How can you keep online learners engaged with short attention spans?

Keeping online learners with short attention spans engaged is crucial for effective eLearning. Short attention spans are common in today's fast-paced digital world, making it essential to adapt instructional strategies to cater to this audience. In this article, we will explore various strategies for engaging online learners with short attention spans while maintaining a professional and concise tone. Microlearning Microlearning involves breaking down content into bite-sized modules or lessons, typically lasting 5-10 minutes. Short, focused lessons are more digestible for learners with limited attention spans, allowing them to absorb information more effectively.

Although it may be true that media is a way by which to enrich content and increase attention, it is very easily becoming an overflow of media just for the sake of it. There are, indeed, many stories about how a gif or emoji enriched display of information (doc, worksheet, etc.) captured and motivated learners. As statistical analysis proposes, one case is not a rule. As with any other tech, we must remain vigilant of the frequency in which we use multimedia. Wisely and sparingly is not enough guidance. The selections must go in accordance to the population you teach, the media they consume and the tendencies they enjoy. It becomes a tailored made effort which is time consuming and sometimes, unsustainable overtime. Efficiency is key.

Multimedia can be a powerful tool for delivering instruction, information, and guidance. But it takes strong learning design to avoid cognitive overload. A good resource on this is Mayer’s Multimedia Principles and many books/articles written by Ruth Colvin Clark. In short, multimedia should promote learning through best practices like syncing narration with what’s being shown.

One of my favorite's in live online facilitations is using tools like menti.com for surveys or word clouds. It creates "brain brakes" for the audience where their mode changes from listening to action. A 1-3 minute video will also shift brains into curiosity. There is nothing more boring than hearing the same voice for 30-60 min. If you are designing self-paced online learning, aim for a max of 5-10 min per module. Anything else will decrease the completion rates. Microlearning is GOLD. Nudges: using tech to send reminders and nudges will increase uptake. Our heads are filled with hundreds of priorities every day and it is easy to forget what we wanted to do for ourself! (complete that course)

Use INTERACTIVE PowerPoint decks instead of the usual available ones. That elevates the training to new heights, keeps the learners interested and makes the topic easier to facilitate.

Chunking is not only useful in terms of attention and engagement for online learners. Chunking has been a solution to syllabuses for a long time. Now, more than ever before, it has become the best strategy to deliver scaffolded complex content to online learners. I constantly come back to it, and now - with even more limited times of attention and lessons - we are competing with chunking in social media. Therefore, we must also ride this wave. I've recently been reading THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE TO MICROLEARNING (The what, why, and how-to guide to leveraging microlearning) by Katy Peters. Even though it is aimed at marketing, this makes total sense as a guiding principle to creating online classroom content delivery.

This also applies to video and audio multimedia. Think about serial podcasts or your favorite YouTube creator. They surely focus on one key skill or idea per piece or audio or video. When segmenting learning content, also consider the learner’s journey and what they need to be successful.

Simple rules to chunk your content: 1. One topic per slide 2. Use picture storytelling 3. Questions First, Explanation later based format per slide

One version of "chucking" is micro-learning which is very short bits of learning. Micro-learning examples: - a 2 minute video that shows employees how to setup a work app on their desktop - a infographic that walks employees through the steps to filing a healthplan claim - a 5 minute quiz that tests understanding of a new process that was recently introduced in a department - a find and seek game on Slack that tests for understanding of a new work function

As a language teacher, I'd always go for teaching my students in smaller, more manageable pieces rather than covering a big topic at once. This approach also works for language structure; instead of teaching grammar broadly, I'd focus on microgrammar. Providing examples, explanations, and mastering one small aspect at a time. For instance, instead of teaching the entire concept of the Present Perfect tense, we could focus on questions like 'Have you ever done/been/tried?' This approach would give students a much better understanding and the opportunity to use new vocabulary and structures right from the beginning.

Healthy competition is fantastic for personal growth. However, excessive gamification can shift the focus from learning to winning. It's a powerful tool when used wisely. As I complete my online modules, I appreciate the sense of achievement and healthy competition on the leaderboard alongside my peers. It's a well-balanced system. Some competition is good as it motivates improvement. Yet, too much emphasis on winning can rob learning of its joy. We must use gamification judiciously to enhance learning without making it solely about winning. It's like adding a spice to your food; the right amount improves the dish, but too much ruins it.

1. Use AI Tools to incorporate games 2. For offline, role plays, debates, outside classroom activities are great ways to enhance effectiveness.

Gamification takes a balance. As all these tools, we can't go on and use too much of it. I remember when I was a teenage learner and we would "compete" to get as many gold stars as possible in a period. Sure, it made us work, but it was never felt as "a game". It was always a competition, and many of my classmates did not enjoy the competition. So it happens nowadays with gamification. Surely, the ones on the leaderboard top 5 be happy, but the others feel a combination of frustration and shame. Sometimes, it's not even a lack of skill or knowledge, but the result of personal situations. Be careful on how you socialize results of learning games. I have often found that controlled competitions and inner circles of confidentiality help.

A innovative way to use gamification is to introduce the "game" after the training is over. For example: to check for understanding of a new work concept that was taught in a training session, why not use a inter- department contest designed to guage the understanding of the new concept? This way you get to see the overall understanding level and the employees get to have some fun with it. Using the contest to check for understanding would be a lot more engaging than having to write a quiz at the end of the training 😴.

Still trying to wrap my old age brain around gamification. I have participated in such activities but haven't really had the opportunity to apply to a learning experience for professionals.

