Microlearning :
The Ultimate Guide (2022)

Although bite-sized training has grown in popularity over the years, it was not created overnight. The concept even pre-dates computers.The arrival of smartphone and it‘s possession by the average person, has been the major drive of success for microlearning, and this has resulted in the creation of microlearning platforms that could be seen as a link between Twitter and Instagram.

The term microlearning dates back to 2002, but the origin existed much earlier. The idea of learning in a series of small phases has had an impact on societies over the world. Indeed, it is this form of 'step-by-step' learning that has made cultural evolution possible. 

Some writers reported the first examples of microlearning as early as the human history, when bones, stones and woods were used to carve and draw, which were the adopted memory storage at the time. would the drawings on the walls of Lascaux have had a learning function? it can be called Microlearning inform of a  drawing.

The timeline of microlearning

this timeline was proposed by an educational designer called, Lauren Elizabeth Freeman, we are tracing it back to history.
First because understanding the history of learning is key to a deeper insight into the usefulness and functioning of microlearning as a method of teaching.
Secondly because it feels good to be reminded of some of the good times in history classes.

Pre-history - The First Men 

The first humans were able to survive on insticts : knowing how to gather food, what was edible or inedible, what the dangerous elements were etc...
The transfer of this knowledge was important for the preservation of our breed. the knowledge transfer had to be simple,crucial and short, but most importantly, it had to be remembered.  

470 - 399 BC - Socrates: learning in small stages

At the inception of disciplines such as grammar, rhetoric, dialectics and geometry, it has been proven that the method used by teachers was that of "small steps".
Socrates was one of the first teachers to use this method of teaching. He taught step by step, introducing new ideas and concepts in an interactive process, where students were called upon to communicate with each other.

428 - 348 BC - Plato and the structuring of knowledge

Plato was also instrumental in defining the structure of knowledge and he focused on the interests of students. This was a step towards improving the delivery of knowledge.

1225-1274 - St Thomas Aquinas

A great leap in history. According to scholars, philosopher and cleric, Thomas Aquinas contributed to the development of microlearning, he noted that the teachings of God were "brief and clear". He developed a system that listed debates for every question. Each debate was labelled with either 'confirmed' or 'refuted'. In his theories, there was a form of arguement in every stage of learning.

1592-1670 - Comenius

Johann Amos Comenius, the Great Teacher of the 17th century, devoted his life to the development of teaching methods. According to him, life-long learning must be carried out in gradual steps. Learning's should proceed slowly, step by step, from simple to more challenging tasks.  This learning approach makes it possible to link bits of knowledge with larger contexts. Today, this process is being referred to as a training plan.

1712- 1778 - Jean-Jacques Rousseau

It took 200 years for Jean-Jacques Rousseau to develop a new approach in education would affect the 20th century in a sustainable way. According to him, learners should pursue their curiosities while trainers should follow the children's way of learning and behaviour to unite the learning environment. Here the learner becomes a key player in the learning process.

1920- 1950 - Burrhus Frederic Skinner

B.F. Skinner, the American psychologist and thinker is the founder of the Learning Programme. This approach is the modification of the step-by-step method of learning.
In this context, learners are given tasks to complete. in order acquire a skill, students would have to go through a series of steps. Each step is small enough to be completed quickly and proceed to the next step. At the end of this progression, the skill or desired behaviour is achieved. 

The birth of information society

The information society we know today was created as a result of man's desire to overcome the challenge of lack of information that existed throughout history. With the increase in the amount of information globally available, an upgrade of its usage and acquisition has become a challenge.

Today's social transformation

Today we are part of a social transformation where information and communication has become globally extensive. The Internet is used universally as a means of accessing information across all areas. The transition from non availability of information to its availability is one of the major reasons why it is imperative to make learning an important part of our daily activity. 
This is the challenge that microlearning addresses.

