Efficacy of Blended Preservice Training for Resource Parents.

Abstract

To evaluate a new way of meeting the growing demand for training prospective resource parents, our study compared the efficacy of a blended online and in-person approach with a traditional classroom-only approach. Findings based on a sample of 111 resource parent prospects showed significantly greater gains in knowledge from pre- to posttest for the blended approach over the classroom-only approach. The blended approach also produced dramatically lower dropout rates during preservice training. Both groups made significant gains in parenting awareness from pre to post, but those gains were greater for the classroom-only approach. Post hoc analyses examined this finding more closely. Satisfaction with training was comparably high for both groups. Gains in knowledge and awareness were sustained at a 3-month follow-up assessment.