best of both learning experiences. You can start your journey online and finish it in a creative space full of like-minded people.
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