Microlearning is the process in which knowledge and skills are acquired with short bursts of study or practice.  A new method of education that is gaining popularity around the world.

There is nothing more harmonious than the words microlearning and Gen Z together. Microlearning has changed over the years from a taboo to a necessity in today’s day and age, with attention spans of Gen Z and even the older generation similar to mere seconds.

From my experience as a member of Gen Z (people born mid-to-late 1990s to the 2000s), and according to what I know about Millennials (people born after the mid-80s to early 1990s) it is exciting and useful to use microlearning. The reason for this is because we love informal learning experiences; we want to learn at the point-of-need (wherever we are and whenever) and not to forget the key phrase you’re going to see throughout this blog – we have a “short attention span”.

If you are a member of these generations, no matter how big a productivity guru you might be, deep down you know the truth about the length of time you can concentrate… So, maybe you can share this blog with your professor, mentor or supervisor. This will show them what I couldn’t explain during my earlier days as a human – which is why microlearning is effective.

Why microlearning is effective

According to research, microlearning helps in 80% memory retention compared to traditional learning methods. This is because there are few learning objectives in line for the students, and these small tasks will help them stay focused gaining a much smaller amount of information.

With shorter lengths, there is a high chance students would do more of the course. This had happened to me personally when I was continuously watching videos of digital training. I found the micro-units very helpful to understand better the material.

Microlearning is perfect for those with a busy schedule; even if they have little time on their hands, this gives them the satisfaction of learning something new.

The science of microlearning

A study done by the University of California – Irvine shows a person’s attention span goes up to 11 minutes and then gets distracted. I see this in my personal life, where studying effectively happens only in a brief period. With microlearning, the information comes into my brain very quickly and in small pieces. So why should I study for 30 minutes straight when processing a micro-unit, which bundles a short lesson, a demonstration, an interactive exercise, and resume, would typically take 4-5 minutes?

A recent poll from Gallup surveyed employees on their company learning methods, and 58% of employees said they would learn better if the company could break their lessons into smaller bits. In addition, a survey done by the rapid learning method website showed that 94% of e-learners preferred lessons less than 10 minutes. And according to a scientific study, the human brain can only hold five new pieces of information at a single time. These facts contribute to the success of microlearning.

Microlearning in different industries

The trend of microlearning in different industries has been increasing ever since the pandemic hit our lives. As a result, employee learning is changing in today’s business environment. A case study showed how different companies from different industries such as Walmart, Bloomingdales and Intercontinental hotels started incorporating microlearning into their systems and increased productivity.

The future of learning

I have come across various online e-courses in the past which promised me the world of knowledge. Our tiny little human brains can fall for such marketing, and I was no exception. I opened the course to see around 20 different topics and under those another 18 long lessons. I gave up instantly and forgot about It. Then later, I did the same course from a different platform. It wasn’t the best but it was shorter and had fewer videos which helped me be more focused.

A statistic from a google consumer survey shows that it is pretty difficult to train my generation. People like me cannot go for more than 4 mins a stretch to concentrate on a particular task. For example, while writing this blog, I daydreamed about how different life can be when masks are not mandatory anymore. That’s how scattered our thoughts can be with the exception of those 4 to 8 minutes of deep concentration. (Dear Google, thanks for shortening our attention span to a blink of an eye!)

Conclusion

Microlearning is the future of learning, and it is going to gain popularity with a wide variety of companies from now.  COVID-19 has sparked this trend to spread worldwide. Microlearning storming the world in schools and companies will create a new form of education method. The phrase work smarter and not harder is more relevant today than it has ever been.

If you are looking to learn about Finance related topics, check Klass Academy out, and I can promise you an actual microlearning experience, with short quizzes at the end of each lesson. You have my word on this!

Contact us with your questions.

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