There’s a problem with the way education designers talk about blended learning. It is commonly considered a mix of “traditional” classroom learning with some online learning elements. Driving this point of view is often a presumption that the physical classroom is best for when you need people together for instructor-led teaching or other shared learning experiences and that online or e-learning is what learners do on their own (asynchronously).

The real question to address is, “What parts of the learning experience are best addressed synchronously, and what parts are best addressed asynchronously?” Only then should we consider the question of where and how that learning event occurs (online or in physical space; alone or together).

We can fall into the trap of prematurely committing an entire topic to one modality: finance taught through e-learning, strategy taught in a two-day face-to-face session, etc. Instead, we should examine each of these topics to see how a staged learning design – using differing modalities – could help take the learner from conceptual awareness through guided practice and then on to supported application at work. Skipping this analysis can result in missed opportunities to tease the learning apart at the topical level and to ask some questions that can ultimately support a more successful learning experience.

The three Es is a framework that can be very successful in applying this thinking to blended learning both at the topical and programmatic levels.

1. Engage (Setting the Foundations of Learning)

The first E is all about preparing your learners for the topic at hand by providing foundational frameworks, real-world context and reasons for learning, and (where applicable) having them gather relevant data that will make the next phase even more meaningful.

Here is a design question to consider: What data collection, individual preparation, context-setting, manager conversations or networking will serve to make this topic more personally meaningful for the participant and to create greater efficiencies during the next phases?

Example approaches include:

• Kickoff webinars
• Level-setting content
• Context-setting messages
• Diagnostics and data collection
• Networking
• Assessments
• A recorded message from leadership
• Online networking
• Teasers for exploration events

2. Explore (Through Deep Dives, Practice, Feedback and Planning)

With the “engage” phase behind you, you can then design for a deeper, guided exploration of the topic at hand. This stage is often conducted during a face-to-face session, but you may also deliver it through highly interactive webinar design. The point here is to provide an opportunity for guided application of the content area, with feedback from experts and peers, and to incorporate the individual data (from the engage phase) into the process.

Design questions: What practice needs to take place under the direction of experts in real time? What experiences must the group have collectively to crystallize insights?

Example approaches:

• Dialogues and debates
• Problem-solving
• Practice in simulations
• Immersive experiences
• Coaching and feedback
• Action planning
• Deep networking
• Expert guidance

3. Embed (By Transferring to Work For Business Impact)

This last phase is all about practical application and impact. For each topic, it is useful to gain an understanding by interviewing participants about how the content or skills will show up for them at work. These interviews can give insight into how to support the learners in their endeavor to apply what they have learned.

Design question: What tools, process, meetings, coaching or other events should you create to ensure supported application of learning at work?

Example approaches:

• Performance support tools
• On-demand content
• Check-in events
• Coaching
• Meetings with the supervisor/manager
• Application experiments
• Showcase events for sharing learning

It’s hard to think of a learning situation in which you would not want to provide preparatory material of some sort – be that a podcast series, a list of articles, an introductory video, data-gathering tools, etc. Similarly, it’s tough to think of a learning situation in which you would not want to provide your learners with resources to help them after the shared, live experiences are over. These are some of the reasons to consider a variety of tools and approaches for asynchronous and blended learning at the topical level.

The Deeper Argument

There is another argument for blending, though, and it’s not about efficiencies and cost savings. Learning takes time, especially when you are tackling difficult issues within the business that must address multiple domains of knowledge, skills and beliefs. There is a logical sequencing of learning from initial data-gathering, presentation of the compelling case for “why change?”, foundational concepts and the like through guided explorations, testing new approaches and planning with others, all the way to supported application of new behaviors at work (typically through performance support tools, events and networks). There is also support from recent research around the need to pace learning, revisit concepts with some regularity and focus on practical applications in order to build the bridge from conceptual awareness to effective application.

An educational/topical design that is constrained to a single event is inherently insufficient. Let’s design for each topic and use the three Es to become more disciplined around how and where we spend our learners’ time and create greater opportunities for successful action and impact for the organization.