Microlearning Facts – 15 surprising facts you’ve probably never heard of! In this article, we will show you everything you need to know as an entrepreneur, HR expert, coach, and educational service provider about microlearning.

Why microlearning enriches digital learning

Digitalization means we are confronted with new information, knowledge, and images every second. Our attention span and concentration suffer as a result, which is why outdated teaching methods no longer fully work today. Learning strategies must adapt to the current needs of learners. In doing so, they must primarily master the following three challenges:

Challenge No. 1: The limited human attention span

According to the 90/20/8 rule, adult humans can listen with concentration for 90 minutes. However, performance begins to drop after just 20 minutes. From this point on, it becomes difficult for most people to retain the content being taught. Participants in seminars, lectures, or workshops must be actively involved every eight minutes to keep their attention.

Challenge No. 2: Concentration in a digitalized society

According to a Microsoft study, goldfish have a longer attention span (9 seconds) than humans (8 seconds). Possible cause: Due to the challenges of the information society, human perception has changed; teaching methods must address these changes.

Challenge No. 3: The forgetting curve

For learning processes to be effective, learners must also retain the content. The forgetting curve states that after just 20 minutes, we can only remember 60 percent of the content; after six days, only 23 percent; and after 30 days, we have forgotten almost 80 percent of what was learned if it is not actively practiced again.

These three challenges must be addressed so that learning content remains in the memory, can be applied quickly and practically on the job, and companies can benefit from employees who optimally absorb new knowledge.

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What role does microlearning play?

Supplementing further education: Training providers, educational institutions, and companies can use the method of microlearning to meaningfully supplement their formal training – seminars, workshops, e-learning offers. The learning effect can be reinforced by microlearning; learners can retain content in their memory longer and anchor it in the long term.

Maintaining attention: With microlearning, content is conveyed in small units that demand the learner's attention for about three to five minutes. This way, the optimum level of attention can be utilized.

Faster completions: The shorter the training, the faster learners can achieve (partial) completions. The completion rate increases, which motivates employees and can be recorded as a gain by companies.

Learning 4.0 – 15 Microlearning Facts

The educational landscape is changing, and microlearning plays a crucial role in this. This innovative learning method offers a variety of formats that make it possible to convey knowledge quickly and efficiently. From interactive videos to mobile apps to gamified learning content – microlearning flexibly adapts to the needs of learners and promotes continuous knowledge acquisition. These 15 microlearning facts show how microlearning is shaping the future of learning and supporting companies in effectively training their employees further.

Fact 1: This is microlearning

Microlearning facts? Before we start: What is microlearning anyway? The definition of microlearning is already in the name: With microlearning, only the smallest portions of knowledge are conveyed; learning happens in mini-steps. A learning unit usually lasts between two and five minutes, and at the end, there is a clear and defined learning objective. Microlearning is used in both formal and informal learning. The learners are encouraged to actively use the tool through the rich-media format; furthermore, microlearning is compatible with other tools.

Fact 2: This is what microlearning is not

Microlearning is not a method for dividing a ten-hour training session into shorter units. Trainers cannot simply re-sort their extensive materials and organize them into individual sessions and expect a microlearning tool to be ready. It is much more about encouraging learners to act, practice, and reflect through a special preparation of knowledge.

Fact 3: Differences between microlearning and just-in-time teaching

Just-in-time teaching is generally used to offer employees learning units in a context-bound manner at the exact moment the need arises.

• Just-in-time teaching is mostly used to cover a specific need or to provide the solution to a specific problem.
• Just-in-time teaching supports informal education, less so formal education.
• Just-in-time teaching is usually not tracked by learning management systems.

For example, students can use just-in-time teaching to prepare for lectures and thus familiarize themselves with the content of the event in advance.

Fact 4: This is how small microlearning nuggets are

The idea behind small microlearning units is to keep them as crisp as possible. The learning goal should be achieved quickly and with high effectiveness – how long the units are depends heavily on the respective topic. So, there is no perfect length for microlearning, but ideally, the units should:

• be easy to internalize
• be so short that learners can complete a unit without interruption, e.g., on the train ride home or during a break
• be available regardless of time and place
• be completed with an effective result, which immediately encourages the learner to take active action
• be designed to be action-oriented.

A microlearning app makes learning content available in such a way that it is easy to consume and internalize.

Fact 5: Microlearning for employees

Microlearning Fact No. 5: Microlearning is a good way for employees to apply and internalize new knowledge and techniques immediately during actual working hours. That is why microlearning applications are always interlinked with the actual area of application of the content. Learners can start with a simple learning level and slowly work their way up to expert knowledge, and the pace can also be adjusted.

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Fact 6: Great advantages for employees

Microlearning in further education has several advantages, especially for employees:

• Flexibility: Microlearning works on all (mobile) devices
• Fast access: No need to log in to a learning management system
• Multitasking: Access to learning material does not interrupt the workflow
• Learner-centered: The application can take into account the different learning styles and focuses of learners, so that employees recognize themselves in the presentation and approach of the individual learning units.
• Just-in-time: The knowledge is made available to employees exactly when it can also be applied.
• Rich Media: Microlearning takes into account the most diverse formats. Depending on the content and target group, the learning units can be prepared for different media access points.
• Time-saving: The individual learning units are so short that they can be completed quickly and knowledge can be effectively implemented quickly.

Fact 7: Many advantages for the economy

When talking about microlearning facts, one must not forget the economic aspect. The key advantages of microlearning for companies include:

• Inexpensive further education tool: To integrate microlearning into your own company, no excessively high investment is required. Instead, the investment pays off very quickly in the form of well-trained employees.
• Short development cycle: The learning units can be conceived and made available quickly.
• Fast updates: With newly available knowledge and other innovations, the learning units can be updated quickly and employees can be informed about them.
• Versatility: Microlearning in companies can be used in both formal or informal further education. This means that the various modules are made available to employees for individual learning or as an independent course as well as within the framework of a formal further education course.
• High Impact: Learning goals can be achieved quickly; companies can quickly pass on current knowledge to employees in all departments.

