The fight for human attention has become much tougher with the advent of smartphones. In this difficult situation, education is only one of the means of obtaining information. In this context, it is easier to understand why such a phenomenon as microlearning has arisen. Such a format can act as an independent tool or can serve as an addition to the training program.
Microlearning simplifies heavy and extensive courses by breaking them down into smaller, essential components. Less important details of the subject matter are left out for a better understanding of the main points.
What Is Microlearning?
The microlearning approach has many advantages if the course is written by a professional. The idea of microlearning is based on the belief that smaller parts of the material that students constantly repeat are more effectively consumed by students as opposed to a full course of lectures at once.
Microlearning involves, ideally, a ten-minute lesson, but videos of 20-30 seconds are also considered microlearning. The term itself is closely related to elearning, but ordinary flashcards can also be used in training (information is shown on the card for several seconds), reading short messages, repeating them, and so on. In the context of elearning, microlearning can take the form of a podcast, game, or blog.
Microlearning has become an important tool in business, although it is still to be popularized. Staff training has become more efficient and takes less time than explaining everything at once. But certain difficulties may arise.
If there is no doubt about the effectiveness of microlearning in learning languages, then in other microlearning examples, learning in parts may not be suitable due to the specifics of the educational material (for instance, when learning to negotiate). Let's take a closer look at existing microlearning options.
Microlearning Examples
Practical learning
Practical microlearning techniques are characterized by the absence of an in-depth study of theory. The employee learns basic practical skills right at the workplace with the help of short training courses.
Video lessons
Video is the most convenient way to break large blocks into smaller ones, adding an interactive element to them. Typically, such videos are between 30 seconds and a minute long.
Games
The game approach demonstrates high efficiency. Using a smartphone or PC, the learner can receive information in a playful way, which helps retain attention and reduce the stress inherent in standard types of learning. Games help overcome prejudice about learning by presenting it in an entertaining, exciting form.
Social networks
A person can receive information from sources to which he/she is subscribed. Social networks personalize content, encouraging students to further acquire relevant information and expand sources. The point of microlearning is to constantly address the material in small parts, which is ideally facilitated by social networks, perhaps even better than in all other microlearning examples.
Microlearning for Business
The emergence of microlearning is associated with the development of the global web and mobile devices. The benefits of microlearning for business, given the speed of technology development, are enormous.
Benefits for educators
Creating content for microlearning:
- takes less time than developing traditional courses;
- allows you to quickly change components based on new requirements;
- saves the time of employees and lets them focus on their profile;
- makes employees more productive via streamlined training.
Benefits for learners
Acquiring knowledge via microlearning allows to:
- study at any time;
- spend less time learning;
- dynamically influence the learning process;
- avoid unnecessary information.
The goal of any training process as a whole is to teach the staff how to achieve the goals of the organization. Microlearning contributes to this in such important ways as employee adaptation and content localization.
Localization
Localization becomes an issue when working with speakers of other languages, people of differing cultural values, and so on. The aforementioned ease of developing small blocks helps break these barriers. The format makes it easier to translate or change the blocks that employees need.
Adaptation
Detailed onboarding helps introduce the employee to the company culture and clarify their responsibilities. At this stage, it is easy to make a mistake by bombarding an employee with an unbearable amount of information. Microlearning for business tools will simplify the adaptation of an employee and protect the company from potential losses associated with the departure of an employee before the end of training.
What businesses can use microlearning?
The benefits of microlearning can be seen in the example of learning to work with software. Microlearning can provide practical game blocks because theory in working with the software will not be enough. The student can use the simulation without risk to the organization.
Microlearning may also come in handy for experienced employees that need to get a hang of a newly-introduced technology or tool. Cumbersome courses often shatter employees' enthusiasm by being overly difficult.
Conclusion
Microlearning can make learning fun, effective, and easy. It can be implemented as an independent part or addition to literally any type of activity. If you are interested in the idea of introducing elements of microlearning to your workflow - contact us to find out how to develop a microlearning solution that fits you best and how much it will cost.