According to a survey by Campaign for Leaning, 8 out of 10 trainers prefered microlearning because it is the adopted learning method for their student's. Microlearning is proving to be an efficient subtitude to eLearning courses because it allows students to understand quickly and complete several activities. They retain the subject better because the method is easily understandable.
Now Let's discover the strengths and limitations of microlearning. 

What are the advantages of microlearning?

microlearning enhances knowledge retention.

find below the four main reasons why microlearning promotes knowledge retention among learners: 

• Spaced learning and repetition: Learning a topic once is not enough. Learners need constant reminders of their knowledge to be able to retain it. The spaced repetition offered by microlearning boosts memory retention. Repetition ensures that the training content remains in the memory long after the end of a training programme.
• Scenario-based challenges  : Scenario-based learning makes training more engaging. It places people in real work situations, challenging them to put their newly acquired knowledge to practice before real time challenges arise on the job. This learning context is inspiring, makes learners more attentive and thus improves knowledge retention. 
• Instant feedback: Microlearning provides immediate feedback to the learner. They can see in real time their strengths and weaknesses as regards their knowledge, which means they can immediately repeat a module they have failed.
  We do better when we learn from our mistakes. 
• Game mechanisms to stimulate motivation and interest: A key reason microlearning enhances retention of training content is that it often integrates game-like features. From earning points to competing with other learners in quizzes and challenges, the entertaining and interactive nature of microlearning helps to keep learners engaged which in turn improves their retentive ability.

Microlearning empowers learners

Microlearning allows learners to benefit from Formal learning at their own pace. Also because of the short format, it prevents the learning process from being interupted before completion. Microlearning can be used at any time and can easily be integrated into the learner's work, especially when a new skill or knowledge needs to be included in a given situation.

The independence this Method of learning earning gives is also due to the possibility of being able to learn from any device, either a smartphone, a computer or tablet,,This is done through an application whose design is similar to what they use on a daily basis. They do not necessarily need to connect to an LMS (Learning management system) 

Microlearning enables a more personalized learning experience

These portions of microlearning can be integrated into a training programme in a flexible way, giving learners the choice of what they want to learn, when they want to learn it and their preferred device. Some solutions even offer customized learning, depending on the learner's specialty, level and the rate at which they assimilate. 

New employees may have access to the introductory modules for beginners, business experts may have access to advanced courses to enhance their skill... The possibilities are endless.Personalization is a fundamental component of professional trainings. 

 Microlearning provides a variety of formats

learners presently live in a world of media that is filled with contents, from websites to games, applications and social media. Microlearning makes use of these resources by combining them together to create an ideal format for mobile learning.

 Microlearning is the ideal formula for mobile learning

Mobile learning is the most diverse platform for learning, offering both formal and informal learning opportunities. With a population whose attentive capacity keeps decreasing, microlearning combined with mobile learning is proving to have an impressive engagement rate. 

Microlearning is particularly suited to real-time learning

Just In Time learning (JIT), is real time learning. Just like its name suggests, it refers to a situation where the learner has to learn something at the time it is needed at the workplace.
This includes, technical gestures. 

The fasted format to develop 

The short nature of microlearning courses makes them one of the easiest and fastest formats to produce. It takes just few minutes to design a Learning tool. This short development cycle means lower costs and faster turn-around times for organisations. The speed of design supports easy adoption and modification to meet changing training needs. 

It is a low cost format

A microlearning course is cheaper to produce than a classroom-based training, for example. With microlearning you will have no need to use too many resources, as the training is taken by the learners themselves, without the need for a trainer.There is no need for any specific tool to create microlearning; it can be done on an LMS (Learning Management System). Nonetheless, a platform that specializes in this type of training may provide more possibilities. 

It is an engaging format

According to a report by Software Advice, (The LMS Features that Drive Employee Engagement),Microlearning is said to generate a 50% increase in engagement. According to respondents, not only are longer courses more difficult to assimilate, but studying them interferes with daily work.

Microlearning also has its constraints

It is not suitable for learning complicated subjects.

Microlearning modules are created to deliver simple contents, so complex contents can be quite difficult to put in a microlearning context. but it is doable if the contents are broken down into smaller parts.

