Which delivery format is right for you?

Published on September 27, 2022 by Sarah Lawing

When it comes to the wheres, whens, hows, and whys of course or program offerings, there have never been more choices. Will your course or program be onsite or online? Synchronous or asynchronous? Scheduled or on demand? Facilitated or self-guided? Or will it be some combination of the above? Most importantly, what is the best fit for your context?

These are questions about how you will DELIVER the content in your course or program. It is important to have an idea or outline of your course or program DESIGN before you finalize decisions about content delivery.

If you don’t know WHAT you will teach, you don’t yet know how your participants will best learn the content. For help with this part, check out one of our facilitated courses.

Once you’re ready to answer questions of content delivery, you’ll need to consider the options and decide what makes the most sense for you.

It is important to note that sometimes decisions about instruction and timing are not entirely your own. For example, your context may include departmental directives that require your course or program to be facilitated. There are likely other factors as well, such as individuals or entities that will inform the timing of your course as – these include stakeholders and boards that have a vested interest in or oversight of your context.

Contextual realities are any expectations, circumstances, norms, or constraints that factor into a decision or situation. At Learning Forte we believe in helping you find creative and sustainable solutions that are inside your context AND outside the box.

If you are preparing to offer a new course or program but can’t decide the right format, our Delivery Format Decision Guide will help you explore the options available. It contains tips, questionnaires and self-assessments to take the guesswork out of deciding how you’ll deliver your next course or program.