"What is a Blink anyway?" – This is a question many trainers or HR professionals ask us who are involved with the topic "Learning Management System" or are already actively using blink.it. We will clarify all of this now: What "Blink" means, what concept lies behind it, and how three criteria create a perfect learning content!
To start, a little thought exercise: What do the following words have in common?
Zewa. Tempo. Walkman. Blink.
The answer: All these words are called deonyms. Admittedly, not a very common term. But it refers to a phenomenon we all know from our everyday life: Words in the vocabulary that are derivations from proper names. A deonym is when "tissue" suddenly becomes "Tempo" – derived from the name of the well-known tissue brand. Often, we associate certain characteristics with the catchy names: For example, I associate Tempo with being particularly tear-resistant, Zewa with excellent absorbency, and Walkman with good technical quality. Surely you also have such expectations about particular brands or names.
But what does all this have to do with a learning platform? Quite simply: Behind the deonym "Blink" lies a unique story and a clear concept that makes Blinks perfect learning transfer aids for course creators!
"Blink": The name of the learning platform is program
The concept of blink.it is simple: Course creators share content with their participants as easily and quickly as possible via an online learning platform. Ideally, the content is conveyed within a moment. In English, this saying goes:
"in the Blink of an eye"
That's exactly why we are called blink.it! Behind this is the call to you as a course creator: Summarize your knowledge as briefly as possible! So that your participants can process knowledge within a moment (in the Blink of an eye).
On one hand, a Blink from a technical perspective is a component of the Learning Management System (LMS) blink.it. On the other hand, the Blink itself follows a specific concept that turns the tile into a Blink. What exactly that is, I will introduce to you in the next paragraph!
This is what a Blink looks like on the blink.it learning platform: a clear tile with a title, intro text, content, and a clear call to action.
One Blink = Learning unit in the online course + the following 3 criteria
3 criteria that define a good Blink
A clear concept has been behind the Blink from the very beginning. According to the definition by blink.it founder Konstantin Ristl, three criteria must be met to turn a simple learning tile into a real Blink:
1. A Blink is short
Every Blink aims to live up to its own name: Even if a moment may seem quite short, a good Blink is as short as possible! Konstantin sets a clear time limit:
"Maximum two minutes should a Blink last. Some trainers also consider five minutes as a limit, but two minutes is better according to my experience. More than two minutes is no longer enjoyable for me as a participant and does not hold my attention."
What Konstantin refers to as length specifically means: This is the maximum time a learner can take to view the content and process it accordingly. Conveying information and knowledge in such a short time can be a challenge. To keep content as short yet effective as possible, there are various formats that are technically feasible in the Blink. Possible formats in an online course include:
Bullet point lists
Graphics and images
Custom explanatory videos, simple and perfectly tailored to the content
Surveys and quizzes
2. A Blink is instructive
The knowledge conveyed through a Blink should never merely be theory. A Blink should provide participants with a basis for action. This basis can vary greatly:
To initiate or support action, for example
a guide for a process can be given to enable new actions.
a video can encourage self-reflection by showcasing a situation from everyday life.
a listing of pros and cons can help assess and change actions and routines.
Keep in mind criterion No. 1 and summarize the instructions, the video, or the list as briefly as possible! And just like that, you have created a learning content that meets two of the three criteria for a perfect Blink.
However, note – the third criterion is the actual core of every Blink!
3. A Blink is inviting
Many trainers are convinced that the most important aspect of a learning concept is the content itself: The new theoretical knowledge that participants acquire. Konstantin from blink.it sees it quite differently:
"The Blinks primarily aim to provide instructions and impulses for actions! Only when I regularly receive a prompt from a Blink, telling me what I can specifically practice now, do I get into action."
The focus of a Blink is therefore not on theoretical knowledge transfer, but on practical application. Blinks should provide impulses and encourage participants to take active steps. If you keep this focus in mind when creating a Blink, it will also become significantly easier for you to keep it short!
That’s why 2 minutes of continuous learning is enough
"Two minutes are way too little! For my content, I need at least ten minutes!"
This is the most common reaction to the request to create a basis for practical actions in a maximum of two minutes. But these two minutes are not arbitrary: Scientifically, adults have an attention span of 20-25 minutes. However, observations from seminars and lectures show: Not a few adults start to drift away after 3-5 minutes in a presentation or become distracted by their own smartphones, for example.
We need to move away from the idea in adult education that the length of the learning unit ensures success. To explain a simple exercise or action, two minutes are sufficient. What really takes time is the application and practice!
By the way: The concept of breaking learning content into small learning bites is referred to as microlearning.
Example: The ideal time allocation in the learning process
Imagine you want to train in a gym. A trainer explains a specific exercise to you. How long does this explanation take compared to the actual action?
The explanation for the exercise is usually covered in a few sentences: How does the machine work? What do I need to pay attention to? The trainer may also give you one or two motivating words about the training. Probably, the trainer will not explain ten exercises in one day and give you a one-hour lecture for it but will add new exercises gradually.
The time-intensive part only begins after the short introduction: The instruction must be implemented to see a result. And this should happen regularly and over a longer period. Ideally, the trainer comes by from time to time, gives you tips or reminds you about specific exercises.
Just like in fitness training, it works with a Blink:
A Blink provides the theoretical knowledge of how to perform an exercise.
It actively calls upon participants to take action.
It maintains motivation through regular impulses.
Shorter learning units, when applied correctly, convey no less knowledge. They utilize the full attention span of the participant and assist in practical implementation in everyday life.
Our focus at blink.it: Active action!
Practical application is more important than theory in adult education. The goal is action, behavioral change, and transfer into professional everyday life. In short: sustainable learning.
The blink.it learning platform offers plenty of freedom to implement your own learning concepts and develop your very own E-Learning. Whether according to our concept with a call to action, as a quiz with interaction with participants, or in an entirely different way: What works is allowed!
