Ten Advantages of Mobile Learning

What do you use your smartphone for?

Other than making phone calls, of course ????.

Smartphones have become devices that entertain us. Be it streaming movies on Amazon Prime Video and Netflix, clicking photographs, or playing addictive video games, the smartphone has evolved from just an instrument used to make calls and send and receive messages. Smartphones have taken over and literally dictate our lives. From Blackberry phones that were only used by senior management to emails on affordable smartphones, and pesky WhatsApp messages, all of us are caught in the web of the smartphone. It was but inevitable that organizations would find a way to train their employees with mobile learning solutions.

[bctt tweet=”It is believed that by 2022, there will be over 270 million smartphone users in the USA.” username=””]

It is believed that by 2022, there will be over 270 million smartphone users in the USA. That’s a mind-boggling number, when you include emerging markets like Africa, India, Brazil, and China the potential number of smartphone users increases significantly.

Source – Statista

Foster Workplace Learning with Mobile Learning Solutions

Smartphones are also a great way to deploy learning at the workplace. Perhaps it may not work in a factory plant (or) production set-up where intense focus is needed, and even a momentary lapse of concentration may lead to grievous injury. In areas like IT, banking & finance, and higher education, the mobile phone can be used innovatively to foster learning.

GSMA & McKinsey state that by 2020 the global mobile learning market is estimated to grow into a $70 billion industry. As more organizations make efforts to grab a share of this $70 billion pie, we will list down ‘Ten Advantages of Mobile Learning’ in this blog post.

Cost-Effective

In terms of cost and efforts, designing mobile learning is less expensive than designing a traditional eLearning program or a regular instructor-led training program. Between 30% to 50% of total costs can be saved when switching to mobile learning. You don’t have to spend on flying in renowned subject-matter experts or training gurus, paying them for their stay, and ensuring that all required staff are assembled at the same time in one place. When this translates to

Addresses Attention Deficit

Research by learning analysts has shown that at the workplace, about 70% of learners felt more motivated to learn and complete a course module, when training on a mobile device. Another interesting stat from Michaels & Associates states that on an average, per week, mobile learners study 40 minutes more than regular learners. This is ample proof that mobile learning significantly helps foster workplace learning.

Fosters BYOD

[bctt tweet=”Market research leader Gartner predicts that by the year 2020, 45% of all businesses will have a focused BYOD policy.” username=””]

Market research leader Gartner predicts that by the year 2020, 45% of all businesses will have a focused BYOD policy. Mobile learning fosters BYOD, by putting the onus on the employee to bring their own device, instead of the company investing, and providing devices to its employees. From an organizational point of view, this saves costs. Most employees use a smartphone. By creating learning solutions that work seamlessly across mobile devices, organizations can save costs, and simplify workplace learning.

Best Way to Deploy Bite-Sized Learning

Mobile learning is the best way to deploy bite-sized/micro learning to a group of learners. Research has proven that learner attention spans are dipping, and the oft-quoted example of the goldfish is proof that people do not want to take up one-hour eLearning courses. Give learners easily understandable learning nuggets, which they can consume with ease. More organizations are investing in creating bite-sized learning modules for their staff.

Optimal Usage of Spare Time

In a survey conducted by the Merrill Lynch Go Learn initiative, an interesting stat emerged in terms of where people complete learning/training.

• 32% of the respondents said they complete learning when travelling
• 26% of the respondents said they complete learning when at home
• 24% of the respondents said they complete learning when they commute
• 18% of the respondents said they complete learning when they are at work

Do you use public transport to commute to work? Have you seen how engrossed people are in their smartphones? They are watching videos, playing games, listening to music, or reading eBooks. It is this spare time that can be used by people to improve their skills. Mobile learning helps foster anywhere, anytime learning and allows people to use their spare time effectively.

Learn Faster and Save Time

[bctt tweet=”Merrill Lynch’s study found that learners who used a smartphone to access their learning completed the programs 45% faster. ” username=””]

“Time is Money” is a popular quote. Merrill Lynch’s study found that learners who used a smartphone to access their learning completed the programs 45% faster. This brings significant savings in time for organizations with a large workforce. More time saved can be used effectively to increase productivity at the workplace. This is a definite advantage of deploying mobile learning in your organization.

Caters to the Millennial Workforce

We are seeing a massive influx of millennials who have entered the workforce. This is a generation of youngsters that has experienced all the benefits of the Internet, powerful computing devices, social networks, and instant gratification. They spend more time on their smartphones and send an insane amount of time on various social media websites. Using the smartphone and deploying mobile learning is the best bet for organizations to make an instant connection with the millennials.

Customize with Ease

One of the big benefits of designing mobile learning solutions as bite-sized learning nuggets is the ability for organizations to tweak the learning solution as required. It is easier to edit and update a brief learning nugget than sitting and analyzing a large one-hour long learning module and editing it to update information. Organizations specializing in mobile learning can also customize and white-label the training with ease and sell it to other companies.

Collaborative Learning

Mobile learning helps foster collaborative learning among learners. The system can be designed to trigger reminders by sending messages on the learners’ smartphones. When learning apps come into play, the apps can be designed to trigger learning notifications. Learners within a group can challenge each other to complete tasks. Mobile learning solutions can be used effectively to foster social and collaborative learning.

Flexible and Accessible

This sums up most of the advantages that we have listed above. The biggest advantage in using mobile learning solutions is that it empowers the learners. There is no fixed time or place where the learner is closeted into and forced to complete a task. The learner decides when he/she wants to learn and learns at his/her convenience with ease. It could be a dedicated learning app, or a responsive website rendered on a mobile device. Mobile learning solutions liberate the learner from the physical confines of a classroom or an on-premise LMS.

Origin Fractal

[bctt tweet=”At Origin, we have worked on creating an agile, robust, cloud-based, mobile-first learning experience platform.” username=””]

At Origin, we have worked on creating an agile, robust, cloud-based, mobile-first learning experience platform. Designed specifically to foster extended enterprise and workplace learning, Fractal is a refreshing new way to learn and built on one simple philosophy – ‘Keep Learning’. Be it a full-fledged comprehensive eLearning course or a brief video learning nugget, Fractal offers you an ideal platform to attract and retain your learners. Visit www.originfractal.com for more information and write to info@originlearning.com to sign up for an unconditional limited period trial license.