Microlearning is a new learning method that has gained popularity in recent years. If you are looking for a way to make your online courses more engaging, diversify your courses, and create courses your learners are more likely to complete, microlearning is for you.
In this article, you are about to find out:
- What is microlearning?
- How is microlearning beneficial for you and your students?
- What do you need to consider when designing a microlearning experience?
- What are the common microlearning strategies?
- Special tips from Kelly Schuster-Paredes
What is microlearning?
Microlearning is an eLearning strategy that facilitates the delivery of new information through smaller units. It is one of the most engaging learning methods, and learning usually occurs via 3-10-minute sessions, videos, and activities. One way to make microlearning possible is through mobile learning. The main features of microlearning include focused units and highly practical lessons.
Micro-learning has been widely gaining popularity in recent years. It is incredible for bite-sized training sessions on the go. It fulfills target learning objectives while allowing the creation of short-form learning content that is easy for instructors to create and for students to learn from.
See more: 6 types of virtual training
Benefits of microlearning
Why is microlearning gaining popularity?
Microlearning offers lots of opportunities for instructors and students to enjoy on-the-go learning. So, let's take a look at the main advantages.
- Easier to maintain students’ engagement levels and fight short attention spans throughout the whole session, as sessions are not very long
- Offers bite-sized learning experience
- Improves learning retention
- Allows for faster learning, as the modules are short and multiple courses can be taken in one week
- Provides a more engaging learning experience
- Microlearning saves a great deal of time for both instructors and learners compared to traditional learning.
Microlearning is really fun. I think you keep the momentum and learning. Students are more likely to finish a short-term course in that microlearning just because they’re excited and can see an endpoint that's close by. It's something that's not dragged out over time.
Ed Tech Specialist, Course Creator, and Podcast Host
There are also certain benefits for health. For instance, microlearning reduces cognitive overload, allowing students to acquire knowledge more efficiently.
So, the microlearning module delivers the so-called digestible learning experience for the students allowing for more accessible learning and development.
Drawbacks of microlearning
Besides all the fantastic opportunities that come in handy with microlearning, there are certain drawbacks. For example,
- It is limited to one or a few concepts per session. You keep the sessions extremely focused, which limits you to discussing one or very few short concepts per session.
- It is not a suitable approach for someone looking to become an expert in a specific field.
Microlearning is only best for Just-in-time learning. We call it JIT. This means I need to understand this, and I need to understand it now in order to help me solve a problem. That's when microlearning is really successful. But micro learning to become an expert in one sort of field is not necessarily a good direction.
Ed Tech Specialist, Course Creator, and Podcast Host
Microlearning strategies
Microlearning courses can be more than just off-the-shelf course content. It often refers to apps, infographics, videos & animations, ebooks, and quizzes. So, you can incorporate these into a pre-recorded course but also create a wholesome experience utilizing just these elements on their own. All of these are great for diversifying your online course.
“If you are static and you have only one way of teaching, then you're going to lose a majority of your students. It is the mix of learning methods that helps the students internalize the information”.
Ed Tech Specialist, Course Creator, and Podcast Host
Animations & Short Videos
Animations such as “pencil” or “whiteboard” animation, as well as videos, are perfect for “how-to guides.” The tendency among people to be more attentive and learn better with videos is a fact. It creates a classroom experience.
Nowadays, you can create animations at a low cost, in some cases even using free tools.
If you are recording a video, phone cameras are good, too. Keep a few things in mind, such as neat background, good audio, and clear visuals. Also, make sure your learners can relate to those videos. For example, if there’s a video with a speaker, Kelly ensures they come from different backgrounds.
“If you're using videos, make sure that it's not always the same type of person I know from my courses. I try to find a variety of speakers that allow my students to make connections. I don't want to have one gender, one race, or one type of voice in my courses.”
Ed Tech Specialist, Course Creator, and Podcast Host
TIP: People tend to learn faster with videos; therefore, this format enjoys popularity. Try to keep the duration of your microlearning content and activities under 8 minutes.
Infographic
In-glance learning experience is possible through infographics. You can incorporate infographics into a wholesome pre-recorded course that also offers short videos, quizzes, and ebooks.
Infographics are great for summarizing lessons, showcasing key takeaways of previews or new lessons, and so on.
