Your company provides training courses that are very useful for your job, and you know that learning new skills will benefit your career. However, do you find yourself forgetting most of what you’ve learned not long after the lesson is finished? The good news is that it is completely normal. As shown by the forgetting curve model devised by German psychologist Hermann Ebbinghaus, without adequate retention, we forget information over time. Nowadays, we are too busy, too preoccupied with problems, and stretched too thin. So, in order to learn and retain new information, we can rely on microlearning.
What Is Microlearning?
Microlearning is the transfer of content in bite-sized chunks with a specific learning outcome. These nuggets of information are more engaging and easily absorbed than, say, a full-length PowerPoint presentation. As Ebbinghaus’ forgetting model demonstrates, we lose nearly 80% of the knowledge we learn in about a month. By breaking down information into short bursts, microlearning improves retention and thus beats the forgetting curve.
Some Stats
- It boosts retention rates and employee focus by 80%.
- 83% of learners are likely to complete a microlearning course.
- Employee engagement experienced a 50% increase thanks to microlearning.
- Employee productivity increased by 20% in organizations using this method.
Benefits of Microlearning
Since employees are so busy that putting time aside for training is well neigh impossible, microlearning offers a solution. The lessons are short, ideally between 7 and 12 minutes, long enough to refresh a concept or learn something new. Therefore, it is quick and easy to complete.
As it replicates the content consumed via social media feeds, like interactive quizzes and short videos, microlearning increases engagement. Besides, it is mobile-friendly, a key aspect in this day and age.
Thanks to its simplicity, microlearning increases long-term knowledge retention. Learners can go back to a lesson as many times as they need to refresh their knowledge.
The activities are not location-dependent and can be accessed anytime and anywhere.
Microlearning supports hybrid learning. Hybrid, or blended, learning combines synchronous in-person or online lessons with self-paced asynchronous material and activities. Therefore, learners can pick and choose what micro activities to do or what knowledge to reinforce whenever it suits their busy schedule.
As the activities are short, easily accessible, and focused, this method maximizes learning time.
What Makes Microlearning Effective?
Microlearning combines elements from several different learning approaches, like behaviorism, cognitivism, constructivism, and experiential learning. For example, behavior is the way we respond to environmental stimuli. Then, in microlearning, the rewards like badges or points prompt the student to repeat a positive behavior, like giving the correct answer. On the other hand, punishments discourage negative behavior.
How English Services Does It
English Services offers blended learning, where students can take a synchronous language class with a professional instructor and do practice activities on our 24/7 learning platform at their own pace. This asynchronous component includes elements of gamification in the activities that motivate and engage students. A survey shows that there is a 60% increase in employee engagement when applying gamification.
Bear in mind that microlearning is not a replacement for formal training, nor can it be used to tackle complex topics. We suggest getting in touch with us to find out more about our corporate language training programs and workshops.
