As the year draws to a close, organizations often find themselves reflecting on their achievements, challenges, and areas for improvement. For those invested in Learning and Development (L&D), this is the perfect time to conduct a comprehensive review of your learning strategy.
Learning Strategy: A Year-End Self-Assessment Read More »
Education has become increasingly digital, and learning analytics have followed suit. Whether using Blackboard or Moodle, learners leave their blueprint while interacting with course content and materials. Activity logs save this invaluable data that L&D professionals can use to inform their decision-making and course development. However, in the past, learning analytics often received backlash for prioritizing data analysis over the actual learning process.
The time learners spend interacting with the course is time they will never get back. As satiating as it is for an L&D professional to think that time is inherently well-spent, this is only true if those minutes were a good use of learners’ lives. Are these courses well-thought-out, engaging, and informative, and do they put learners at the center of their design? Do they represent the optimal use of learners’ time?
Traditional models, such as ADDIE and Dick and Carrey, and their core features are foundational in instructional design. However, newer approaches can address contemporary learning environments and technologies just as well. As changes are happening at a different speed in the 2020s, consider embracing them rather than waiting for the right moment. The best is always to start now
Iterative Design Process: How to Embrace a Test-and-Learn Approach in Course Development Read More »
Instructional designers work within a fast-paced environment where technologies change at a stunning speed. The need to be able to adapt to transformations requires learning materials that can remain current and relevant. As a result, many started exploring the agile methodology, which has its roots in the software development industry. There, the agile approach had already proved successful in managing complex projects due to its flexibility, high quality, customer satisfaction, and risk mitigation.
As fundamentally social animals, humans are wired to want to socialize and connect. Not only our happiness depends on socialization, but also survival. A professor of neuroscience, Michael Platt, described the brain’s structures in charge of managing interactions with other people as the social brain network. This is one of the reasons anxiety and depression increased during the 2020 pandemic by 25 percent.
As humans, we like to pride ourselves on basing our decision-making on probability and logic. But we’re far from computers and AI. We don’t always make the most rational decisions, nor can we explain why we’re drawn to people, things, and experiences that evoke intense emotions. This is because we’re highly emotional beings. In fact, humans base 90 percent of decisions on emotions and use logic to justify their actions to themselves and others.
Since smartphones overtook PCs and laptops in the early 2010s and became ubiquitous, most searches now occur on-the-go. Nearly 96 percent of the global digital population used a mobile device to connect to the internet in mid-2023. Mobiles are the go-to devices for shopping, looking for information, communicating, and even learning. According to Keystone Online Studies, around 50 percent of students used mobile devices to access course content and communicate with professors.
Mobile Learning: How to Leverage the Power of On-the-go Training Read More »
Do you know that unmatchable feeling when you’re starving, and delicious food has just been served? All you want is to devour it, overindulge, and enjoy every bite. Sadly, this culinary pleasure often leaves you full, meaning you must miss out on dessert. This wouldn’t happen if you ate bite-sized portions, leaving space for more. Why not apply this approach to other aspects of our lives? Whether eating, playing games, or learning, no one wants to feel overwhelmed or tired.
Microlearning Strategy: Bite-sized Lessons for Maximum Engagement and Retention Read More »
Every learner is unique, and in today’s fast-paced world, personalized learning journeys have become a cornerstone of effective learning and development strategies. Gone are the days when a one-size-fits-all approach to training was enough to meet the needs of a diverse workforce. Personalized learning paths help ensure that employees can develop skills at their own pace, stay engaged in their growth, and feel motivated to continue their learning journey.
Building Personalized Learning Journeys Read More »
