{"id":1936,"date":"2019-05-16T17:45:14","date_gmt":"2019-05-16T17:45:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost:10054\/?p=1936"},"modified":"2021-08-29T16:52:00","modified_gmt":"2021-08-29T16:52:00","slug":"why-microlearning-is-important-to-your-business","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/maestrolearning.com\/blogs\/why-microlearning-is-important-to-your-business\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Microlearning Is Important to Your Business"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

If you ever look through a list of popular buzzwords in training and development, you\u2019ll probably find microlearning high on the list. It\u2019s a topic that everyone has heard about<\/a> but few people can concretely define. After all, there are a lot of different opinions about what microlearning is and how useful it can be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What exactly is microlearning? <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Microlearning can change your business for the better, boost employee productivity like never before, and decrease the dollars you spend on employee training. But before we start talking about how microlearning can help your business, let\u2019s establish a shared definition. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Microlearning is defined by the second hand<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Microlearning is the only type of learning that\u2019s most defined by time\u2014and when we say time, we\u2019re talking minutes, not hours. The actual length varies, with some instructional designers promoting five- or even two-minute caps. But for practical purposes and flexibility, we\u2019ll define microlearning as learning that covers a single, tightly focused topic in ten minutes or less. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Microlearning is a philosophy, not a practice<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Microlearning isn\u2019t a new idea. It just takes sound instructional design principles and looks at them in a new way. To sum up the philosophy of microlearning in a single sentence, microlearning is thoughtful and intentionally created content that puts the needs of the learner first\u2014all in under ten minutes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Use microlearning to combat the forgetting curve<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

No matter how amazing your training may be, Ebbinghaus\u2019 forgetting curve is here to stay. During the initial learning phase, retention rises as learners absorb the new information. But once they get back on the job, their ability to retain<\/em> new information drops rapidly. Two days after undergoing learning, the average learner only remembers about 25% of the information. And here\u2019s the kicker: by 90 days, that percentage is approaching zero. Unsurprisingly, this creates havoc with onboarding and makes your budget cringe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s the good news. We can fix this by reinforcing learning over time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"microlearning-graph\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

We can boost learning reinforcement through:<\/p>\n\n\n\n