Why Microlearning Is Best for Learners
Microlearning is an approach to learning that focuses on bite-sized doses of information instead of overloading yourself with knowledge. When studying, it’s extremely common to find ourselves overwhelmed by a large book or video that lasts a long time. The amount of information we get from a big source can make it difficult for us to digest any of the information. This makes it extremely challenging to make any progress in the field if we’re constantly faced with cognitive overload.
Enter microlearning; an effective and practical way for both young and adult learners to quickly develop new skills. In this post, we’ll be taking a look at what microlearning is, how it works, why it works and offer some practical examples of why it’s the best option for learners.
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What exactly is microlearning?
Microlearning is all about getting your education in small doses that are easy to digest. There are some simple principles that define microlearning:
These four principles make up the bulk of what microlearning is. Microlearning as a term can be quite vague and difficult to explain, but these four points should hopefully give you a better idea of what microlearning is and why it’s important as a practical solution for both young and adult learners. It’s all about reducing cognitive load and offering concise information in bite-sized chunks that are easier to digest.
Microlearning is a strategy born out of necessity. Thanks to the internet, we’re able to access an incredible amount of information on websites such as Wikipedia. This results in cognitive overload because the information isn’t digestible and requires us to read through entire articles and pages before we can find what we’re looking for. It’s also not targeted for learning. Instead, it’s just a wealth of information that we need to decipher on our own.
Where is microlearning used?
Microlearning can be used anywhere. It can be a strategy used by college and university students, you can use it for homeschooling your children and it can be scaled up to be an effective way to employees in a large company.
The focus of microlearning is to reduce cognitive load and give learners an easier way to develop new skills. It makes learning more practical and accessible, offering information in small bursts instead of long and daunting sessions where you’re likely to forget crucial information or even feel fatigued.
What are the benefits of microlearning?
Microlearning offers fantastic benefits for both the educator and the learner.
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There are plenty of benefits to microlearning and it’s a strategy that benefits everyone.
Using microlearning on its own or part of a larger course?
Microlearning is a learning technique that can be applied to existing courses and study materials. However, it can also be used as a standalone learning technique for specific subjects as well. There are times where microlearning isn’t effective, such as studying medical techniques or legal terms. In a situation like this, regular study techniques can be more effective. However, microlearning can still be used to commit that information to memory or be used as a means of refreshing your knowledge of a subject.
Either way, microlearning is a flexible technique that allows us to study in a more casual and laid-back manner. It can be an effective study technique on its own to reduce cognitive load, but it can also be integrated into existing learning strategies.
Examples of microlearning
Microlearning can be a vague concept to understand. To make things easier, here are a couple of examples of microlearning.
Hopefully, this post has shown you the benefits of microlearning and why it’s one of the best strategies for learners to adopt.