Over the past two years, micro-learning has gained recognition for good reasons.
In a digital environment filled with distractions, average attention spans decrease. Therefore, it becomes essential to offer specific and targeted training content to capture the attention of learners. This is precisely what micro-learning offers.
What is micro-learning?
Micro-learning is a digital learning method based on an educational path made up of short modules (30 seconds to 5 minutes). Each micro-learning content is devoted to an exact notion or concept. At any time, available to the learner, micro-learning allows employees to access training content when they need it, at their workstation or on the move, and all devices. Here are five essential benefits of micro-learning:
- Straight to the point!
Micro learning allows a long training to be broken down into short units (or modules). It is used to provide information on a specific subject and aim for a determined result (behavior, competence, etc.) based on repetition and participation. Its sessions can vary from a 30 seconds to 10 minutes, but they usually last from 2 to 7 minutes. For example, they can take various forms: short demonstration videos, multiple-choice quizzes submitted by text message or even reminder of concepts sent by email. This form of learning is suitable for providing a precise response to the learner’s immediate need, finding a solution to a given problem, or updating specific knowledge. - Better retention of concepts
Knowledge retention performance differs depending on the formats offered and the type of content. The memorization results improve by combining several media, but retention rate improves significantly when the module deals with a single subject. Therefore, by offering the learner multimedia content centered on a single concept processed in a concise format, micro-learning ensures excellent retention of ideas and an efficient training process. The retention performance is also due to the 24/7 availability of micro-learning content, which allows the learner to return to the module and review it to refresh his memory. - Better application of learned concepts
As the micro-learning modules progress, the learner integrates new ideas to apply in his daily work. Micro-learning modules promote understanding of concepts and their application in real life because they are designed to be taken when the learner needs them on-the-job. The application is, therefore, immediate and also participates in the excellent retention of information. - Micro-learning and Mobile-learning
Lightweight, targeted and short, micro-learning training is a format perfectly suited to a smartphone consultation. Deploying multi-device micro-learning courses can prove to be an excellent way to test the adoption of mobile-learning uses by employees and their appetite for this training medium. Micro-learning offers a high-performance training mechanism based on many criteria: learner engagement and retention, cost of implementation and deployment time, etc. Short just-in-time formats available everywhere, on all media and at any time are also popular with learners because they correspond to their daily uses of digital content. - A winning formula for the company
Quicker to design and update than lengthy training, micro-learning can be a smart choice for companies. Whether it is to inform the new employee in small doses about internal policies, stimulate team spirit, or explain machines’ operation.
The bottom line
Micro-learning has everything to appeal to millennial, who will soon be in the majority in the job market and other workers. This is because everyone has more or less the same pace of life and uses the same mobile technologies and web 2.0 daily. Adopt micro learning in your organization training today
