The eLearning industry is on a steady growth path. In fact, according to the eLearning market trends, the worldwide revenue for last year reached over $46,000 million. And it is not hard to understand the reason behind such success. Learning suitable to each pace drastically increases a student’s knowledge retention rate by up to 60%. Not to mention the 72% rise of the company’s competitive edge and 42% of increased revenue within the corporation.
As more organizations see the benefits from switching to this modern way of employee learning approach, the bloom in social learning is a natural occurrence. Positive job performance via keeping the workforce engaged even after training hours is the main feature of leveraging social learning with the eLearning content. Actually, social learning is the new norm of eLearning courses and it is in high demand currently.
What is Social Learning?
Social learning is a dated learning and teaching strategy. In theory, learning is not entirely behavioral – it is a cognitive process taking place in a social context. To put it simply, the basic idea is that students prefer to learn in groups. Thus, the point is acquiring personal knowledge through sharing and social interaction.
When thinking about the learning process, it is safe to say that learning with and from others makes the learners pay more attention. Therefore, a learner is not just a passive recipient, but an active recipient of information when the learning is in an engaging environment.
Furthermore, the learning occurs by direct or indirect contact. The learner can learn either by a direct face-to-face contact in a classroom-like environment or in the work setting in an informal manner. The second type of learning represents exactly the kind of learning we perform via social media platforms such as online discussion boards, Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, etc.
Consider the collaboration features these platforms provide. The use of chats, comments, likes, posts, video chats, and more, enhance learning as well as the collaboration between people. Similarly, the eLearning software offers all of these perks.
Learners can now easily share their experiences, access new knowledge, and combine the two approaches in available learning forums. And why? Because social learning motivates, engages, and improves the learner’s self-affirmation.
Benefits of Social Learning in e-learning
Managing the business and a bunch of employees requires an efficient strategy. The necessity for the mandatory traditional training is over, and employees now have the freedom to learn in their own time and in a place of their choosing, whether or not they are at work. This is a true time-saver because scheduled training can happen at any time without the need to wait for a trainer.
Given that companies don’t have to provide a trainer, facilities, training maintenance, and cover the costs of travel for their employees, the business can save on those expenses while efficiently increasing productivity. The overall performance of an organization experiences a positive change and leads to the rise of revenue, expanding the company’s business operations and its influence on the market.
Moreover, there is a noticeable difference in regular collaboration. The learners rely more on their peers and can ask questions and receive answers at a time of need. They get immediate solutions, which tightens the bonds and improves corporate culture. While some learners might feel intimidated to directly ask for further explanations they can use a different approach and use online channels without having to hold back. Having said that, eLearning software suits different personalities and increases the confidence levels along the way.
Additional benefits include never-ending options for lesson reviews until everything is understood by the learners. Likewise, the employee has a chance to apply the acquired knowledge and contribute to senior team members, as the learning management system measures individual talents and top performers.
How to Use Social Media in eLearning Course Design
The success of a course is dependent on the design. So there are a few things to remember before taking this project on:
- Get to know your audience, their level of skill, knowledge, and social media usage to create better eLearning training.
- Design and implement a well-developed plan by aligning social media with the main learning goals.
- Select the most engaging social media tools that your employees use, with features similar to those the eLearning software offers, to support the course.
- Use the same methods, social media platforms provide for engaging the audience and enhancing communication. Use networking, collaborations, comparisons, sharing, etc. as references.
- Follow the latest trends to find the most engaging workforce approach. Add links and references to better motivate learners and encourage them to share ideas.
- Make the social media platforms work to your benefit by using them for the course introduction, after-class activities, and questionnaires.
- Upload presentations on YouTube and encourage Twitter and Facebook sharing;
- Consider blogging as a way of creating a safe space for employees to express their thoughts and feel free to comment and post.
Conclusion
To sum up, eLearning software is the most powerful asset of successful and highly productive organizations. However, social learning is making a revolution and is redefining the concept of learning with the help of this system.
Elearning software provides an ideal outlet for social learning to take the stage, as well as additionally support, engage, motivate, and increase employee retention while they have the freedom to learn at their own pace. All in all, this is the future of learning, so any business which desires to become a serious competitor should consider eLearning software implementation because the benefits are endless.
Tags:
Social Media
Elearning Solutions
Software
Social Learning