When doing live sessions, chats, and forums find a way to engage everyone because not all will feel comfortable speaking up in each type of situation. It is also important to find a way to guide conversation the conversation if it begins to stray in the wrong direction. I worked in a company that one day brought everyone together for training on a new system. Although many had questions about using the system, the Q&A became a place to vent frustrations about the system, not learn more about it. Those with questions did not feel comfortable asking them in that atmosphere, so they kept quiet and either sent an email asking questions, or waited for the system release to figure it out on their own. This was a disservice to the entire team.

Interaction must be guided. Social media has proven this idea which we already knew. From hazing to bullying and now to cyber bullying in our digital times, one thing remains true: unsupervised interaction of individuals tends to beckon hostility and aggression. This is particularly true for online interactions. Even in gaming, developers and platforms avoid leaving their users without a clear policy or code of conduct. Needless to say, even then, it is hard to enforce these codes. As teachers we face the extremely hard task of being supervisors, enforcers and judges of most interactions. I have delt with teenage verbal abuse and it must be stopped immediately. Adults, on the other hand, will more likely use online platforms correctly.

Not everyone feels comfortable to speak up in a one-to-many scenario. This is true for face to face meetings as well as online sessions. I truly believe that everybody has something valuable to add though. The chat functions is the minimum viable option to ask people for input, examples and thoughts. However I prefer break-out rooms with 2-3 people. This way people are forced to voice their thoughts but are in a safer environment. Websites like airmeet.com have taken this to the next level my creating interactive environments.

What I like about Zoom is that you can split students within one class into several groups and let them exchange. It works like magic, especially in a class with students from different countries and different mother tongues. The task could be: find out what your partner usually has for breakfast. How is it different from yours? Find out what your partner's town/city has to offer to do after work. How is it different? This always sparks a lot of exchange and naturally motivates people to practice their language skills and learn new things about other cultures. After this, students get back to the main room and share their findings with the whole group.

It has become specially important to identify types of media so that we may deliberately choose our varieties based on something more than avoidance of monotony, boredom, or fatigue. I've been applying Diana Laurillard's (2002) classification for educational resources, which divides them into: narrative, interactive, communicative, adaptive and productive media. This classification rests within her Conversational Framework. From here, scaffolding and progression of a class or program can follow specific - less cognitively complex medias - from beginning to end, where they reach complexity. Thus, an aim for variety is constructed with purpose. With these principles, delivery channels and different perspective discussions easily follow suit.

Use different: words, rate(s) of speech, phrases, change things up a little bit. Ask for feedback. Maybe arrange a "plant" as someone upon whom you can call for a question(s). It helps keep others alert awake.

If you only have the camera you need to overplay what you have: Voice, Voice, Voice (tone, speed, volume, pause, intonation) Camera, Camera, Camera (as a facilitator ideally stand when you deliver. Naturally you will use more active body language and your voice projection will be better, too. Move closer or further from the camera to make a point or create drama. Have some props e.g. a book something visual to hold into the camera. And PLEASE don't hide behind a shared screen slide. When you have a slide deck and want to discuss a topic - stop sharing screen for that moment. This way your face will be larger and the participants can also see each other better.

With the help of video, audio, pictures, text messages, and by finding things around you, we have many ways to present and get our messages across.

The more students you have, the harder it becomes to keep track of their progress. Monitoring and evaluating is key, and what is most important is to exploit the benefits of technology in this area. Nowadays, we have a lot of interesting and valuable ways of creating, tracking, and using data from a variety of LMS. I have been fortunate enough to have used such ones as Kognity. As an IBDP teacher I've enjoyed being able to monitor and assess students' progress with the help of these technologies and it is fantastic. Not all of us can enjoy paid systems that are more robust, but there are free LMS out there. Very exploitable ones, but a teacher must be able to design appropriately in order to monitor and evaluate with fairness.

Assessing learners' prior knowledge is also essential in online education to personalize the learning experience effectively. Through pre-assessment tools, instructors can identify knowledge gaps, tailor content to individual needs, minimize redundancy, and correct misconceptions. This helps ensure that teaching methods and materials align with students' existing knowledge, ultimately creating a more engaging and efficient online learning environment.

The thing with evaluation nowadays is that it has become elusive to us teachers. How to evaluate with intent and with meaning? I often have found myself lost in mark schemes and rubrics that had very good intentions in the beginning but became harsh and punitive. The solution I've put into practice is simple: What was my expectation as outcome of this task? When my evaluation does not align, I simply go with binary: done / not done. Chunking evaluation stages is another great way to keep online learners engaged. When we break down a complex outcome to be evaluated in different tasks and evaluate only aspects of the results of different tasks to complete an overall assessment we give our learners several chances to demonstrate knowledge.

The faster the learners are able to relate to the topic and connect it with their professional life, the better chances of participation and impact. Use real life examples of the challenges that participants face, and then showcase how they can be dealt with.

1. Use concise and visually appealing content. 2. Break lessons into bite-sized segments. 3. Incorporate interactive elements (quizzes, polls). 4. Foster collaboration through online discussions. 5. Provide real-world examples to make content relatable. 6. Use multimedia to appeal to different learning styles. 7. Offer frequent, quick assessments for feedback. 8. Implement gamification for a more engaging experience. 9. Encourage self-paced learning with clear objectives. 10. Utilize engaging platforms and user-friendly interfaces. 11. Use all the features of the tool you are using, for e.g. Break-out rooms or Hide Non-Video participants in zoom etc. 12. Make them do some physical activities wherever they are with videos on.