For the time being, companies across the country (and the world!) are canceling events, moving colleges online, closing schools, and embracing remote work in response to COVID-19.
But life goes on (even if weirdly from a 6-foot social distance).
We telephone or Skype our loved ones. We work from home. Students finish their university semesters virtually. Schoolkids log into e-learning courses to keep up academically.
We turn to digital solutions to fill the gaps.
But the truth is that robust digital learning solutions aren't just the right thing to do because we have no choice… they’re the right thing to do because modern learners want to learn differently.
Here are three ways digital learning fills the gap left by COVID-19:
On-demand Learning
Have you noticed that your life operates on-demand more and more? You stream entertainment when it’s convenient. You watch ads on YouTube only if you’re considering a purchase. You search Google for answers to your problems day and night.
Why shouldn’t we have on-demand education, too?
Digital solutions allow learners to learn when they want and where they want. With a mobile phone, they can learn on-the-go or from the comfort of their home. A scheduling conflict won’t stop someone from learning digitally.
On-demand learning often happens in 5-10 minute chunks. Bite-sized learning allows even busy individuals to learn a new subject without sacrificing time at a full-time job or with their family. Plus, frequent learning combats the forgetting curve.
With all of these benefits, why return to a dreary, old textbook?
Personalized Learning Pathways
Ken Robinson compares today’s education system to fast food. In his Ted Talk, “Bring on the Learning Revolution!,” he calls for us to move on from the standardization of McDonald’s and embrace the local flavors of the Michelin-star dining experience. He wants more personalization in our educational systems.
Digital learning presents a tremendous opportunity to create personalized learning pathways for learners. A human being cannot assess thirty students fast enough to create personalized learning pathways... But a computer can.
An AI-driven system can match learning material to a specific learner’s strengths and weaknesses. The system can either remove or add scaffolding depending on learner ability. Also, it can remediate learners immediately, rather than waiting for an instructor to mark the test.
Optimized Content
Wouldn’t it be great if you knew exactly what tripped up your learners? You’ve tried surveying them, but it didn’t work. They don’t know which part of your instruction confused them. But the data analytics on your LMS can give you a clue.
Organizations can use real-time data and feedback to pinpoint exactly what questions and concepts learners misunderstood. Then, they can redesign portions of the course to optimize it to increase learner proficiency.
Digital content also pulls data from interactive elements, such as quizzes. These interactive elements provide clues for instructional designers. For example, the percentage of people picking certain answers on the quiz can lead to designers rewriting the earlier content for greater clarity.
Your LMS can even measure the time spent on each piece of content. If you need your learner to stay on the page longer, you can create more engaging user experiences.
Digital mediums present endless forms of engagement. You just need to decide what content matters most for your learners, then optimize it until they learn it so well that they could repeat it in their sleep!
Why wait to engage learners digitally?
Learning technology isn’t a glorified textbook we use only when other options fail. It’s a way to meet your modern learners on their turf. Modern learners expect their technology to be on-demand and personalized.
Just because learning technology is educational doesn’t mean it should be boring. Learning technology needs to be MORE engaging to align with the needs and expectations of the modern learner..
Luckily, an LMS gives you the tools to optimize your content directly to your audience. You don’t need to guess what your learners want. You just need to take a look at your analytics and work towards improving whatever pieces of content aren’t performing well. With this data, you’ll make sure everyone learns what they need to be successful.
As always, BenchPrep is here to help you meet the needs of the modern learner. Learn how BenchPrep Quick Start Program can help solve your in-person training challenges today!