It is not appropriate for every type of education or training

In cases of subjects that very detailed studies, microlearning may not be the best approach. To take a concrete example,it can easily be used to learn conversational English, but it will be difficult to learn English as an academic subject in a mobile learning platform. This is why it was stated at the beginning of this guide that it is effective for corporate and business trainings.

Microlearning is becoming successful in virtually all areas of education and training, ranging from tertiary education to retail applications. A good reason why microlearning is suitable for corporate contexts is that It addresses issues relating to both employers and employees.

1. Responding to the problem of short attention span

There is an interesting rule about human attention span: the 90/20/8 rule. According to this rule, people are fully attentive during the first 8 minutes of a training session. After 20 minutes, their attention span begins to decline.
Once it reaches 60-120 minutes, the attention drops completely.

It is understandable that in a learning context, a structure such as microlearning, with sequences of 3 to 5 minutes, makes the least attentive learner have just one session.

2. Fighting the forgetting curve

The  forgetting curve is a theory that is based on the assumption that memory declines over time. If the brain does not try to retain an information, it will eventually be lost with time. 
Taking a look at the graph of the forgetting curve, it is clear that new information acquired from a training or a learning experience is reduced by 50% in the first few days of the learning process. Unless learning is supported, about 80% of what we have learnt is forgotten in 30 days. That's a lot of wasted training time! Microlearning helps to address this problem by regularly reminding us of the relevant informations in simple and easy to learn formats. 

3. Facilitating the onboarding of employees

Many onboarding courses are long, with lots of information, and do not offer the needed skills and knowledge.
Today, many employees do not feel they are being properly integrated by their employer. 
Most times, when new employees take up a job, they need to be briefed immediately, irrespective of where they work, either in an office, in sales, on a building site or in a laboratory. New employees do not have the time or attention spans for lengthy onboarding sessions. Microlearning can address this problem by providing them with just the required information at the right time. 

4. Find previous training contents easily

Searching for information in a 20-page PDF, a textbook or notes in a notebook is time consuming. Employees do not have that time to waste on searching for training related information. In a corporate environment, professional training must be sustained even after it is delivered. As explained above, most of the contents taught during trainings are forgotten. Microlearning addresses this problem by providing only relevant information that can easily be retained.

5. Many employees have little time for training

Some companies allocate a budget and time to each employee for training and skills acquisition. But this is not the case in every company. employees don't have a lot of time for training, some of them actually train at their own time, on skills relating to their jobs. This is not productive as work/life balance is becoming a challenge..Taking out time for career and skills development is key to improving job performance, employee satisfaction and motivation. In this context, microlearning can be adopted to suit work schedules, enabling everyone to choose the training time that works best for them.

Microlearning can be used in a wide range of professional training settings. Here are the key examples of its use. 

Using microlearning in a blended learning context

Within the scope of ablended learning strategy, microlearning can help learners put into practice what they have learnt. being trained for hours is not enough, practice and repititon of some of the topics can help in retaining knowledge for a long period. Microlearning supports this approach through its evaluation tool. Quizzes, exercises or games allow the learners to test themselves, as often as they wish and at any time.  

When used in blended learning, microlearning can also be a useful tool especially when employees are expected to apply their skills and knowledge on the job.
With a user-friendly interface, learning contents can be accessed on demand. Finally, it enables skill acquisition and longer retention time..  

Use before a training session

Microlearning can be used to prepare learners ahead of a training session just either spark their interests or to introduce them to some of the concepts that will be applied in a classroom or group sessions.
for instance a pre training microlearning course may include introductory videos or quizzes to evaluate the skills of learners before their training begins. microlearning can sometimes be used to review the background information needed for the training. 

