The MBA you can earn on a smartphone (Learning in the Wild #1)

Welcome to the first installment of Learning in the Wild! It's time to capture unique instructional design and learning experiences in the wild and mull them over together.

First up: Quantic School of Business and Technology , a mobile-first MBA degree.

You heard that right. A graduate-level degree you can earn via your smartphone.

That probably doesn't surprise you though. Many LMSs now offer decent mobile experiences, and Tik Tok reigns as a learning destination.

Though Quantic can be used on a desktop computer (or any screen for that matter), its mobile app truly delivers a new approach to graduate-level studies.

What Quantic gets right

Accessible and engaging

Rather than wading through a lengthy application process, Quantic lets you dive into its free courses via its mobile app. And rather than having to consume hours of passive video lectures, you get to engage with informational content and apply your learning with specific feedback every. step. of. the. way.

It's kinda refreshing to be honest.

After a series of case studies, interactive examples (like the one above), and some practice, Quantic injects short assessment pieces.

This builds to create what they call "Active Learning" and "Mastery-Based Progression."

Modern and frictionless design for motivation

Taking the best of modern design principles, its UX is frictionless and fun. It feels like I'm learning with Duolingo or Memrise through its segmented and in-the-flow learning. I believe this is where Quantic's learning experience excels: It taps into motivation and multimedia learning best practices, especially John Keller's ARCS-V model for motivation. This model stands for:

• Attention (similar to Gagne's first instructional event)
• Relevance
• Confidence
• Satisfaction
• Volition

Quantic's learning model uses relevant case studies and stories to bookend the learning and builds the learner's confidence with consistent feedback and opportunities to show progression. This develops the learner's satisfaction. Compare this to a traditional degree program, where you may only receive feedback after a major paper has been turned in. Quantic's model does provide a much higher frequency of targeted feedback to support the learner.

France et al. (2021) comment on the pedagogical benefits of mobile learning and how higher education has taken notice:

"There is a growing recognition in university-level education of the importance of innovative teaching and learning and a move away from traditional views of one approach to teaching. It is still in the early stages of this innovative work and the territory is uncharted for the part."

Since the publication of their study, though, there has been more attention to approaches like "stackable credentials" and microlearning. Quantic's approach bypasses the more traditional model for a modern, mobile-first one. They appear to be ahead of the crowd.

What Quantic is missing

Based on what I've sampled so far, Quantic is lacking in several areas:

• Social presence of an instructor and informal learning opportunities like Communities of Practice (CoPs).
• Critical thinking and deeper application.

Lack of social presence and informal learning

According to one of their promotional videos, they do leverage a global, professional network and a Slack channel for class conversations:

But I'm not seeing or experiencing any social presence with a knowledgeable facilitator or professor. After all, I am doing the free courses, but from what I can gather from their promotional materials, the majority of the learning experience is through their mobile app with automated feedback.

Whiteside and Dikkers (2014) note how social presence "involves a level of connectedness among instructors and students that determines how motivated participants are to take an active role in their own and their peers' meaning-making processes." They summarize highlights from some of the work of Etienne Wenger, the pioneer of Communities of Practice, to show why community and social presence is crucial for connected learning.

France et al. (2021) offer a list of thought-provoking questions on how pedagogically sound a mobile learning experience is. Once them is...

"Is the use of mobile technology expanding or?encouraging effective collaboration or?communication for the student?" (p. 228).

So far, no. Maybe Quantic offers much more in their paid programs, but for now I'm not sure if their mobile learning experience offers enough opportunity for true collaboration or learning within a community. If you are a student of this program (hey Christina Garnett, EMBA !), I'd love to hear your thoughts on it. Chances are I may be missing a crucial aspect of this program.

Where's the critical thinking?

Yes, Quantic is fun and engaging. It offers loads of feedback. Heck, I prefer their model over long, passive lectures any day. But I have wondered, Where's the challenge? Where's the deep, critical thinking?

So far, their mobile learning experience does not provide space for reflection, open responses, or more challenging assessment pieces. This is due to the nature of their mobile app: It relies on automated, quick feedback.

But here's the good news: According to their EMBA site, they offer their program through learning cohorts, which study and work on case studies together. This is the part I have not experienced, so maybe it's their secret sauce. (:

Final thoughts

I am so glad I stumbled across Quanitc's mobile degree program in the wild! Though I do not currently have plans to earn an MBA, I have completed several of the free courses because I simply enjoyed the learning process. They're taking a product-led approach to education, which is truly a first of its kind (I believe) and using a modern learning experience to engage busy adult learners.

Overall, I'd give Quantic's learning app an A- for its engaging curriculum, even though it is lacking in social learning and critical thinking. However, in the context of the full degree program, it may totally earn an A+.

Is Quantic's model the future of mobile, graduate-level learning? I don't know. At the least, it shows a new way of engaging students with fun, responsive, and segmented learning to meet the demands of a busy world.

You're turn!

I'd love to feature other unique learning experiences in my newsletter. Have you stumbled across one recently? If so, I'd love to hear about it! Feel free to share your idea as a reply to this post or to send me a DM with a link and explanation. Thanks!

References

• Active learning: Redefining the future of education. (2022). Quantic School of Business and Technology. https://quantic.edu/programs/method/
• France, D., Lee, R., Maclachlan, J., & McPhee, S. R. (2021). Should you be using mobile technologies in teaching? Applying a pedagogical framework. Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 45(2), 221–237. https://doi.org/10.1080/03098265.2020.1773417
• Online Executive MBA Program - Earn an EMBA. (2022). Quantic School of Business and Technology. https://quantic.edu/executive-mba/
• Pappas, C. (2015). Instructional design models and theories: Keller’s ARCS model of motivation. ELearning Industry. https://elearningindustry.com/arcs-model-of-motivation
• PCRN: Introduction to stackable credentials. (2021). Perkins Collaborative Resource Network. https://cte.ed.gov/initiatives/stackable-credentials-tool-kit
• Whiteside, A., & Dikkers, A. (2014). The power of social presence for learning. EDUCAUSE Review. https://er.educause.edu/articles/2014/5/the-power-of-social-presence-for-learning