Fact 8: Prerequisites for microlearning are optimal

More and more companies are discovering the possibilities of microlearning because the prerequisites are as good as ever:

• Rising number of users of mobile devices
• Optimal technological conditions for rapid development of learning units
• Applications can be used in various learning situations (seminars, workshops, individual learning)
• Microlearning only requires a low attention span

In our article on microlearning software, you can read more about this topic and learn about other microlearning facts.

Fact 9: Microlearning is not just used by Millennials

Microlearning is a learning technique that is well-received primarily by Millennials due to its design. Nevertheless, microlearning targets a broader target group, as it can adapt to the different requirements of the learning profiles:

• Fast learners: Those who have little time can learn quickly with microlearning
• Short-term learners: The learning units adapt to the attention spans of the employees
• Mobile learners: Microlearning is applicable on various device types
• Simple learners: No special learning management system is required
• Individual learners: Microlearning adapts to the learner's workflow

Microlearning can be applied to almost all learner types. Companies only need to ensure the necessary technical competencies.

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Fact 10: Microlearning can be used in internal further education

Microlearning in the company can be used not only for the informal learning of employees. There are also areas of application in internal further education:

• Formal education
• Supplement to formal education
• Preparatory or follow-up supplement or reinforcement of online and ILT training
• As just-in-time learning aids

With microlearning, further education in the company can be made more lively and effective; give it a try!

Fact 11: When microlearning should not be used

Our microlearning facts are realistic: There are a few rare cases where microlearning does not work in the company. This can happen if the learning content is too complex and cannot be meaningfully packed into individual learning units. Then it may make sense to convey the knowledge in a larger learning unit. In all other cases, microlearning can almost always be used as individual units or in the form of a learning series.

Fact 12: Designing a microlearning offer

When designing a microlearning offer, the following three steps can be followed:

Step 1: In the first step, you create a general template – a blueprint – that defines the learning objectives and specifies the general design of all microlearning units.

Step 2: Now, a plan must be created that divides the end learning objective into smaller learning objectives and makes it clear how complex knowledge can be packed into small learning units. After each micro-unit, the user should have acquired new knowledge and taken another step toward the learning objective.

Step 3: A schedule should give learners a good overview of how many steps it will take them to complete a microlearning application. Milestones motivate them to learn and are valuable anchors on the way to the goal.

In this article, we show you how to make your company future-fit thanks to microlearning in just 3 steps.

Fact 13: Formats in which microlearning can be used

Microlearning has established itself as an extremely effective method for conveying learning content quickly and efficiently. There is a multitude of formats to choose from, which can be adapted depending on the content. It is essential that these formats are multi-device capable and can be used on desktops, laptops, tablets, and smartphones.

It is crucial that the selected format supports the content (“Form follows Content”). Here are some exciting formats in the field of microlearning that can both supplement formal learning offers and enrich ILT training (Instructor-Led Training):

• Conversational Microlearning
• Microblogging by employees
• Interactive parallax scroll training
• Mobile Apps
• Short videos
• Interactive videos
• Whiteboard animations
• Kinetic text-based animations
• Simulations that depict specific scenarios from the respective field
• Infographics
• E-books and flipbooks
• Interactive PDFs

These diverse formats in microlearning are crucial for maximizing learning motivation and effectiveness. They contribute to arousing and maintaining the interest of learners by preventing boredom and promoting active participation. Formats such as interactive videos and gamification elements make learning fun and engaging.

Fact 14: Microlearning can impact ROI

Microlearning facts show that every learning strategy that positively influences recall, retention, and the active application of further education also improves the Return on Investment (ROI). This becomes particularly clear with microlearning approaches that promote the successful implementation of further education measures. This is already a significant advantage for corporate further education. In addition, microlearning offers employees precise application knowledge at the right time. When companies use digital further education offers with microlearning methods, employees learn to apply their knowledge in a targeted manner and improve their learning behavior and work style in the long term. This increases the efficiency of their workflows, which in turn has a positive effect on the ROI.

Fact 15: Digital further education in companies – what else is possible?

Let us come to the end of our list of microlearning facts. For companies, microlearning is another possibility to specifically reach employees with digital further education in the company. The prerequisite is that human resources departments think about how they want to bring knowledge to their employees and how this measure should positively affect the ROI.

Should current specialist knowledge be quickly conveyed to employees through digital further education in the company?‍Is microlearning the possibility to train employees to become competent contact partners when dealing with customers?‍Or should employees act more effectively in daily routines?

With microlearning, anything is possible.
A major advantage is also that companies can combine microlearning with other formats and approaches to achieve the greatest possible effect.

Microlearning is particularly effective, for example, with methods such as:

• Gamification
• Social learning
• and personalization of learning.

Using microlearning in your own company

Those were 15 microlearning facts that show that it is worth using microlearning. This learning method is not only an answer to the challenges of modern education but also a key to effective further education in companies. The variety of formats makes it possible to design learning content in a customized and needs-oriented manner. From the flexibility of use on different devices to the promotion of learning motivation through interactive elements and gamification – microlearning sets new standards for efficient and engaging learning. Companies that use microlearning in a targeted manner benefit from better-qualified employees and increased productivity, which ultimately contributes to sustainable corporate success.

Test the keelearning platform today for free! Intuitive and non-binding.

You can find news and insights about the topic of innovative, digital, and user-centered learning on LinkedIn!

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