GCP: FAQ

Q: What are the benefits of online learning?
There are many recognized benefits to be gained from online learning – for both the employer and the learner. Organizations that implement quality e-learning solutions often save significant costs over traditional learning due to such things as reduced travel expenses, lower instruction costs, less time off the job, automated record keeping, simplified administration, and more. In addition, they often improve the consistency of their training message and their coverage across the entire organization.

Well-designed, interactive courseware can also improve comprehension and retention levels for many learners.

Students benefit from a more flexible learning environment where they have more control over how and when they learn. They can set their own schedule and pace, starting and stopping as needed to accommodate individual needs. Learners can interact more comfortably with the material and exercise more direction in how they approach learning concepts. GCP courses incorporate a significant degree of learner-directed control in the instructional design that would be hard to accomplish with traditional learning. Recognizing that adults learn best by doing, we design courses that are rich in opportunities for active engagement. Students typically also benefit through improved attention and higher retention rates.



Q: Will students learn as much using e-learning courses as they would in a traditional, face-to-face course?
Online learning is not a “silver bullet” for all training needs. Some subjects and some learning objectives will require face-to-face instruction and live one-on-one evaluation. In other cases, a blended learning approach may be the most appropriate solution. For most cognitive concepts, though, e-learning can produce outstanding results that match or exceed those provided by the typical traditional classroom course. Studies done by the U.S. Office of Technology Assessment have shown that e-learning students do as well or better in courses and on tests than traditional students. Other studies support that e-learning can often produce better understanding and retention than conventional learning environments.



Q: Can learners take GCP's courses from any computer? What about location?
Yes, as long as the computer meets the system requirements for the e-learning platform and has the appropriate network connection. The only exception might be customized courseware that's been designed with links to files or systems on your organization's internal network (intranet) in the case where you may be using a computer that does not have security access to that intranet site.



Q: Can I start and stop a course whenever I need to? Do your courses provide a bookmark function?
If your training takes place with an LMS, your progress and position in a GCP course are automatically tracked by the Learning Management System (LMS) and your position is “bookmarked” whenever you exit a course. Upon reentering the course, you will have the option of starting where you left off (at the bookmark) or entering the course at another point. You can also easily navigate to any part of the course at any time by using the contents page.



Q: How much time does it take to finish a course?
Our subject matter experts completion times vary by course subject and student experience. Everyone wants training to be as short as possible and many administrators are rightfully concerned about attention spans being limited and learners being easily distracted. However, designers must make certain that courses will adequately cover the material needed to achieve the learning objectives of the course. This is especially critical for some compliance and certification training. In fact, some regulatory requirements actually specify a minimum duration for training time on specific topics.

Our subject matter experts and instructional designers are careful to evaluate the balance between achieving the required learning objectives and keeping the course as short as practical. Unlike some vendors, we don't short change the learning objective just to make a more marketable course length. Our courses range from under 30 minutes to several hours, depending what's needed to effectively cover the material. However, we are careful to divide courses into easily digested chapter with short Lesson Quizzes after each chapter. Typical chapters are less than 15 minutes in duration and are optimized for the adult learner's attention and patience.



Q: Do I get a Certificate of Completion for an e-learning course?
In most cases, a certificate of completion is available once you have completed the entire course and passed all of the lesson quizzes. Users must complete all chapters (sections) of the course with a satisfactory score on the quizzes. Our courses allow you to print the certificate directly from your computer.



Q: What are the software/hardware requirements?
GCP courses are delivered through a web browser, and have been optimized for viewing on Microsoft Internet Explorer 7 or above. You must have Macromedia Flash Player (included with most browsers and available for free download). Your computer must be a Pentium III or above, should support audio, and must support at least 800x600 256 colors. Your internet connection should support 56Kbps or higher for good performance.



Q: How do I evaluate what an e-learning solution should cost?
License and delivery costs for e-learning solutions vary widely and depend on many things. The cost of a given solution reflects the length, quality, and instructional effectiveness of the content, along with the power, flexibility, and reliability of the learning management system included in the solution. Costs also depend on the size and duration of your commitment to the online training supplier and things like how many people need training over how many subjects and how much customization needs to made to the starting content. Even when creating your own content, the size of the training job influences what investment you should make.

The important thing to remember about the cost of e-learning is that, like most things in life, “you get what you pay for.”

It takes significant investment to create and support quality learning solutions. Vendors who have made that investment and are delivering the top quality solutions are not going to be doing so at fire-sale prices (unless they are on their way out of business). So, be skeptical of solutions that seem to be significantly cheaper than the market pays for the quality you seek. Look closely at the instructional effectiveness of the courseware and the support and stability of the vendor. When you consider what it costs to take a person off the job for even a few hours of training (or the cost impact if the training is ineffective), the cost of good content is a fraction of the total “real cost of training.” No one was ever sorry they paid more for better quality in training content. However, plenty of people have learned to regret having paid too little. Invest in the good stuff and you won't be sorry.



Q: Can I view a full version of a GCP e-learning course?
Absolutely. With GCP, you can have access to full versions of any (or all) of our courses. Login to MyGCP for free access to our courses right now.



Q: How do I get more information?
We're happy (and ready) to provide more information on any of our e-learning solutions.