Use after training

After a classroom or online session, microlearning can be used to reaffirm what has been learnt. A recap of key concepts can be made available to learners to test themselves or review as and when needed. The available contents such as audio, video, assessments, and even gamification can be used as retention tools and help address the challenges of the "forgetting curve

Using microlearning in an onboarding context 

The onboarding of new employees should be fast and efficient. most importantly, it is a crucial moment in the career path of the employee and can have an impact on retention. A poor onboarding process can have same effect as a bad first date, which can make people unwilling to return. But if it is done well, chances that the employee will demonstrate a higher level of commitment to the company are high.
Onboarding prepares employees to assume their position in the most effective way. Microlearning, in this context, efficiently provides training content that covers the main points the employees need to learn, in an engaging and fun way. 

There are several ways to use microlearning as part of onboarding new employees:

Risk and compliance training

Reducing risk and compliance training to the barest minimum is like reducing it to a list of do's and don'ts. Microlearning can be used to create a series of contents for topics, such as safety, workplace ethics, and environmental guidelines in form of short cards, videos, or visual presentations. At the end of the course,the employee can then test themselves to prove they have acquired the information.  

Product training

Microlearning is a fast way to train employees on the company's products or services, and it is well suited for the retail sector. Even if the employee is a sales representative for a ready-to-wear brand, a consultant in a service company or a product designer, microlearning introduces them to what they should know about the company's offer, and allows them to return to it at any time if necessary. 

Introduction to the teams 

It is easy for an employee to feel lost in a new environment, with new colleagues. This feeling can get even worse when it's a bigger company. Some people are more comfortable than others in this type of situation, adapting to the new environment, identifying who the employees are especially the middle and top management team can be challenging.
Microlearning can provide the opportunity to introduce the new hires to their colleagues. Each employee and manager can introduce themselves, for example, on a card, using a short text or a short video containing the details of their roles. This makes life easier for the new employees, and creates a welcoming and friendly image of the company.

Introducing the culture of the company

Microlearning can be an excellent way of introducing new employees to the general policy and culture of the company. Modules can address diverse topics such as the appropriate mode of conduct and dress code, the use of office equipment, leave policy, career and mobility support policy and the organizational structure.

 Microlearning On-demand in the workplace

One of the most overlooked advantages of microlearning is that it can take place on a workday. This advantage gives employees the opportunity to apply their knowledge in real-time, when its required.
An article by the Association for Talent Development (ATD) states, "One of the greatest powers of short-learning learning is that it can meet business targets and training needs, without interrupting the flow of business. Instead keeping employees from their jobs for an hour or two of training, they can be given small pieces of contents that they can study when they are required and when time permits.

“Just in time”

In a professional training context, "just in time learning " is an effective use of microlearning. The idea is basically to give employees the access to training contents or information when it is most needed. This is usually just before they start an important task or one which they are not familiar with. Smartphones and internet connectivity make microlearning the most effective solution to situational learning. 

Instant application

From searching their mobile learning application for specific topics to scanning a QR code to view a tutorial, the goal is to give learners the ability have quick access to the relevant informations that they instantly need to implement. Another advantage of this training method is that the theoretical learning is immediately followed by the practical application under actual working situations, so there is a high chance that the skills will not be easily forgotten.

Microlearning in distance learning

In addition to being the ideal solution to problems associated with classroom trainings, microlearning also provides better time management for distance learning. These days, employees are loaded with contents. Be it work-related content, training content, Internet and social media content; In an e-learning environment, it can easily become overwhelming to take long courses and retain them all.

Long training courses require learners to take in lots of information, then sort out what they consider to be the most valuable for them to retain.
knowing that they have to do the same work all the time when surfing the Internet, sorting out what they need to know and what they don't,you can already tell that keeping a learner engaged at a distance using a long format is extremely difficult. And remember, the forgetting curve is always just around the corner. 

Distance learners don't need so many content, they only need the right content. This calls for a change in the design and delivery of learning contents. Microlearning is the right answer in this context. 

The design of the content in the form of scenario-based exercises helps to identify the key concepts that are then converted into shorter and easy to learn formats. The ability to split up microlearning modules helps learners to assimilate the information gradually and at their own pace, rather than having to deal with all the information at same time. Microlearning also helps to keep learners engaged even in a remote setting.