Have a look at some interesting numbers about the mobile eLearning industry:
Research by IBM established that every dollar invested in eLearning for training their employees, results in a gain of $30 in productivity, as they save a lot of time due to the application of new skills in the work.
As per a survey conducted by CertifyMe.net, an online training platform, approximately 72% of organizations said that online learning is quite impactful and provides a competitive edge to them.
Brandon Hall Group, renowned research, and analyst firm found that as compared to classroom training, eLearning needs 40-60% less time of the employees.
Amalgam Insights, a source for analyzing technology consumption management, forecasted that the market for corporate and academic eLearning would exceed $180 billion in the year 2018.
What do these numbers indicate?
Well, it is evident that mobile eLearning has a dazzling future. It is transforming the way people learn and gain knowledge. It is already topping the popularity charts. Consequently, numerous start-ups and even the biggies in the Tech World are entering this domain. It is no surprise that several eLearning app development companies have emerged as the world- class education companies across the globe.
What is Mobile eLearning?
Mobile phones have become undeniably important today in the education industry as they are widely being used for online training. In simple words, mobile eLearning is a modern training approach for getting knowledge or training on any subject from anywhere at any time. It is a novel educational strategy especially meant for training corporate professionals through an eLearning mobile app. It has great potential to cater to the skill-development needs of professionals in organizations.
Key Factors to Consider for eLearning App Development
Planning a Strategy for Mobile Training: This comprises of three important parts: Audience, Content, and Platform. While determining the target audience, you can ask yourself questions like- Is our workforce tech-savvy and will use the mobile eLearning facility? Will our workforce be remotely accessing the training? This will help you understand the needs of the target audience. Secondly, for content considerations, you will need to decide on your objective and purpose behind creating the content and how do you want to measure the effectiveness of the content. Last but not the least, for platform considerations you should research what kind of devices will be widely accessed by your target audience. Will they use their personal devices? Or will they use workplace assets?
Designing Courses: Creating content and designing the courses is the next significant consideration. Initially, you may want to upload just a few courses. For this, there are some authoring tools that make it easier to create content for the mobile. For instance, iWebkit, jQT, etc can be used for a web app, and Phonegap, Articulate Storyline, etc can be used for Native apps.
Deployment of the Courses: This is a straightforward step. In the case of a web app, you can publish it on the website and send the URL to your trainees. In the case of a native app, you can submit it to the app store. If you want to track the scores, completion of work, and do the analysis, you may deploy the app using an LMS like Moodle, Blackboard, etc.
Indispensable Features of an eLearning App
Mobile eLearning solutions have made the learning process much easier and effective unlike the traditional chalk and board training method. However, an eLearning app can be a failure without the right features embedded in it. Here is the list of top features of an outstanding eLearning app.
Basic Features like Chatting, Push Notifications, Appointment Scheduling, Calendar, and Social Media Integration, Flexible Payment Options, etc.
Easy Login Facility, a Dashboard, a Robust Database of knowledgeable information and Tools for Data Analytics
Valuable and Comprehensive Content
On-the-go interactive Training to keep the users more engaged
Short Bit-sized Modules for Higher Receptivity and Focussed Learning
Live Tutorials and Audio/Video Streaming
Supporting Offline Content
Using Media Formats like pictures and videos, Story-based Learning, Gamification, etc. for Better Understanding
Tests, Quizzes, Feedback, etc. for Progress Evaluation
Tracking Status of Courses, Number of Courses Undertaken, Time Spent on them, etc.
Potential benefits of eLearning Solutions
Saving Time and Money
In this ever-evolving digital era, modern learners look for ways to save time and money. The eLearning solutions have served this purpose well. The learners do not need to go and attend the classes at any specific location. Instead, they can save substantially on travel costs and also learn conveniently from any location. It helps the companies to reduce the costs on trainings as the recorded video trainings can be accessed by the employees very easily thereby eliminating the process of direct training to the employees.
Employee Engagement and Skill Development
In several industries like software, manufacturing, and even healthcare, mobile learning has been acknowledged as an efficient tool for engaging employees, developing their skill sets and thus, driving their performance. This learning approach thus leads to higher productivity for organizations.
Higher Retention ratio
New-age mobile eLearning solutions provide information in short interactive chunks in the form of audios, video tutorials, or podcasts. It makes the learning process much engaging and faster. These apps also have tests, quizzes, etc. for keeping the learners self-motivated and help them track their progress. As a result, the learners enjoy the app and also recommend it to others, thereby increasing the retention rate.
Personalization for Versatile Learners
Every learner has unique goals and preferences. The eLearning apps cater to individual needs accordingly as there are a plethora of courses available for skill set and knowledge development. It provides flexibility and convenience to learn whenever they want to. All this makes their learning experience much meaningful.
Collaborative Learning
A digital platform allows the learner and trainers to interact with each other. They can also get in touch with their peers to discuss anything as required. This facilitates collaborative learning or group learning and gives them a sense of cooperation and fulfillment.
Easy Scalability
Once developed, an eLearning app can be used by numerous professionals simultaneously. It can be used for designing new courses and uploading them. The organization may introduce new training, courses, etc. in the future. Thus, it is a one-time investment for an organization that wants to develop the skills of their professionals and thus boosts productivity.
Concluding Note:
A few years back, no one could even imagine that imparting education will go beyond the physical confines of a classroom, yet be so effective. The mobile eLearning world is a clear representation of this where anyone and everyone can get the desired education on the go of a click. In several corporate entities, these eLearning solutions have already impacted the productivity of the professionals in multiple ways.
We hope that this blog helped you to get an insight into mobile eLearning. With this, we come to an end.