L.E.A.R.N.
Timing Really Is Everything
At this point, we've discussed the length of your videos and the need for regular activity to keep your students engaged with your material and actually learn what you're teaching. Today, we're going to put them together.
I've said it before, but it bears repeating: creating effective and engaging online courses is essential in today's digital learning landscape. One key strategy to achieve this lies in understanding and applying cognitive learning principles, particularly the need to break up content into manageable chunks and include interactive activities.
THE 8-MINUTE ATTENTION SPAN
Research has shown that the average human attention span in learning environments is approximately eight minutes. Think about this! Eight minutes is approximately how long it takes to order and get your drink at Starbucks! Eight minutes. Eight minutes!!!! (BTW, Doug E. Fresh's song The Show is now going through my head. I'm a child of the 80s, sue me 🤷🏻♀️). But I digress...
This limited window of active engagement means that learners are more likely to absorb and retain information when presented in concise, focused bursts rather than long, continuous sessions. Consider how often you log into a class and see modules 20, 30, and 40 minutes long. I'm not particularly eager to listen to Podcasts longer than 30 minutes, and I'm rarely trying to actively learn while listening. So, when I log into classes with modules over the recommended 8-10 minutes, I tend to groan.
THE SCIENCE OF CHUNKING
Let's also revisit windowpaning or chunking, a cognitive strategy that divides information into smaller, more digestible units. We talked about this in our 4±2 discussion. Chunking aligns perfectly with this short attention span. Learners can process and retain information more efficiently by breaking down complex information into smaller, coherent pieces. Each "chunk" acts as a mini-lesson, making it easier for learners to understand and recall the content later.
ACTIVE LEARNING AND ENGAGEMENT
Last month, we discussed engagement and the crucial importance of incorporating activities that require active participation. Interactive elements such as quizzes, discussions, or practical exercises reinforce learning and keep learners engaged. These activities prompt learners to apply what they’ve learned, moving from passive reception to active understanding. However, these three things don't stand alone.
PRACTICAL APPLICATION
I think you see where I'm going with this. When designing an online course, use windowpane to break your content into chunks. Structure these chunks into eight but not more than ten-minute segments, each followed by an activity or reflection prompt. This approach respects the natural attention span while encouraging active engagement, leading to deeper learning and better retention.
This simple formula sets your learners up for success and helps them actually learn your content. When people feel they are actually learning, they will trust you and your course products and come back again and again.
TAKE ACTION: At this point, you should have a completed outline of your topics, your completed windowpane exercise, and a list of possible engagement activities. Now is the time to start grouping related items together. These groupings become your module outlines 😉
Stay tuned. Next month, we move into the "A" in the L.E.A.R.N.™ method.
FURTHER READING
McSpadden, K. (2015). You Now Have a Shorter Attention Span Than a Goldfish. Time Magazine. Retrieved from https://time.com/3858309/attention-spans-goldfish/
Gobet, F., & Clarkson, G. (2004). Chunks in Expert Memory: Evidence for the Magical Number Four … or Is It Two? Memory, 12(6), 732–747. doi:10.1080/09658210344000530
Prince, M. (2004). Does Active Learning Work? A Review of the Research. Journal of Engineering Education, 93(3), 223-231. doi:10.1002/j.2168-9830.2004.tb00809.x