Ebooks
Another great way to teach new skills is through eBooks. They can be consumed on the go, offer a variety of learning styles, and are an excellent alternative to reading long-form articles or manuals.
Many businesses have adopted eBooks as a microlearning strategy. They provide the learners with a tangible and interactive experience that they can take with them anywhere.
Quizzes and games
Quizzes and games are a great way to engage learners in the learning process. Quizzes are interactive and can be taken by learners at any time.
“I love the microlearning courses that have one to three-question quizzes along the way. Just something to verify that that knowledge is sticking and allowing the learner to also get some feedback right away”.
Ed Tech Specialist, Course Creator, and Podcast Host
Kelly Schuster recommends including multiple-choice questions as well as open-ended ones. Open-ended questions foster reflection from the learner, which is helpful.
On the other hand, gamification effectively gets learners excited about the content and keeps them engaged for longer periods. It helps to greatly modernize the learning experience and create an interactive and dynamic learning environment.
With quizzes, tests, and other activities, learners must recall the study material, which helps with better memorization of vital concepts. Plus, quizzes provide you with measurable results on students’ progress as well as the efficiency of the course.
Podcasts
Podcasts are a great way to learn new skills or gain knowledge on a specific topic.
They can be listened to in the car, while out for a walk, or even while doing chores around the house. Podcasts are an effective microlearning format because they allow you to learn at your own pace and use your own time and space.
Articles & Short-form documents
You can also provide a learning experience by creating paid content in article format. Each part of your course can be written down as an article or how-to guide explaining the user’s key concepts.
These articles can be positioned as "gated content" for which users should pay or provide an email to read. Also, you can collect them and create an eBook to sell later.
In short, microlearning fundamentally changes the way we perceive knowledge. It offers the ideal length of sessions for modern learners, making information easier to comprehend in less time.
How do you incorporate microlearning strategies?
As far as we are clear on the main microlearning strategies and content, we can dive into implementing microlearning.
Here is what you need to consider to deliver your microlearning content effectively.
Know Your Audience
If you are unaware of who your learners are, it would be almost impossible to deliver a top-notch experience.
So, first of all, understand who you are creating content for. Clarifying this aspect will also help you to decide on the format and what more & less to incorporate. Once you know what your students prefer to learn and how they prefer to learn it, you can also tailor your feedback around those.
“When you're giving some sort of personal feedback within, that helps. I've seen courses or platforms where you've reached a certain target, and you'll get a personalized video in your inbox. Now, that's that's a fun thing. Because you now have someone who acknowledges your name and acknowledges your completion. And it's a little bit special”.
Ed Tech Specialist, Course Creator, and Podcast Host
Set specific learning outcomes
When you are clear on the niche & format you want to provide, it is time to set learning outcomes & objectives.
First, completing this step will allow you to design a course that truly gives value. Secondly, knowing what are the key takeaways from your course, basically its key features, you will be able to sell it better.
See more: Develop Great Learning Outcomes With 5 Steps
Keep things short and to the point
If you chose the main format to be short-form videos, it is better to keep them within 3-10 minutes a session.
Avoid long-term content, including videos. Stick to the philosophy of microlearning and offer bite-sized training that works.
Make your content interactive
If you chose videos, make sure to ask questions and have discussion forums. You can also incorporate quizzes, tests & games into the course to further take the interaction level.
Interactive learning helps with better knowledge retention, leading to satisfied customers and good reviews.
Choose an online teaching platform
One more important step is to choose the right platform.
The right platform will allow you to deliver a top-notch learning experience through the tools it provides for better course organization.
Plus, in this case, make sure that the platform of your choice has an app because many students are going to access microlearning content from mobile devices or tablets.
Where to start?
If you are looking for an online course platform to deliver and sell your micro-courses and not only, Uteach is here to ease all your tasks.
Uteach makes it possible to deliver microlearning experiences for your students. You can create a microlearning course that is responsive both for mobile and computer devices. Its course builder supports all types of multimedia elements so that you can make your courses even engaging.
Also, through the Uteach app for Android and IOS, you can deliver an off-the-roof mLearning experience. Discover more features and get your 14-day free trial, to make the most of the micro eLearning experience.
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