M-learning in education is on the rise and shows just how far the tech has come to be able to facilitate it, and with good reason. One of the main advantages of mobile learning is accessibility, which is bringing much of the joy back to learning and training for some students. The ability to learn from anywhere on a mobile device can allow you to create the perfect learning environment, whether that’s a crowded café or calm library, it appeals to all.
This also leads to minimal learning disruption because you can pick it up and put it down whenever it suits you, rather than having to have your laptop with you or wait to get back to a desktop. If you have a spare 10 minutes before the train arrives, you can fit in a small element or video as well as doing short training exercises during your lunch break, keeping it engaging and ultimately getting you closer to the end learning goal. Flexibility also plays a key role because whether it’s a tablet or smartphone, different preferences and screen sizes suit different people. So being able to have adjustable content means mLearning is the new buzzword for education.
Avoid desktops altogether by creating exclusive content that’s directly for mobile. This could be a downloadable app to integrate gamification into the module or something simple like audio snippets and podcasts so that students can take the content on the move. Mobiles and tablets are the preferred method of communicating and students are more likely to have their smartphones to hand out of hours than setting up a computer or laptop. So you can leverage the need to be mobile into motivating employees to learn on the go.
Remember to keep content interesting and focus on mobile accessible options like quizzes, polls or flashcards that are easier to manage on a smaller screen and can be adapted well to suit most content types.
Performance and Functionality
Content needs to adapt to mobile screens and understanding that not everything fits well and may need to be adapted is key. For example, pages of text don’t translate well and longer images like infographics could be cut off making them difficult to read. It’s important that information retention is considered by ensuring that formatting integrates multimedia and breaks up long segments into smaller, easier chunks to manage.
From a usability standpoint, it’s also important to ensure that loading times are not affected and kept to a minimum, images aren’t cut off due to screen size and videos are rotatable so they can be enlarged to fit a smaller device’s screen. These are all performance elements that can keep mobile learning interesting and working well with the users, keeping them motivated.
Smartphones are generally peoples’ preferred method of contact now which means you’ll need to offer support to back up the mlearning platform. This could be in the form of chatbots or coaching that is tailor made to work between apps like messenger to get the same assistance and training that you would get on a desktop.
Remember it’s worth taking the time to create mobile-only content that is well supported and engaging because the benefits of mobile learning far outweigh the effort that goes into creating it.