When I was a young teacher, if I wanted to learn something to expand my teaching practice it was NOT an easy endeavor! I had to go to the library, search for a book, lug it home, and hope it was an interesting read that actually had the information I was looking for. If I wanted something that taught me about current teaching methods, I had to sign up for an expensive class or conference. More importantly, time and energy were always a problem. I had 175 essays to grade some weekends, and that left me too tired to invest large amounts of time in my own learning.Despite being hard pressed for time, I craved knowing what was happening in classrooms beyond the perimeter of my school district. I desperately wanted to connect with other educators and learn from them, and to expand my network of mentors and collaborators. As a result, social media came to the forefront as a great resource. Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube changed my life as an educator. Developing a microlearning-infused PLN increased my access to other teacher collaborators, which informed my teaching and curriculum.
As a younger teacher, I went through so much effort to learn because I was desperately searching for a few nuggets of inspiration, and at that time the search was both time-consuming and costly. But those nuggets kept me coming back to conferences and spending my hard-earned money taking classes. Soon I turned to online networks because my school district provided so few resources and opportunities the type of growth I wanted. Thankfully, professional development has evolved. Now it’s multi-faceted, high energy and high interest. Even better, it’s now time-friendly and free!
The other day, I had to fix something in my house. Rather than call a handyman or consult a textbook or manual, I went to YouTube and learned to fix it myself in under six minutes. With this easy access to online information, conference and class models of learning have lost their distinction as the best places to learn. Teachers have flocked to places like Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and YouTube for ideas. They now find inspiration more quickly, and real-time chats can provide better quality information and ideas they can use in their classrooms tomorrow. This new form of professional development is called microlearning. And it’s proving more effective in helping teachers rethink instructional practices.
What is microlearning? Short bursts of learning that can initiate exposure, interaction, knowledge construction and reflection. They lead an educator along a roundabout path that ends with deeper understanding and deeper learning. This learning is frequently fueled by curiosity and inquiry. A deep dive results in richer understanding through actual examples and rapid fire metacognitive thinking. Microlearning can help teachers reach a more intentional and personalized learning goal.
Microlearning is teacher centered and teacher initiated.
It happens each day in 280 characters, searches, trending topics, notifications, images, videos, channel-hopping and link-clicking. It’s a new phenomenon–scary for some–but it’s here to stay. And it’s time we realize how it is changing the way we learn, and the next iterations that are sure to change everything. One example that I am excited about is edspace.live, an application in that will deliver on-demand binge worthy microlearning for teachers everywhere. With connections in a single app, connecting the dots is so much easier.
Why is Microlearning so Revolutionary?
1.Easy Access
- Learning channels open to everyone
- No more applying to be accepted for a special program or paying exorbitant fees for classes
2. Notifications
- Alerts that lead to rich conversations and crucial information
- Constant connection – when a teacher brings a concept live, we can immediately see what is going on
- Effective snippets of information that allow educators to stay informed without wasting time
3. New Connections
- Expansion of Personal Learning Network (PLN
- Global partnership opportunities
- Connections that are organic and not forced
4. Quick Creative Inspiration
- Nuggets of inspiration – little ideas that promote innovation
- Digital collaboration that allows synthesis from multiple sources
- Personalized research that resonates with each teacher
5. On Demand Information
- Get as much information as you want–when you want it
- Control of information and time spent consuming it
- Saves time, energy and money
Microlearning is the teacher’s new secret weapon. Stay tuned for future posts on how to manage these new microlearning environments without feeling overwhelmed.