In its July issue, CLO Magazine will be featuring a story on the eLearning trend towards microlearning. As part of that issue, I was interviewed on my perspective on microlearning and what the buzz is all about. Here are a few Q&As for a preview on the topic and my philosophy on microlearning.

What is microlearning?

Microlearning is an instructional design methodology that promotes just-in-time or on-demand learning. Influenced by the Google generation, it is designed to be very short, providing quick bursts of learning on a very focused topic.

How did microlearning come to be?

Microlearning has evolved from a more traditional "expert-based" model, where a subject-matter-expert (SME) dictates the content, as well as the context, and scope & sequence. In contrast, microlearning is more like "self-serve" education. It was definitely influenced by the internet and search engine approaches, where users can search, retrieve and use the content.

What broad trends facilitated the increasing adoption of microlearning?

Three things: smarter search engines, the rise of "user-generated" content, and mobile technology. It used to be that learning resided in mysterious repositories, whose secrets were only unlocked by highly trained academics or subject matter experts. As the internet and smarter search engines have opened and "deregulated" these repositories, it has made content more accessible to everyone. Also, digital media and tools have made it easier for anyone to post and disseminate content. The "democratization" of content, through user-generated repositories, like blogs, wikis, file sharing sites, etc has made information more accessible to everyone, with instant access. And with the 3G revolution, now many people use their cell phones and portable appliances more readily than a computer, and microlearning provides shorter and more accessible delivery to these devices.
Once these walls starting falling down, many progressive organizations are saying "why not embrace it".

What purpose does microlearning serve?

When it comes right down to it, the goal of education is problem solving. If a learner can react to a situation, respond by searching and retrieving a piece of content, just-in-time, and then apply that learning to solve the problem. Isn't that the goal of education?

How can microlearning be used in organizations?

For the learner, ad-hoc microlearning can be very effective. When it's designed right, it's short, sweet, tailored to just what the learner wants, when they want it. But for the organization, it's important to create learning that adapts to this style while also tracking access and consumption, for planning, resource management, compliance, a hundred reasons.

So microlearning needs to be embraced by the organization. We need to relinquish some control over the content, and start creating learning that meets this need and encourages its use.

It would also be helpful to take a page from Web 2.0 technologies, employing search strategies like those used by Amazon, recommending other relevant resources, based on the search criteria. To do this, we need reporting to track access and patterns, so we can predict and suggest other related modules to serve the learner more completely. This way, learners can "create their own learning" but do it within pre-determined but adaptable parameters or profiles.

Is there value in microlearning?

Right now, when I talk to trainers, who continue to teach in a traditional corporate learning environment or in a classroom, the passive, one-way delivery of content is becoming more and more ineffective. The next generation is now, and learners are demanding more relevance and application.

Learning needs to happen when a subject comes into contact with just the right content at just the right time. Microlearning can do this extremely well. While not always the right answer to a training need, microlearning can be extremely valuable for teaching specific, stand-alone topics - a "Frequently Asked Questions" approach to learning.

What are some of the challenges or things learning leaders should watch out for when implementing enterprise microlearning?

It's important to insist of quality, accuracy and good instructional design. Micro-learning development needs to be looked at in context to larger organizational needs. Developers need to avoid arbitrarily create resources. The same discipline and planning needs to be conducted in choosing and creating the resources, but instead of developing larger courses, we need to assess specific needs, based on usage and organizational needs, then design shorter, more focuses topics, that can stand alone, apart from a broader context.

Also, it's still important to create the resources within a learning repository to more easily track and maintain them. Also, it's important to focus on the "skill". Include the enabling objectives within the content delivery, but keep microlearning task-focused, so that learners are still hands-on in learning.

Many organizations adopted microlearning tools during the recession because it's relatively cost-effective. Do you think enterprise micro-learning is just a fad or does it have staying power?

Microlearning needs to have staying power. Now that the "genie is out of the bottle," learners will continue to demand learning that's relevant, focused and just-in-time. Since the goal of education is problem solving, we as educators need to adapt to this learning styles, providing the best possible tools to serve the learner.


What's your take on microlearning? I'd be interested in your comments and viewpoints.