Mobile Learning Will Soon Take Over The World

Elon Musk likes to say that as soon as electric cars are cheaper, safer and faster, they will surely dominate. At that point the argument goes, they will cease to be "electric cars" and they will just be "cars" as they take over the market and be all we know. Mass market customers will choose them because they are better, not because they are electric. The reality is, customers who choose to purchase a car based on its power source are a small and niche market. The mass market wants faster, cheaper and safer. To take over and dominate the market, the platform has to be better. 

I think about learning platforms in a similar way. We still think of mobile learning as a niche today and few people would argue that the current state of mobile platforms equates to better in a learning context. But, for a few very important reasons, I do see mobile learning quickly taking over and becoming all we know because it will be flat out better. In a world that demands that we learn at the speed of change, mobile learning will dominate when it is faster, has better content and more is more engaging. I think we are closer than it may now seem to all three objectives.

It is no secret that the world is racing to mobile computing technologies and platforms as fast as possible.  It has been said many times that in the future the mobile internet will be seen as the regular and main internet and that the desktop version will be seen as knocked down and limited. That represents quite a change from where we were not that long ago.

Smartphone use and mobile internet traffic are seeing massive growth globally. In 2008 we had roughly 250 million smartphone users worldwide.  That number is now 2.5 billion and on its way to 3 billion by 2020.  Most exciting, much of that growth is in emerging and developing regions, which are precisely the type of markets that are hungry for learning that can add meaningfully to economic outcomes.  Asia-Pacific has gone from representing 34% of smartphone use in 2008 to 52% of all smartphone users today. For many of these new users, the mobile internet is the only internet they will ever extensively explore or know.

Mobile computing is taking over and I think most of us understand that and are part of that movement ourselves. The implications for learning are profound. The opportunity now is that we have 3 billion potential learners on a common computing platform that knows no geographic limits.

However, to truly take the leap we need to take to meaningfully increase economic productivity, and add to global economic output, we need to do more than just enable access to learning.  When we think globally about our potential through mobile learning, we must think about ways to improve the learning experience, bolster well measured outcomes, and become more efficient by enabling students to learn more and learn it faster. The exciting part is mobile computing paradigms offer just these opportunities.

In terms of becoming the dominant learning platform, I do believe mobile learning will be better, faster and more engaging in the very near future. There are three core advantages inherent in a mobile platform to aid instructional designers distributors of learning in the future; atomized content that is better, voice powered interfaces that are faster and immersive virtual reality displays which are more engaging.

Consuming atomized content

The opportunity to atomize content into focused and bite sized objects for learning is natural for the mobile platform.  In theory, learning content can be delivered over desktop in the same small pieces, but it seems far less natural to engage at a desktop for a few minutes of highly focused video content. More and more, delivery via desktop seems as if it is more effort and less convenience, especially if the target is 2-3 minutes of highly specific video content. Modern attention spans are built for a mobile era, and breaking learning content down into very focused pieces offers some very exciting opportunities.

This atomized content is able to be consumed in a variety of times and places, allowing it to be woven into the story of an individual learners day. This allows for a more narrative and contextual approach, even though the content is learner and more efficient.

Voice Powered Interfaces

The world is quickly moving to voice as the predominant computing interface as opposed to touch, which has been dominant for the past 10 years.  The benefits of a voice powered learning interface delivered via mobile are several:

1. Faster inputs as we can speak 150 words a minutes and type 20-40
2. Much better ease of use as voice interfaces are hands free and instant
3. A single point of voice input can archive and catalog questions and better use pieces of context like location and earlier questions 

Simply put, a voice interface offers a convenient, instant, and more contextual interface, all which offer major benefits for instructional designers.

The data showing the growing use of voice interfaces is striking.  Some highlights:

• % of smartphone owners using a voice assistant has moved from 30% to 65% between 2013 and 2015.
• Google voice search queries are up 35x since 2008 and 7x since 2010
• 1 in 5 searches on Android are voice
• The top location voice is used is in the home, the top purpose is to access general information, and the second most popular reason is speed

Voice powered mobile devices offer unmatched speed and flexibility, which is the primary reason the world is shifting that way.

Immersive VR displays offering opportunities for simulation and practice

I am convinced the future of virtual reality is primarily mobile, and this is important for learning professionals to consider.  Whether it is Google Cardboard, or higher end devices like GearVR, mobile VR displays offer highly democratized access to rich and highly dimensional simulations and practice.

As I have written before, I believe VR displays have ushered in a new top layer on the mobile technology stack.  Now developers can build applications that can be viewed in a variety of ways.  

Content can still be viewed on a traditional 2D screen, but through technologies like WebVR and the Cardboard SDK, learners can choose to view the same content in an immersive 3D display as well. These displays are mobile and offer learners the chance to simulate and practice learning activities in a variety of settings. Students could be in a "real world" setting and have the opportunity for highly immersive simulations before engaging in consequential activity. These are opportunities a desktop just cannot offer.

Mobile platforms powered by voice interfaces which offer focused bite sized content and are able to immerse learners in virtual reality displays offer a new frontier of learning.  It is through these technology based enablers that I do feel we can produce more learning done faster with better outcomes and a heightened experience.

By allowing mobile technologies to unleash better learning, we can improve economic output, uplift cultural well being, and change the world one learner on the go at a time.