Instead of scrolling, why don’t you learn something?
We all do it. Doom scroll on social media night after night, laughing (or crying) over cute animal videos, inspirational quotes, food videos, thirst traps… the list goes on and hours dwindle away. But what have we learned? Possibly nothing as the sheer volume of information and dopamine hits are lost, as science shows, prolonged scrolling can negatively impact memory and attention span.
Microlearning is trending hard and could be the solution to breaking free from scrolling jail, but what is it? According to the Learning Lab it can be characterised as, ‘delivering training in bite-sized portions. Rather than long, in-depth courses that cover multiple concepts, microlearning consists of concise lessons and learning activities that learners take at their convenience in a short amount of time—typically using a smartphone or other mobile device.’
The benefits are surprising, statistically there is a 50% higher engagement rate when microlearning is implemented, and learners have a better retention rate. The precise learning nuggets and wide variety of formats benefits both the learner’s experience and the amount of information they retain, due to the reduced possibility of cognitive overload. (Digital Learning Institute)
But where to start? There are a myriad of apps available to download with every topic you can think of, including learning new languages. Google’s app of the year ‘Imprint’ claims to turn your screen time into impactful learning. With over 150 courses with everything ranging from philosophy and psychology to economics and business you could soon be the most interesting person in the room.
For learning languages try ‘Dualingo’ with a gamefied approach to short engaging sessions. ‘Memrise’ focuses on spaced repetition and video narrative speakers to help you learn vocabulary and phrases.
Statistics prove that ML can improve information retention by up to 80% compared to traditional learning, while learning small chunks has been shown to make knowledge in the workplace 17% more efficient. There’s also the added bonus of flexibility, users are not tied to a schedule – so you can learn in your own time fitting brain expansion into busy schedules.
