What is “Microlearning”?

Microlearning can be defined as delivering content to learners in small, discrete chunks. Where there is a library of content available, the learner is in control of what and when they’re learning. For a long time, this has been referred to as “bite-sized’ or “snackable” learning as it’s easily digestable and fits in with busy scheduled.

How can you make Microlearning work for you?

Put yourself in the shoes of your learners and understand how to make it work best for them:

a) Think quality and not quantity. Historically, there has always been the demand to collect ‘hours’ especially for CPD purposes and this has led to content that has been more about length than the quality of the learning experience. Microlearning allows good producers to hone the content development process, to create small amounts of great content.

b) Think learner ‘pull’ as opposed to learner ‘push’. We often have a debate about the best way to administer e-learning – Is it best to prescribe “Andy you need to complete this module” or allow for self-selection “Here’s our elearning portfolio, pick which modules you think are the most suitable”. Our approach is an element of both – define the areas of content that are appropriate for that learner and allow them to pick the content and when they complete it. When content is in small chunks then there is a much greater chance of it being successful because of the greater control. Microlearning can be a great tool in driving both uptake and learner exploration.

c) Identify one specific learning outcome per piece of content. Start with the main objective and let that govern the content. By doing this you will focus more clearly on ensuring it is met as opposed to padding out material and making it too slow or onerous for the learner. Think precise and succinct – giving learners the sense of achievement once they have completed a module.  

Whilst “Microlearning” may be seen as a buzzword and a current trend in e-learning, we have been using this approach at Maguire Training for the last 7 years, with each of our modules having 4 key learning outcomes and video sections of no more than 10 minutes for each.

If you’d like to try one of our modules and see the Microlearning approach then please feel free to contact us – elearning@maguiretraining.co.uk