The concept of e-training began during the 1990s as a way to promote learning. You are most likely familiar with the trendy new approach. Important changes have resulted from the e-learning platform, technology, and workplace trends. The advantages of e-learning have overtaken the benefits of employee training conducted by an instructor. The benefits of e-learning include convenience, decreasing costs, flexibility and saving time.
The process is exceptionally beneficial for tech-savvy Gen Zers and millennials. The issue is you may experience difficulties taking advantage of the benefits unless you understand the most recent developments and can access the best LMS or learning management system software. As the popularity of e-learning continues to increase, you will notice the appearance of specific trends for 2020.
1. Mobile learning
Mobility is incredibly important for living in the modern world. You may realize there were in excess of 6.8 billion people using mobile devices in 2019. By 2021, the number is expected to reach seven billion. To help you comprehend these numbers, the population of the world was 7.7 billion in 2019. That means 89% of all people were using a mobile device.
As you have watched the number of people using mobile devices increase, you can be certain mobile learning is a trend that is not going to go away. Approximately 99% of all mobile learners have stated mobile devices enhance their learning experience. Blended learning is currently accessed by 67% of all mobile device users. These numbers show mobile learning has become critical for development and learning.
Mobile learning is now fully mature. You should not be surprised to know that 2019 introduced numerous e-learning platforms virtually identical to the desktop solutions of the past. Although some mobile learning platforms have not yet been perfected, the transformative power is incredible. Mobile learning offers your employees a lot of benefits such as learning whenever and wherever they choose.
The LMS enables you to closely monitor performance. The flexibility and accessibility of mobile learning practically guarantee this will be one of the hottest trends you will see in 2020. Immersive and mobile technology may even combine to offer you learning materials with the highest possible impact.
2. Peer-to-peer learning
The expectation for 2020 is half of all organizations will create content for soft skill development for peer-to-peer learning. You probably already realize there is a gap in skills. You may not know this does not include hard skills such as welding or coding. The gap consists of the softer stuff including analytical reasoning, persuasion, and creativity.
In the past, your employees most likely depended on their peers to learn soft skills. The issue is this type of learning is generally informal and infrequent. An e-learning platform offers your employees templates and tools to initiate organized e-learning. They can share their knowledge with peers by designing a course or filming a short video for a learning platform.
The same is true in reverse. Your employees can show you everything they have learned by sending the material to you for an assessment of their progress. This will enhance their growth, which is the reason peer-to-peer learning has become an important trend for 2020.
3. Teaching productivity
Your company may already offer training for time management and productivity. This will help your employees access resources to efficiently manage daily challenges. To be successful, your training must include the three core components detailed below.
- A management system enabling a comprehensive workflow.
- Discussing the importance of attention management as opposed to time management.
- Clear information for the priorities and roles of your employees.
When you include all of these components in your training, your employees will learn time management skills adaptable to the personality of each employee and team. The more skills your employees learn, the better their performance. One of the philosophies currently trending is called the Getting Things Done or GTD philosophy. You can incorporate this when creating new tasks or drafting projects.
The idea is to use an LMS to make it easier for your employees to understand and manage their priorities. If you are familiar with the Pomodoro technique, you know work should consist of periods of 25 minutes, with five-minute breaks in between. The basis of this methodology is the brain performs better in short spurts than long marathons.
The periods of time your employees are working should be filled with concentration with all distractions eliminated. Blended learning can be used to combine what you like the most about different models for increased flexibility. The best tips are defined below.
- You can help your employees avoid distractions with the creation of a work atmosphere created to minimize distractions.
- Your employees should only handle one task at a time. According to the GTD model, multitasking is generally not recommended. Other than in specific situations, the focus of your employees should remain on one task at a time.
- According to the Pomodoro technique, your employees should respect working times and know when and for how long to take regular breaks.
- Regular employee breaks should remain consistent. You should encourage a discipline consisting of periods of work and rest. You should keep the schedule as regular as possible. Most importantly, your employees should not be encouraged to work on a break.
- You should have a plan including everything you expect of your employees. Your employees should know exactly when they are expected to work. You can even use a calendar to set aside periods of time for your employees to focus on the most important tasks.
The reason time management training has become a trend is it enables you to increase the productivity and attention of your employees. Your training should be based on the personalities and activities of your employees and teams.
4. The immersive technologies trend
One of the most important immersive technologies for learning is AI or artificial intelligence. This type of technology includes mixed reality, virtual reality and augmented reality. Despite still being in the beginning stages, these technologies have an effective impact on e-learning. You can use intriguing graphics and images in addition to your existing training materials to improve your e-learning platform.
The goal is to engage your employees through immersive and thrilling experiences. A good example is when insurance companies enhance training for disaster or fire inspections by implementing augmented reality. Employers can overlay a real house with graphics depicting fire damage. The visuals can then be used for training investigators to learn how to figure out what started the fire.
There are numerous interesting elements involved with virtual reality such as real interactions and 360-degree photography. You can combine the features to effectively close the gap between real applications and theories. The best way to teach your employees is through learning. Virtual reality will help you with this concept. Virtual reality enables you to offer your employees an immersive experience.
You can increase employee engagement while decreasing distractions through instructional and practical strategies. Medical niches and the military are already using virtual reality for high-tech training. You can use this strategy for group learning and internship training. Virtual reality also offers support for distance training. This is an excellent option for corporate training or training all employees in the modern workplace and one of the newest trends is working remotely.