Class vs. Workshop — What's the Difference?
By Urooj Arif & Maham Liaqat — Updated on May 6, 2024
A class is a formal learning session usually part of an educational curriculum, while a workshop is a short, hands-on session focused on practical skill development.
Difference Between Class and Workshop
Table of Contents
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Key Differences
A class typically follows a structured curriculum over several sessions, providing comprehensive instruction on a particular subject. A workshop, on the other hand, is often a one-time event focused on interactive, hands-on skill building in a specific area.
Classes often emphasize theoretical knowledge and may include lectures, discussions, or projects. Workshops prioritize experiential learning, where participants actively engage in practical activities or exercises.
A class involves graded assessments like quizzes or exams, supporting a deeper understanding over time. Workshops focus less on grades and more on immediate feedback, aiming for skill improvement in a short period.
Classes can take place in academic institutions over semesters or quarters, contributing to degrees or certifications. Workshops are often organized by training organizations or professionals, offering standalone certificates or simply practical experience.
Classes are structured to accommodate diverse student abilities and progress at a set pace, whereas workshops are often more flexible, catering to specific skill levels and providing individualized guidance.
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Comparison Chart
Duration
Several sessions (weeks or months)
Short-term (hours or days)
Structure
Follows a defined curriculum
More flexible and adaptive
Focus
Theoretical understanding
Hands-on skill-building
Assessment
Graded exams, projects
Feedback through exercises
Outcome
Credits toward a degree or certification
Standalone certificate, practical skills
Compare with Definitions
Class
A series of instructional periods in a particular subject.
She enrolled in a calculus class this semester.
Workshop
A brief, focused session aimed at practical skills.
The photography workshop will cover basic editing techniques.
Class
Involves presentations by an instructor.
The biology class had a lecture on ecosystems.
Workshop
Emphasizes participant engagement.
The pottery workshop allowed participants to create their own pieces.
Class
Provides credits toward a diploma or degree.
This history class will fulfill her elective requirements.
Workshop
Provides immediate hands-on experience.
The coding workshop helped beginners build their first programs.
Class
Occurs over multiple days, weeks, or months.
The Spanish class meets every Tuesday and Thursday.
Workshop
Often caters to specific industry skills.
The project management workshop provided the latest tools and strategies.
Class
Adheres to a predefined set of topics and learning objectives.
The computer science class follows a strict curriculum.
Workshop
Tailored to participants' current skill levels.
The art therapy workshop adapted its content based on participants' experience.
Class
A set, collection, group, or configuration containing members regarded as having certain attributes or traits in common; a kind or category.
Workshop
Beginning with the Industrial Revolution era, a workshop may be a room, rooms or building which provides both the area and tools (or machinery) that may be required for the manufacture or repair of manufactured goods. Workshops were the only places of production until the advent of industrialization and the development of larger factories.
Class
A grade of mail
A package sent third class.
Workshop
A room, area, or small establishment where manual or light industrial work is done.
Class
A quality of accommodation on public transport
Tourist class.
Workshop
An educational seminar or series of meetings emphasizing interaction and exchange of information among a usually small number of participants
A creative writing workshop.
Class
A social stratum whose members share certain economic, social, or cultural characteristics
The lower-income classes.
Workshop
To create or revise (a drama or literary work) based on suggestions or criticism from a group of collaborators.
Class
Social rank or caste, especially high rank.
Workshop
A room, especially one which is not particularly large, used for manufacturing or other light industrial work.
Class
(Informal)Elegance of style, taste, and manner
An actor with class.
Workshop
A brief, intensive course of education for a small group, emphasizing interaction and practical problem solving.
Class
A group of students who are taught together, usually at a regularly scheduled time and in the same subject.
Workshop
An academic conference.
Class
The period during which such a group meets
Had to stay after class.
Workshop
(transitive) To help a playwright revise a draft of (a play) by rehearsing it with actors and critiquing the results.
Class
The subject material taught to or studied by such a group
Found the math class challenging.
Workshop
(transitive) To work on or revise something, especially collaboratively, in a workshop.
Class
A group of students or alumni who have the same year of graduation.
Workshop
To improve through collaboration.
Class
(Biology)A taxonomic category ranking below a phylum or division and above an order.
Workshop
A shop where any manufacture or handiwork is carried on.
Class
(Statistics)An interval in a frequency distribution.
Workshop
Small workplace where handcrafts or manufacturing are done
Class
(Linguistics)A group of words belonging to the same grammatical category that share a particular set of morphological properties, such as a set of inflections.
Workshop
A brief intensive course for a small group; emphasizes problem solving
Class
(Mathematics)A collection of sets whose members share a specified property.
Class
To arrange, group, or rate according to qualities or characteristics; assign to a class; classify.
Class
(countable) A group, collection, category or set sharing characteristics or attributes.
The new Ford Fiesta is set to be best in the 'small family' class.
That is one class-A heifer you got there, sonny.
Often used to imply membership of a large class.
This word has a whole class of metaphoric extensions.
Class
A social grouping, based on job, wealth, etc. In Britain, society is commonly split into three main classes: upper class, middle class and working class.
Class
(uncountable) The division of society into classes.
Jane Austen's works deal with class in 18th-century England.
