You’re in an exercise class where total beginners are mixed in with super-fit elites. The instructor tries to lead, but half the group races ahead while others give up on the sidelines. The class quickly descends into chaos, with no clear rhythm or sense of progress.
You make a swift exit.
Now imagine if that same class was organized, so that everyone started at a similar level, moving through exercises together, and supporting each other along the way.
Suddenly, everything works.
That’s the essence of cohort-based learning – a training approach that keeps learners accountable while progressing together.
Let’s explore the concept further and its role in instructional design.
What is cohort-based learning?
Cohort-based learning is about grouping learners and having them progress through training modules together.
You have surely encountered this learning style before at school or college.
For instance, in elementary school, you likely started first grade with a class of fellow students and then moved up through subsequent grades as the same group.
Throughout each school day, you attended the same classes, participated in activities, and generally progressed through the curriculum at the same pace.
In a professional setting, it works the same way. The group starts – and finishes – as a single unit.
Isn’t this the same as social learning?
Cohort-based learning certainly shares a few similarities with social learning, however, there are a couple of key distinctions.
Social learning generally occurs informally and without a structured curriculum; it relies on learning through observation and interaction with others. For instance, job shadowing, mentorships, and knowledge-sharing platforms like social media or wikis.
Cohort-based learning, on the other hand, is highly structured and based on defined goals, deadlines, and assessments. This is why it does so well in a formal education setting.
Key components of a cohort course
Structure
As we have established, a cohort course relies heavily on a structured curriculum. This “roadmap” comes with well-defined objectives and learning outcomes, along with a logical progression path.
This is more critical than you realize, because if your group is to move forward together and at the same pace, everyone needs to be on the same page (both figuratively and literally).
Collaboration tools
Digital collaboration tools are also essential, especially if you plan to run virtual training sessions or want to incorporate cohorts into a blended learning program.
Think Slack, Zoom, Microsoft Teams, etc. These are all excellent ways to get your cohort to engage with each other and share ideas and thoughts.
Additionally, cohorts that use these tools will have a much easier time building rapport and camaraderie amongst themselves. If your learners all get along, they’ll feel more comfortable participating and are more likely to stay engaged.
Synchronous and asynchronous elements
What are these, exactly?
- Synchronous refers to the stuff that happens in real time. Live webinars, in-person lectures, group discussions, etc.
- Asynchronous is the opposite – learning that takes place outside a live environment. Self-study, prerecorded videos, self-paced assessments, online forums, and so on.
Incorporating the two types is important because it provides opportunities for live interaction and collaboration, as well as time for reflection and independent learning.
Learners get the best of both worlds and receive a more comprehensive learning experience overall.
Instructor guidance
Because of its structured format, cohort learning must be instructor-led.
Their job is to provide ongoing guidance, feedback, and support so all the learners progress at the same pace.
Additionally, they are required to manage the group dynamics closely, since these can suffer without oversight. Facilitating discussions, resolving conflicts, and encouraging active participation are all part of a day’s work in a cohort-based model.
The benefits of cohort-based learning
At first, the idea of a rigidly structured learning environment sounds detrimental to the experience. After all, shouldn’t students be free to explore and learn at their own pace?
While in some cases this may be true, cohort-based learning actually brings many advantages.
Building connections
Creating a sense of community is one of the most valuable aspects of cohort-based learning. Learners can form connections with their peers to collaborate with and support each other in ways that extend beyond the course.
In a professional setting, these connections go a long way toward improving cross-departmental relationships and team building.
Higher completion rates
It’s no secret that self-paced study and courses have a dismally low completion rate.
The MOOC Pivot is a 2019 article published by Justin Reich and José A. Ruipérez-Valiente in Science magazine. It looked at massive open online courses (MOOCs) and analyzed data from all self-paced courses taught on edX by MIT and Harvard from 2012 to 2018.
The results were stark. Among all participants, the course completion rates hovered between 3% – 6%. Students who paid for courses fared better with a completion rate of around 50%.
Various sources around the web place the overall online learning completion rates between 5% – 15%.
Either way, it’s not great!
In a huge contrast, cohort-based learning does much better at holding students’ attention to the very end.
For instance, check out these cohort-based course provider’s completion rates:
- Esme Learning: 97%.
