Nanolearning: Small Wonders

Nanolearning: Small Wonders

According to an ATD research, an ideal amount of time for a microlearning activity is anywhere between 2 to 5 minutes. However, usually most microlearning activities are around 10-15 minutes long. 

What if there’s something still smaller than microlearning? Welcome to the world of nanolearning, where you deal with nano bites of information instead of micro bites. 

So, what is nanolearning?

Nanolearning refers to a series of short bites of learning material, lasting no more than 2-3 minutes long. Nanolearning addresses a single objective. 

It can be deployed through different modalities such as short e-learning tutorial with text, images, audio and video. They could be short video-based learning programs from 20 seconds to two minutes, for instant learning, or infographics. 

Benefits of Nanolearning:

• Goal-oriented learning leads to immediate benefit from the learning.
• Nanolearning uses the “Less is More” approach, as learners prefer to learn/focus on one thing at a time.
• Content is presented in easy to digest chunks, making it less overwhelming, involving less time from the learner. 
• Learners can access training at their convenience, ‘anytime, anywhere’.

Factors to consider when implementing nanolearning

1. Learn about your learner.

Here are the questions you could possibly ask: 

• What are the typical issues that learners face?
• Is there a new process that is being introduced?
• Are there any tasks that can be broken down into smaller steps?
• Can they access their phones during their work day?
• Do they prefer videos or pod casts? This will help you decide the modality.

2. Identify the learning objective.

Nanolearning modules address one key objective and help in reinforcing or introducing a core concept or providing performance support where required. If you try and map it to Bloom’s Taxonomy levels, it would be suitable for the Remembering and Understanding levels, as compared to the higher levels.

3. Factor in a mobile-first design.

Nanolearning is mobile-friendly; making it easy to access. However, before you design for mobiles, ensure that your learner groups will access the training on their phones or tablets or whether these devices are allowed in their workspace. Ensure you have considered the location where you can host your content, you want learners to access the training fast, without too many logins.

4. Choose the modality.

Do your learners prefer audio-based or video-based learning? Do they need downloadable infographics to summarize the key tasks needed? What is it that you want to teach? The answers to these questions will determine the modality that would best work.

5. Align the nanolearning program with your larger training plan.

Nanolearning components could very often be a part of a larger training event, so when designing it, it is a good idea to align it accordingly.

6. Label them right.

The title of the nanolearning should be clear and easy to understand and address the learner’s WIIFM or “What’s in It for Me?” question. Easy labels also make the content easily accessible and searchable.

7. Focus on curating existing content, where possible.

Most organizations have a lot of existing training material that can be reused as nanolearning components. Experts in the organization can also contribute to the information repository where possible. Learners can relate to the industry and organizational experts and the training becomes more relevant.

8. Sharing is caring.

Encourage a culture of sharing learning. Most learners engage through informal learning through blogposts, webinars or other social media platforms. Creating a culture of sharing this information on trending topics promotes healthy discussion on key topics. This process is one of the most effective ways to share knowledge when needed.

To conclude, nanolearning exemplifies learning in the flow of work, as you are able to roll out bite-sized information nuggets that addresses the immediate training requirement. Whether you are looking for nanolearning companies or microlearning companies to fulfill your training needs, integrating learning with traditional training and eLearning courses helps engage learners with different learning styles, while being flexible to their schedules.

To know more, write to us at marketing@mpsinteractive.com.

– By Aparna Burde, Director – Instructional Design at MPS Interactive