E-learning personalization for learners may at first seem like a mammoth task, but that is not the case at all! Discover now what you should pay attention to when creating personalized learning content and why the motto "one size fits all" does not apply in E-learning. After all, your learners are as unique in their learning behavior as their own fingerprints.
Personalizing E-learning is the key to sustainable successful training, which most trainers and HR professionals are aware of. But what exactly does that mean?
Definition: Personalized Learning
According to Wikipedia, personalized learning generally describes the learning practice that is oriented towards the individual learner - in the spirit of a new learning culture. The learner thus determines their own learning process, sets appropriate learning goals, and usually checks them independently as well. You, as a trainer or training responsibility, will usually accompany the learning process in a more passive manner.
Personalized learning is oriented towards
the learner themselves
their prior knowledge
their experiences
and their interests.
Reading Tip: In the blog, we have already explained in detail why personalized and individualized learning are not the same: Personalized and individualized learning - What is the difference?
Why Personalization in E-Learning is So Important
Digital learning or distance learning has a significant disadvantage: the direct exchange with other learners or the trainer is lost. As a result, E-learning quickly becomes impersonal, and the actual learning performance drops. And that is the crux!
The solution to the problem comes from science: Researchers like Richard Mayer and colleagues have discovered that colloquial expressions lead to better learning performance, especially in digital learning environments. This phenomenon is primarily known as the personalization principle.
Put simply, this means that individuals who feel personally addressed respond more strongly to content and process it better. As a result, they learn new things faster.
3 Techniques according to the Personalization Principle of Mayer
Address your participants directly and avoid sentences with "one ..."
Example: "What you can take away from this course!"Complement your learning content with supportive comments to the learners
Example: "Pay attention to your posture while performing the exercise."For spoken texts, like videos, the text should sound natural and preferably be as accent-free as possible, so that all participants can understand it.
If you want to read more about the personalization principle, you can find the full texts at Springer and the University of Trier.
In digital learning environments, such as in E-learning, the presentation of documents and learning materials also plays a crucial role. They should be engaging and support independent learning processes. Lengthy texts and too much information can quickly become demotivating. Therefore, videos are a great way to make your course more varied and personal.
3 Measures to Promote Personalized E-Learning
Of course, it's easier said than done, so we want to leave you with three expert tips to help you successfully implement personalized learning.
1. Meaningful Preparation for E-Learning
As in other areas of life, it applies here too: Preparation is half the battle.
Specifically, this means: Create a good foundation for your course success before your course begins by gaining the trust of your learners in advance. Get to know your participants better before the course begins to consider strengths and weaknesses. Alleviate any potential fears in advance and give them an initial overview of what to expect:
Discuss your intended syllabus.
Explain tasks to them in advance, for example, or
inform them about the final assessment format.
All of this helps to strengthen your learning content and motivation.
2. Microlearning as a Method
The principle of using small, self-contained learning units is nothing new in E-learning. Nevertheless, microlearning is still rarely utilized.
Especially in personalized learning concepts, microlearning is helpful: Learners can decide even better whether and how they want to process which learning content. For optimal implementation, group topics and package them into small chapters with very short learning content. This way, learners get a better overview of what to expect in each piece of content. Additionally, motivation increases when a chapter is completed. Learners thus have many small successes and feel good while working on your course.
Together with the first tip, you can specifically select content for your microlearning, remove, supplement, or replace content from the course - depending on what suits your learners! With the small learning units in microlearning, the personalization of your course becomes easier, as you do not have to overhaul the entire course.
3. Learner-Supported Learning
The best way to create a more personal E-learning experience is to directly involve learners in the learning process. This is of course not always possible to the full extent, but keep this hint in mind.
When you personally involve learners, you have the advantage that they can directly communicate their knowledge status to you. You can incorporate their experiences from previous training and build on them, adjusting expectations accordingly. This makes it possible to set personal learning goals more realistically, and your participants are more engaged and motivated in the learning process.
These were just three ways to make your E-learning more personalized and improve learning motivation and success. Can you think of other possibilities?
If the topic of E-learning is new to you, we have a recommendation for you at the end: Our E-learning checklist will help you get started with your own E-learning course. Learn step by step what is important for E-learning.