Class
(uncountable) Admirable behavior; elegance.
Apologizing for losing your temper, even though you were badly provoked, showed real class.
Class
A group of students in a regularly scheduled meeting with a teacher.
The class was noisy, but the teacher was able to get their attention with a story.
Class
A series of lessons covering a single subject.
I took the cooking class for enjoyment, but I also learned a lot.
Class
(countable) A group of students who commenced or completed their education during a particular year. A school class.
The class of 1982 was particularly noteworthy.
Class
(countable) A category of seats in an airplane, train or other means of mass transportation.
I used to fly business class, but now my company can only afford economy.
Class
A rank in the classification of organisms, below phylum and above order; a taxon of that rank.
Magnolias belong to the class Magnoliopsida.
Class
Best of its kind.
It is the class of Italian bottled waters.
Class
(statistics) A grouping of data values in an interval, often used for computation of a frequency distribution.
Class
(set theory) A collection of sets definable by a shared property.
The class of all sets is not a set.
Every set is a class, but classes are not generally sets. A class that is not a set is called a proper class.
Class
(military) A group of people subject to be conscripted in the same military draft, or more narrowly those persons actually conscripted in a particular draft.
Class
A set of objects having the same behavior (but typically differing in state), or a template defining such a set in terms of its common properties, functions, etc.
An abstract base class
Class
One of the sections into which a Methodist church or congregation is divided, supervised by a class leader.
Class
(transitive) To assign to a class; to classify.
I would class this with most of the other mediocre works of the period.
Class
(intransitive) To be grouped or classed.
Class
(transitive) To divide into classes, as students; to form into, or place in, a class or classes.
Class
Great; fabulous
Class
A group of individuals ranked together as possessing common characteristics; as, the different classes of society; the educated class; the lower classes.
Class
A number of students in a school or college, of the same standing, or pursuing the same studies.
Class
A comprehensive division of animate or inanimate objects, grouped together on account of their common characteristics, in any classification in natural science, and subdivided into orders, families, tribes, genera, etc.
Class
A set; a kind or description, species or variety.
She had lost one class energies.
Class
One of the sections into which a church or congregation is divided, and which is under the supervision of a class leader.
Class
One session of formal instruction in which one or more teachers instruct a group on some subject. The class may be one of a course of classes, or a single special session.
Class
A high degree of elegance, in dress or behavior; the quality of bearing oneself with dignity, grace, and social adeptness.
Class
To arrange in classes; to classify or refer to some class; as, to class words or passages.
Class
To divide into classes, as students; to form into, or place in, a class or classes.
Class
To be grouped or classed.
The genus or family under which it classes.
Class
Exhibiting refinement and high character; as, a class act. Opposite of low-class
Class
People having the same social or economic status;
The working class
An emerging professional class
Class
A body of students who are taught together;
Early morning classes are always sleepy
Class
Education imparted in a series of lessons or class meetings;
He took a course in basket weaving
Flirting is not unknown in college classes
Class
A collection of things sharing a common attribute;
There are two classes of detergents
Class
A body of students who graduate together;
The class of '97
She was in my year at Hoehandle High
Class
A league ranked by quality;
He played baseball in class D for two years
Princeton is in the NCAA Division 1-AA
Class
Elegance in dress or behavior;
She has a lot of class
Class
(biology) a taxonomic group containing one or more orders
Class
Arrange or order by classes or categories;
How would you classify these pottery shards--are they prehistoric?
Common Curiosities
What is a workshop?
A workshop is a short, interactive event focused on practical skill-building.
Are assessments given in workshops?
Workshops usually provide feedback through exercises but may not include formal grades.
What is a class?
A class is a formal educational session that follows a curriculum over multiple sessions.
Which option is better for practical learning?
Workshops are generally better for hands-on skills, while classes provide broader theoretical knowledge.
How long do classes and workshops typically last?
Classes can last weeks or months, whereas workshops generally span hours or a few days.
What is the difference in teaching style between a class and a workshop?
Classes are lecture-based and curriculum-driven, while workshops focus on interactive, hands-on learning.
Can a class provide certification or credits?
Yes, classes often provide credits or contribute to degree programs.
Do workshops offer any certification?
Workshops might offer certificates of completion or attendance.
Do classes include practical exercises?
Yes, many classes include labs or projects, but they balance this with theoretical instruction.
Which is more structured: a class or a workshop?
Classes tend to be more structured, adhering to a set curriculum.
Do you receive grades in a workshop?
Not typically; workshops emphasize improvement and skill practice.
Can you complete a workshop in one day?
Yes, many workshops are designed to be completed in a day or over a weekend.
Are workshops more suitable for professionals?
Often, workshops provide practical training for professionals seeking to enhance specific skills.
Can workshops be part of a class?
Yes, some classes incorporate workshops for practical application.
Are classes usually tied to academic institutions?
Yes, classes are often part of school or college programs.
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Written by
Urooj ArifUrooj is a skilled content writer at Ask Difference, known for her exceptional ability to simplify complex topics into engaging and informative content. With a passion for research and a flair for clear, concise writing, she consistently delivers articles that resonate with our diverse audience.
Co-written by
Maham Liaqat
