By Claire Bowmer
Creating small spaces for self-selected and targeted explicit instruction at strategic points in project work to promote active learning.
This article draws on my experience designing microlearning in university settings and seeing its impact translate into the workplace. My background in digital media and education—fields where continuous upskilling is the norm—has shaped how I approach learning design.
While my enthusiasm for microlearning is clear, this article also unpacks how L&D professionals can build a culture that supports the implementation of microlearning and addresses the common pitfalls of its delivery. Microlearning aligns strongly with workplace learning, particularly in delivering the critical ‘education’ component of the 3Es model (exposure, experience, education). There is no single solution, but there are practical strategies that can make it work.
Microlearning and microcredentials are very broad terms. How I define these terms includes small form learning activities, short form content and quick snippets of active learning, like short quizzes or reflections.
The second buzz word is project-based learning (PBL), which refers to self-directed study that involves actively performing a small example activity purely for the purpose of practicing new skills. PBL is often accompanied by some form of small accreditation. PBL can also encompass learning that is directed by an authentic task: the learner finds skills they need for a project and develop inquiry questions along the way. The on-demand requirement of this type of learning can lean towards asynchronous online content. However, there could be some face-to-face training that people can undertake at short notice.
Another broad term is learning culture. This can simply be a shared understanding of how small learning can contribute to individual growth and how to support this. A culture of reflective learning or ePortfolio practice is part of this and refers to a learner having a process of creating a larger narrative that encompasses learning fragments.
PBL is something that resonated with me as it matched my experience of upskilling. With each new project, I find there is new software or a new skills to learn. It works well for cross department training as benefits from interdisciplinary input. In teaching and training I find it exciting to share what I have discovered recently. For my masters research, I interviewed regional teachers about their access to professional development. A theme that emerged was that their passion projects often prompted them to upskill using tools like YouTube.
PBL is still around and becomes more prominent at the end of degrees or training programs, providing adult learners autonomy. In the workplace, our upcoming work becomes the driver for our learning.
PBL is somewhat controversial. With the rise of explicit instruction built on behaviourism and the awareness of extraneous cognitive load, the challenges of inquiry learning have been under the spotlight in recent years. However, they are not necessarily mutually exclusive.
In teaching adults’ art, some people thrive with a blank slate to launch inquiry questions. Others find this overwhelming and benefit from optional parameters and explicit instruction around skill development before a creative project.
Encouraging people in your workplace to upskill with short, sharp training can provide benefits beyond fitting into the half hour gaps in their schedule. It resolves a few of the challenges of making training relevant to an increasingly specialised workforce and, in turn, motivates people to own their learning. It addresses some of the challenges of front loading. It is backed by the educational principles of spacing practice and just in time training.
The practical benefits of chunking learning into smaller parts include:
Keeping a catalogue of content current is much easier when training is unbundled.
It makes it easier to share content with a broader audience. While we can still tailor smaller parts for specific cohorts it increases the eyeballs on your resources.
Smaller training is less risky and more affordable, increasing reach in your organisation.
When it comes to reporting, it increases the nuance in analytics for data fans.
Most importantly, learning become something that happens regularly and intentionally.
Weaving learning into the flow of work creates opportunities for the application of learning immediately after acquiring new knowledge. This supports the theory of active learning. This is particularly useful for online learning that can become focused on content consumption, and therefore challenging to include opportunities for application. It is often assumed that employees will make links between training and its application in the context of their work, but there is the risk that people are too busy to actively reflect on learning.
It is also supported by cognitive theory of spacing. Engaging with content over time increases its impact. Revisiting concepts learned during study and seeing how they relate to the realities of their workplace enables connection to be created . Microlearning paired with practice and reflection provide the antidote to cramming for an exam and not remembering the knowledge the following week.
Creating a culture that incorporates learning starts with a foundation of valuing individual development beyond group activities requires that leadership takes a risk. Leadership needs to establish that it is okay for people to not know everything, to still be growing. Leadership needs to promote and allow space for employees to brush up on how to perform a task.
For tasks that are performed occasionally, we could spell out in project plans that skills refreshers are encouraged. For instance, rather than rushing into that complex annual reporting software to get the task done, employees can be encouraged to take the time to review the training video, look up the shortcuts and reacquaint themselves with what is required.
Employees should be encouraged to reflect on tasks, either through structured reflective practice, embedded within in-house training and or asking questions:
As it is often self-directed, the success of microlearning relies on the learner. Practices that might seem second nature to us in learning and development, but they need to be fostered. People need help in learning how to learn:
How to analyse the skills needed for upcoming projects
How to reflect and find bigger gaps in knowledge for career goals
How to perform a self-assessment or interpret competency frameworks
How to design small inquiry questions
How to determine what a learning path looks like
This could be done in partnership with learning and development but for scale, workers will need to build media literacy around resources. A critical part of that design needs to be planning for application of learning. Reflection is also a skill we can foster. Knowing how to take notes, how to develop an ePortfolio to record these small acts of learning. Workplaces can support this habit of collecting and reflecting on evidence in the moment, rather than at the end of year. This provides a structure and vehicle for reflection across experience, exposure and education.
Examples of small free quality microlearning: oercollective.caul.edu.au/catalogue
AITD offers several courses:
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eLearning: Foundations: This is Part I of an engaging, social learning suite of courses that provides you with access to learning experiences, activities and a comprehensive knowledge base. Register now. You may also be interested in eLearning: Planning and Design; and eLearning: Production and Delivery.
Claire is an instructional designer with a passion for open, accessible and media-rich learning. She has worked on microcredentials from several angles, starting as a learning designer for universities to supporting research and not-for-profit groups in developing short course offerings. Her background in the ever-evolving fields of design explains the obsession with keeping current through microcredentials. She has moved from collaborating with industry to being embedded in an L&D department. Connect with Claire on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/clairebowmer/