The use of curated content in business eLearning has been a real boon for the richness of learning resources in organizations. Many skills in today's jobs are complex and can't be completely learned in stand-alone courses. These kinds of skills develop with time and experience, while learners build deep, nuanced understanding.
Curated resources, of all the corporate learning methods, allow us to efficiently support that kind of ongoing learning. Rather than creating customized materials, learning strategists can cherry pick the best resources from the abundance already available digitally. They can then invest in organizing those resources to support learning in a variety of robust and timely ways including as prework, learning paths, follow-up and on-demand approaches.
Level-setting prework
While getting people to complete course prework is an ongoing challenge, digital resources make it easier than ever to level-set before a learning event. In curating for this purpose, the key is to select materials that are short and provocative with titles and descriptions that pique curiosity. At the same time, the resources should serve to promote interest in digging in further so that people come to learning events primed to engage.
Learning path enrichment
Learning paths shift learning strategy from designing stand-alone courses to crafting a more robust learning experience that guides learners through an extended path of learning, activities, interaction and application. Along that path, learners can be given progressively more nuanced and in-depth curated materials to reinforce and expand their skills. By analyzing the learning journey people might experience, designers can inject relevant ideas at just the right time. To further promote application, it can be especially useful to curate resources for specific audience subsets.
In-depth study following training
Curation allows learning strategists to provide remedial materials for people who may need reinforcement and advanced materials for people who are ready for the next step. While a recommended learning path may not be specifically defined, it can be assumed that learning continues after a course closes. Providing curated resources for every course topic also signals the expectation for ongoing learning rather than simply checking off a completion box.
On-demand learning resources
Some learning strategies are dependent on self-directed learning, expecting the learners themselves will find resources that support their specific learning goals as needed. Even in that situation, curated resources have a role to play. Learning strategists can save employees a lot of time by curating the most useful links for key knowledge and skill sets so learners don't have to go searching for them. When a need arises, then, the resources to address that need are immediately available.
Curate; don't aggregate
It's important to remember curation is most valuable when it goes beyond simply compiling a list of links; a search engine can do that. Effective curation in business eLearning is selective and contextualized. You're recommending the most relevant and highest quality materials and adding annotation that helps learners know what they will find interesting in particular links. In this way, curation is much more than just a buzzword; it's an effective strategy for supporting the learning of deep knowledge and complex skills.
Leverage the power of curated content with Absorb. See how the LMS can boost business eLearning with these dynamic solutions.
