Technology continues to progress in leaps and bounds, affecting every aspect of daily life. Mobile devices are the assets that will do everything and hold all the essential information for you, from choosing to stay connected to browsing information at a glance to managing tasks.
One area where technology has had a significant impact is in the field of education. Organizations have continued to expand their workforce globally over the last decade to attract the best skills. If these employees had to travel from one location to another, it would cost a fortune to provide them with the best-in-class training courses. It also consumes a significant amount of productive time for employees. To overcome this challenge, organizations have come up with e-learning programs that one can take up from anywhere with no location constraint.
With further advancements in technology, smartphones have started to replace the desktop. The same happened with the learning programs as well, and the learning management systems were developed in such a way that the course content could be accessed from any kind of device. The organizations now develop courses that can easily be downloaded on your mobile phones, thus making it easy for the learner to access them anywhere, anytime.
Since the term “mobile learning” was coined, its popularity has increased. In a post-pandemic world, the importance of mobile learning has grown exponentially. Even before the pandemic, training evoked the feeling of a confined space with a trainer giving instructions. However, virtual training is now the standard method of instruction, where organizations, hiring managers, and employees can interact and benefit from m-learning.
Though there are plenty of advantages to learning through mobile learning, listed below are some of the important factors for leveraging it.
Make use of mobile apps.
Although the use of mobile apps is increasing. It was not recommended for formal training since developing a user-friendly app takes time and effort. It could also be used to create online tests or performance assistance tools in situations where design and aesthetic appeal are affected.
Microlearning
The courses delivered through mobile apps are made into smaller chunks of topics that are easier to grasp and learn without breaking the continuity. These bite-sized micro lessons are easy to access for brushing up or referring to the context.
Multi-Device Support
The content developed supports multiple devices. This means that the user can log in from various devices like desktops, laptops, mobiles, tablets, etc. The content is curated in a way that optimizes itself based on the device, so you get a seamless experience from all the devices.
Employee Education
Your staff will be able to study the training content at their own pace with a corporate LMS. You will be able to remove the interruptions related to traditional learning. You can reduce worker training costs through m-learning options. This is because you will spend far less time and expense than if you brought in specialized teachers to give conventional seminars. You will also have an improved understanding of the individual’s progress with incorporated reporting and monitoring tools.
Flexibility
With handheld devices becoming a part of our lives, m-learning provides the flexibility of accessing the course material from anywhere without turning the pages of those bulky books. Also, searching for the required information is much easier with the search option. Instead of making lengthy notes, you can easily learn through interactive multimedia options provided through m-learning.
Turnaround time and knowledge exchange:
Because of the accessibility of mobile phones, a learner can instantly turn to their peer group when a question is raised and get it resolved. Mobile learning facilitates collaboration, sharing of ideas, suggestions, and conversation. All of this will increase employee and trainer involvement and communication.
Collaboration
While going through the chapters, you might come up with many doubts that used to remain unanswered while studying through traditional methods. You even tend to lose interest in the subject if the doubts keep piling up. In the case of m-learning, you get the option of collaborative learning, where you can be a part of online communities. These social communities help you resolve your queries and doubts and share knowledge, making the topics more interesting and engaging.
Gamification
It is difficult for humans to focus for long periods of time. Normally, we take small breaks to freshen up, either by playing games or by watching videos. These modes are great stress-busters. Imagine if lessons could be delivered in the form of videos and assessments in the form of games; learning any new concept, no matter how complex, would be enjoyable. M-learning does the same, making the program more engaging and interactive.
Gamifying the m-learning process engages learners. The more invested and involved they are, the better they will learn and benefit the organization. Gamification keeps learners engaged and can result in high success rates. They encourage healthy challenges and provide bonuses and points to trainees and students. When you want to start something different and interesting, gamification is a great option.
High Completion Rate
With all the benefits mentioned above, it is easy to get involved in learning any new topic. It keeps the learners engaged and motivates them to complete the program by breaking the monotony of reading long paragraphs from the book. With this kind of learning, knowledge retention is also for a longer period, and the learner ends up getting better grades in their evaluations.
Conclusion
Reading lengthy paragraphs and articles to learn a concept is not one looks forward to. The advancement of technology and mobile phones has done a good thing for the world. It keeps humans more linked to one another. Mobile learning tends to increase commitment and motivation, resulting in a high return on investment in training. As a result, there are multiple reasons to use m-learning to boost employee interaction. The m-learning programs are designed to overcome this by fitting in only the required content on the screen without scrolling up and down making learning responsive.