- Nomadic Learning: 87%
- Section4: 70%
Pretty incredible, right?
Real-time support and interaction
How useful is it to get instant feedback, help, and replies? How frustrating is it to email an instructor or post a message on a forum and then wait hours or even days for a response?
There’s a reason we call our friends to chat rather than email them. Interacting in a live environment provides something that just can’t be replicated in other ways.
Even something as simple as asking questions during a lesson can quickly clarify misunderstandings or open up new opportunities for meaningful discussion.
The result? A dynamic learning experience complete with in-depth exploration of topics and way stronger engagement.
Boosted accountability
In a cohort environment, learners are not only accountable to themselves but also to the wider group.
Knowing that others are counting on us can be a powerful motivator. If one person falls behind in a team where everyone’s input matters, the whole group is quickly affected.
When this happens, mutual support grows. And we actively look for ways to pull each other up and keep going.
Reflects real-world challenges
When faced with a big project, it’s rarely something we tackle alone. More often than not, we find ourselves needing to collaborate with others to solve problems and move forward.
Cohort-based learning pretty much works the same way. By learning in a group, learners are thrown into real-world scenarios where they have to figure out how best to work with others to succeed.
It’s like a practice run for real life and the unexpected challenges it throws us!
The challenges of cohort-based learning (with solutions)
Although the benefits of cohort-based learning are overwhelmingly positive, it’s also not without its challenges.
- Scheduling constraints: Live sessions can be a struggle to organize, especially if the group is large or if you’re dealing with several time zones.
- Solution: Offer a healthy mix of synchronous and asynchronous content. Record live sessions for anyone who misses them, so they can catch up.
- Resource heavy: The increased instructor support and synchronous learning take up a lot of resources, much more so than with self-paced learning.
- Solution: If practical, use a co-facilitation model where experienced individuals provide support and reduce the demand for a single resource.
- Relies on good group dynamics: With the best will in the world, you can’t make everyone get along with each other. The learning environment is no exception.
- Solution: Set clear group rules and expectations from the get-go. Incorporate team-building activities to build rapport. Take conflicting individuals aside and try to get it resolved outside of the group.
- Requires equal input from all participants: There will always be some students who put more effort in than others. Keeping tabs on this can be challenging.
- Solution: Implement regular check-ins and peer assessments to encourage balanced participation.
- It doesn’t suit everyone: Some people simply prefer to learn alone or at a slower pace and don’t thrive in a cohort environment.
- Solution: Offer an initial orientation session that clarifies cohort expectations, allowing learners to assess if it’s right for their personal learning style.
What type of training suits cohort-based learning?
The last topic we’ll cover here is how to recognize when cohort-based learning is – and isn’t – suitable for training.
First, cohort learning lends itself particularly well to the following environments:
- Employee and corporate training: It works especially well for employee onboarding, leadership development, and departmental upskilling.
- Workshops: These focus on skill-building or problem-solving and are well-suited to cohort-based models because participants can learn from one another’s experiences and insights.
- Bootcamps: These are super-intensive training programs that last a short while. Their fast-paced nature makes real-time support and group accountability essential for success.
- Online courses: Many online course providers now offer cohort-based options to enhance the online learning experience. As we have discovered, adding accountability and interactivity significantly increases the completion rates.
- Adult further education: Certification programs or continuing education courses are good candidates and allow learners to build a network of peers who share similar professional interests.
Second, cohort learning may not be the best option for:
- Highly personalized learning: If learners have individualized objectives or varying skill levels, cohort-based learning is unlikely to provide the flexibility required for learners to thrive.
- Technical skills: Self-paced learning often works better for highly technical training like coding and data analysis, where extensive hands-on practice is essential. In this case, learners need to take extra time without pressure to keep up with a group.
- Short informative courses: If the content is straightforward and doesn’t require much discussion or interaction (like a quick compliance training or overview of company policies), a cohort format can be unnecessarily complex.
Final thoughts
Cohort-based learning has successfully transferred the supportive, interactive nature of traditional classrooms into modern instructional design.
If you’re aiming to create a more engaged and motivated learning environment, this could be the method you’re looking for. What’s more, the world can always do with more people learning to work together successfully!
By Janette Bonnet
Janette Bonnet is an experienced L&D professional who is passionate about exploring instructional design techniques, trends, and innovations.