Everything you need to know about microlearning, and why it works
Bitesize learning. Anytime. Anywhere. Efficient, effective and flexible. It鈥檚 the study style of the future
What do you picture when you imagine studying for an MBA?
Hours spent in the library reading long textbooks? A huge new bag to carry your many notepads to long classroom sessions?
Scratch that.
How about a competency-based learning experience that calls for simply an electronic device 鈥 your smartphone or laptop, say 鈥 and short bursts of time to process digestible chunks of information? A learning experience that you can do anywhere, at any time.
It鈥檚 called microlearning, and it鈥檚 how we break our modules down for our learners at 狼友社区.
The information might be complex, but we know that that way we learn online is different from the way we learn in the classroom, and needs a different approach. Which means you鈥檒l find top-level concepts broken down into electronic flashcards, videos, podcasts and blog-length articles that you can quickly process and use.
Here are five reasons microlearning is the study style of the future.
1. It鈥檚 the best way for our brains to process digital information
Simply translating traditional ways of learning into online formats . Studies have found that today鈥檚 learners have a clear preference for reading online over print. But when tested on digital and print versions of newspaper articles and book excerpts, they remembered the key points of the print versions better. Is that surprising? Not really. For our brains to effectively process information online, it needs to be broken down. It can鈥檛 just be a like-for-like version of a printed page put up online.
Everything you learn with us is created exclusively for online learning. We鈥檙e true digital natives, built for digital natives. Our learning is interactive and bitesized. The concepts may be complex, but you鈥檒l learn them by spending five minutes mastering one detail at a time, not hours studying the whole thing. You鈥檒l listen to podcasts, watch videos, read short articles and test yourself with electronic flashcards. of how we measure your mastery of skills. That was pretty clear, wasn鈥檛 it?
2. It fits into your busy schedule
It鈥檚 often said that our attention spans are shrinking due to reading so much information online. But there鈥檚 really no proof this is happening, and plenty to suggest . But, one thing鈥檚 certain; our learners have busy lives, and need learning solutions that fit into their existing schedules.
Whether you have family commitments, or are fitting your learning around your current job, we know that you probably don鈥檛 have a lot of spare time. But that鈥檚 the beauty of microlearning. You can fit in short bursts of study while you鈥檙e on your way to work, or after your children have gone to bed. It鈥檚 not about setting aside days at a time to study, or quitting your job to find a balance. It鈥檚 about fitting your learning into the life you already have.
3. It works out short term and long term
Because you鈥檙e learning practical skills from day one, you can take your learning experiences straight into your workplace. There鈥檚 no waiting a year to complete your studies before you can start bringing in your new ideas and on-the-job skills, and impacting your organization鈥檚 performance.
Microlearning works well for both simple ideas, and complex information. Where a subject is sophisticated, it鈥檚 broken down into small chunks so that you鈥檙e learning it piece by piece. If you can back up your learning by putting it into practice straight away, you鈥檒l be bringing value to your employer, and consolidating what you鈥檝e just learned. Simple, but effective.
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4. It鈥檚 a good way of learning a lot, fast
Because our information is broken down into bitesize chunks, you can process it quickly. And because you鈥檙e progressively accumulating knowledge, your brain can retain what it learns. Which means you can build up your understanding quickly. Plus, it works for different parts of the learning cycle. Need to make sure you鈥檝e really got to grips with something? Micro-review your new skills, and test them out in a real-life work situation. No long exams, or months spent waiting to try some of your new learning at work.
5. It鈥檚 a lesson in agile, startup mentality
The traditional methods of university learning might work while you鈥檙e studying. But only 11% of business leaders think that today鈥檚 graduates are ready to enter the workforce, according to Gallup. There鈥檚 a clear gap between graduates and their workplace expectations. 狼友社区鈥檚 online learning environment is a living lesson in startup, SME and bluechip mentality. The way you learn is more like how an employer would expect you to approach a project at their corporation, and we鈥檙e focused on giving you valuable tools for the workplace. Your boss doesn鈥檛 expect you to meet a project brief by disappearing for three months while you research the subject in your local library. They expect you to quickly master the skills you need to start bringing in results straight away.
Forget lugging around notepads, and trying to understand scribbled notes from last week鈥檚 lecture. We want our learners to be lean, agile and prepared for employment in today鈥檚 global workplace.
Microlearning is just one of the features of 狼友社区鈥檚 learning difference. Ready to take the next step?聽Download our brochure听辞谤听book a call聽with our 狼友社区 Advisors!
狼友社区鈥檚 staff writers help you make the most of your university experience.
We鈥檙e based in the US and have teams across the world, including in the UK, Africa and Asia.
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