Microlearning & Mobile
Mysteries and myths about microlearning were explained in a webinar presented by Dave Asheim, founder of Engage by Cell, and Shannon Tipton, owner of Learning Rebels. The companies collaborate on bringing learning solutions to organizations.
Microlearning is turning content and learning into little bits and pieces. It’s a way of delivering learning. Cell phones and mobile technology now play a significant role in how business is conducted today, making microlearning more important.
An advantage of microlearning is that delivery is just in time. Text messages with links to watch short videos and demos or view infographics can be sent to employees, along with reminders to complete work or about upcoming training sessions.
Better employee engagement is another advantage. If you send employees to your learning management system (LMS), they are likely to avoid or ignore it. With mobile technology you can store content from your LMS on a mobile web site. Add buttons, and that mobile platform connects to LMS pages becoming a repository for content needed instantly, or a portal where the content can be discovered. It’s fun and easy to access.
A commonly held myth is that microlearning is chunking a training program into segments—parts 1, 2 and 3, for example. However, with chunking, employees must watch all three segments to get the full advantage. Microlearning encapsulates the learning into one, bit-sized piece. It’s short bursts of focused “right-sized” content to help people achieve a specific outcome. It’s important the content is focused on a single, precise learning objective.
Another myth is that microlearning is high-tech, but that is not necessarily the case. Microlearning can be as simple as an infographic or a checklist—those evergreen tools that managers and employees can use.
Mobile learning solutions can help retain content. Texting a link to employees scheduled for testing, makes it easy for them to click a link, take the test and be done in minutes. The data is instantly available to you in a reports function. It’s fast and fun, and employees will participate.
Beyond tests, you can create polls and surveys and get results within minutes. This is so much less cumbersome than answering emails and completing long surveys.
Can all learning be micro-sized? Some topics, such as processes and procedures are well suited for microlearning bits. Soft skill training, such as leadership training, are best offered in a classroom or virtual setting. Even that training can be augmented into bits that reinforces the classroom learning.
You can listen to the webinar, Microlearning & Mobile, on YouTube to learn more about microlearning and both these companies. Engage by Cell has been a great supporter, and we encourage you to visit their website. Learn more about how organizations can use of mobile technology from this prior blog post that Dave Asheim shared with us.