Face to Face

I recently read an article that highlighted reasons why face to face classroom teaching is important and impactful. As a classroom instructor who is married to a school teacher this topic is dear to my heart.

With each Green Belt and Black Belt class I teach the impact from attending an in-class program is obvious and remarkable. The student-to-instructor and student-to-student interactions that occur outside of the curriculum is phenomenal and impossible to replicate online. In-class learning is especially important with Lean Six Sigma training due to the challenges we face with change management.

Five benefits of face to face classes:

1. Many critical skills can not be learned online – the “soft skills”. These skills include presentation skills, conflict resolution, negotiations, and team facilitation. These need human interactions to be taught effectively.
2. It develops communication and interpersonal skills. Workshops helps students build rapport, learn to read people, share ideas, ask questions, listen better, and build trust.
3. It builds teamwork. Students get to know each other on a deeper and different level. Being in-class together breaks down stereotypes and develops better human connections.
4. People are more focused when they break from routine. Attending an instructor-led class requires commitment and scheduling. Students are more committed to learn and thereby get more benefit from the time invested.
5. The magic created when an instructor truly sees you and gives you what you need. Students are valued and their ideas are important. This is the why I love teaching – those moments when students grasp the concept and they feel great about it.