Microlearning's effectiveness lies in its ability to narrow the focus onto specific topics and thus prevent cognitive overload. At the same time, it makes the learning process more enjoyable enhancing user retention. Drawing from cognitive psychology principles, microlearning applies chunking or breaking down information into digestible units. This approach optimises our working memory capacity and enables us to process and retain information faster and more efficiently.

Moreover, technological advancements have expedited the widespread adoption of microlearning, making it more accessible and convenient than ever before. The ubiquity of mobile devices such as tablets and smartphones has rendered microlearning portable, allowing learners to engage with educational content anytime, anywhere. Furthermore, the emergence of online communities and social media platforms has facilitated the sharing of microlearning resources.

In this article, we'll explore the trend of microlearning and the way it affects traditional learning paradigms.

Understanding Microlearning

As the name suggests, microlearning involves delivering educational content in small, easily understandable blocks. These short lessons typically range from a few minutes to about 15 minutes, making them ideal for today's fast-paced world with attention deficits. What is more, unlike traditional long lectures or courses, microlearning modules focus on specific learning goals, allowing students to grasp key concepts and apply them in real-life scenarios quickly.

The rise of microlearning can be attributed to several factors. Firstly, it aligns with modern learners' preferences for on-demand and just-in-time learning. Microlearning offers a solution by providing brief, targeted content that can be consumed anytime, anywhere. Moreover, research has shown that shorter learning sessions lead to better retention and engagement compared to long, continuous lessons.

Benefits of Bite-Sized Learning

Bite-sized learning offers numerous benefits that contribute to enhanced learning outcomes and student engagement. Firstly, breaking down complex topics into manageable pieces instils a sense of achievement in learners after each session. This sense of accomplishment serves as a motivational factor, encouraging students to stay interested and invested in the subject matter. The simplified nature of these lessons facilitates easier mastery of content, aligning well with Constructivist educational principles where students build upon their existing knowledge for deeper understanding.

Moreover, bite-sized learning is particularly effective for habit-building, especially with young learners. Let us bring one of the examples of educating young learners by providing a library of short Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) activities. These activities, lasting about ten minutes each, are seamlessly integrated into various lessons such as art, music, and games. Through spaced repetition, where these activities are regularly incorporated into teaching, students develop healthy habits for managing their emotions and relating to others. Stephanie Jones, the project's lead, emphasises the importance of making SEL practices a daily routine, which promotes consistency and long-term benefits. These SEL activities, meticulously researched and culturally adaptable, are used in diverse educational settings across 12 countries and 4 continents.

In short, microlearning offers the following key benefits in education:

• enhances the retention of concepts

• fosters better engagement among learners

• improves learners' motivation

• encourages collaborative learning

• increases learning ability and performance.

Besides, when it comes to teaching in the era of big data, we cannot ignore the fact that human attention spans are decreasing, making microlearning increasingly important. People expect instant gratification and access to information anytime, anywhere, which aligns with the principles of microlearning. This trend has led to a shift in workplace learning towards on-demand and just-in-time learning.

Microlearning in Edtech

Microlearning has been studied and applied in many spheres, including textiles, health professional education, engineering, language learning, and college education. It addresses the growing need for lifelong learning and knowledge acquisition in today's fast-paced business environment.

Work-based learning also benefits from microlearning, as it facilitates knowledge acquisition, enhances employee engagement, and supports the fast-paced, digitally savvy learners of today.

These are the reasons why more and more EdTech platforms are introducing microlearning principles into their programs. By breaking down complex topics into small modules, these platforms can deliver content in a format that aligns with students' learning preferences. Additionally, microlearning allows platforms to personalise the learning process by offering individualised content based on students' knowledge levels, interests, and learning goals. Now let us look at some examples of the microlearning approach prominent online educational platforms offer.

Coursera's Learning on the Job

Coursera, a leading online learning platform, has implemented microlearning as part of its "Learning on the Job" initiative. They integrate short, modular content into users' workflow, and enable learners to acquire new skills and knowledge seamlessly without disrupting their daily lives. This approach enhances learning efficiency and also promotes continuous professional development, empowering individuals to stay ahead in the competitive environment.

Besides, Coursera for Teams also offers a comprehensive learning solution designed to accelerate team performance by providing access to over 200,000 short clips. These short videos facilitate microlearning and effectively address skill gaps. With the help of such learning programs, organisations can empower their employees to master new skills and achieve their professional goals through world-class learning programs without putting too much on the employees' plates.

LinkedIn Learning Skills Path

LinkedIn Learning, another well-known player in the educational technology sphere, offers "Skill Paths" comprising a series of short courses designed to help learners master specific skills. By breaking skill development into manageable stages, LinkedIn Learning allows users to progress at their own pace and track their learning journey. This modular approach to learning has resonated with professionals seeking to upskill or reskill for career advancement.

ShotClasses

ShotClasses is Mindtree's innovative micro-learning platform, designed to cater for the needs of enterprises with distributed workforces and partners. Through an intuitive learner app, ShotClasses facilitates seamless access to learning materials. Its user-friendly interface aims to enhance adoption and usage. Additionally, ShotClasses helps the learning department by simplifying the process of launching, tracking, and evaluating learning programs, all achieved with just a few clicks.

Upskill

It is another great example of a microlearning approach for adult education. Upskill is a mobile-first, gamified microlearning platform from BetterPlace. Needless to say, gamification plays an important role in the user engagement. Besides, the platform effectively assists organisations in assessing their employees.

Duolingo

Duolingo is one more popular, gamified language-learning app that offers task-based, multiple-choice exercises for free. Launched in 2011, it has amassed over 200 million users and ranks as the most downloaded app in the education category on both iTunes and Google Play Store. With over 25 million monthly users and 62 available courses, Duolingo employs a gamification and microlearning approach to language acquisition, allowing users to practice for just 5 to 20 minutes a day. Its appeal lies in its ability to fit into short, idle moments, making it convenient for users to learn during brief intervals throughout their day.

Disadvantages of Microlearning

Though microlearning offers considerable advantages and is great for multiple purposes, there are still limitations, one should bear in mind opting for this approach.

1. Microlearning modules take a lot of upfront time and resources to create, so they are most effective.

2. Microlearning is difficult to scale for personalised content, leading to lots of time needed to create different modules.

3. Microlearning may not be the best approach for extremely complicated material that requires context and time to understand.

4. Some types of material, such as important safety and compliance info, may not work as fun and easy modules because of their importance.

To Conclude

Learning in short, focused bursts engages students actively and can enhance existing educational materials. Bite-sized learning emerges as a potent strategy to counter the cognitive overload experienced by learners. Dissecting complex subjects into digestible segments, grants learners a sense of achievement following each session, nurturing motivation and facilitating the formation of learning habits. Moreover, the microlearning approach serves as a supportive complement to traditional learning, reinforcing specific information as required. Microlearning design caters for both younger and older generations. It accommodates the rapid learning pace of newer generations, while also being straightforward and intuitive for older generations to grasp and use without difficulty.