8 E-Learning Trends and Best Practices to Watch

The main e-learning trends are gamification, mobile learning, adaptive learning, microlearning, learning analytics, virtual reality, social learning and AI tutors. Together, they make online courses more engaging, more personal and closer to a real classroom, a shift that the COVID-19 pandemic made more urgent in 2020 by bringing many new learners online.

Key takeaways

• Gamification, mobile access, adaptive paths and microlearning make online courses more engaging and easier to follow.
• Learning analytics show how students progress and where a course needs work.
• Virtual reality, social learning and AI tutors bring online learning closer to a real classroom.
• In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic brought many skeptical users to e-learning and showed its potential.

2020 was a blossoming year for the e-learning industry. A combination of factors, not least the coronavirus pandemic, brought more students into the world of e-learning. Even users more inclined to traditional learning methods discovered the effectiveness and opportunities of online courses.

As this industry keeps growing, competition is fierce. To stay on top, companies in the e-learning field must keep up with the trends and demands of the market. In 2020, some excellent practices and trends stood out, and every business can use them to attract more users and make its e-learning platform more profitable.

How Big Is the E-Learning Market?

Creating and maintaining an e-learning platform is a challenging endeavor. To create an e-learning solution, maintain it and make it grow, companies need strong planning skills and market insights. But given the size of the e-learning market and its promising figures, any effort in this direction is well worth it.

In 2020, North America accounted for 40% of the industry, but the e-learning market was thriving worldwide. It was estimated to surpass $300 billion by 2025, up from $190 billion in 2018: a rapid and impressive growth.

Key Facts About the E-Learning Market in China

• In 2014, China had the largest online population in the world, surpassing 649 million users.
• In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the average number of daily searches for education-related knowledge content on Baidu was over 350 million, an increase of 86% year over year.
• In 2020, GSX Techedu Inc., a Chinese online K-12 education company, reported revenue up 382% year over year.

However, it is not enough to build your e-learning platform and wait for this market to reward it. Only companies that understand its trends and create solutions crafted for their audience will succeed.

What Are the Top 8 E-Learning Trends and Best Practices?

1. Gamification

Gamification became popular in 2018 and kept rising in popularity. The secret behind its success is plain and simple: a high level of engagement and an enlightening learning experience.

Adding games to your platform turns passive learning into active learning, which makes it more appealing to a larger audience. Besides increasing engagement, gamification comes with several more benefits. For instance, you will motivate your students if you include rewards at the end of each game session. Feedback at the end of the game gives your students an immediate report on their progress, and gives you information on the quality of your lessons. Our guide to e-learning gamification goes further.

“The core behind TechTrek’s e-learning experience is a game-based ecosystem, where students aged from 5 to 10 years old can learn important lessons on STEAM subjects in a fun and rewarding way, lessons that will bring them valuable skills for their future.”

2. Go Mobile

The mobile revolution is a reality: a large majority of users around the world access the web through mobile devices. A study reported by CNBC predicted that by 2025, almost 73% of all internet users would access the web solely through a smartphone.

The implications for e-learning platforms are clear. Unless you create a responsive solution, accessible from a variety of devices including smartphones, you will miss a large portion of this market.

3. Adaptive E-Learning

When it comes to learning, there isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution. This has long been a problem for e-learning platforms, which must educate large audiences all at the same time.

As there is no direct contact with an instructor, an e-learning platform risks offering material that is not useful for some students, or too advanced for others.

Adaptive learning refers to a range of solutions that help solve this problem, and ensure that students access information appropriate to their level of experience and knowledge. Adaptive learning meaningfully helps students grow.

Through pre-course tests, personalization options and an algorithm that tracks user performance, adaptive learning crafts the lessons for each student. This approach meets the needs of an ever more demanding audience, used to having the internet at its fingertips.

“In 2020, QPSoftware was developing an adaptive e-learning path for TechTrek, where students get different challenges depending on their performance in previous tests. This way, every e-learning experience is unique, and adapted to the skills and motivation of the student.”

4. Microlearning

Microlearning refers to the practice of creating short lessons packed with relevant information. That can be done through concise articles, short modules, videos, infographics, podcasts, or a combination of all of these.

Limited attention spans and fast-paced lives are a common problem today. Many students do not have the time, or the concentration, to sit down for long periods and follow a course. Microlearning lets them access relevant information quickly and effectively, for instance while they are commuting or during breaks.

5. Tracking Learning (Analytics)

Tracking is crucial for every business, including e-learning platforms. Implementing a good tracking system is relatively simple, and mostly depends on choosing the right LMS to power your platform.

Analytics matter in many ways. Through effective tracking, you can assess the progress and performance of your students, and adapt the course accordingly. At the same time, tracking may reveal gaps in your material, or parts of your lessons that need to be improved.

Some organizations even use tracking to single out the best students and get quick access to the best talent.

“Thanks to the implementation of performance-driven modules by QPSoftware, Motif could efficiently track student activity and interaction with its courses, achieving better user retention and higher e-learning satisfaction.”

6. Virtual Reality (VR)

VR is a fantastic tool to entertain students and make their experience more engaging. Virtual reality is particularly effective with an audience that prefers learning through visual aids rather than reading. Thanks to this technology, modules and visual elements can literally come to life, taking the learning experience to the next level.

7. Social Learning

Social media has had a massive impact on people’s lives and behavior, and the same technology is changing the e-learning industry. Students can interact with each other and share their experiences, progress or difficulties.

One of the major benefits of social learning is that students interact with real people, not only with software. Social learning gives the feeling of being part of a real classroom, and the interaction with other people motivates students to keep making an effort throughout their learning journey.

“A messaging system supported by a discussion forum allows TechTrek students and educators to share their feedback, learn from each other and interact online, to keep giving valuable lessons beyond the online classroom.”

8. AI Learning

Artificial intelligence (AI) applied to e-learning is a major step forward. AI makes the online learning experience as close as possible to traditional learning. It can analyze a student’s behavior and adapt the lessons in real time. For instance, an AI tutor can detect areas where the student’s knowledge is lacking or needs improvement, and supply material to fill the gap.

Moreover, students can interact with the virtual tutor through voice commands, which enhances the learning experience. Our AI Sales Coach applies the same idea to sales training: virtual customers react to each answer, and the AI suggests improvements.

How Did COVID-19 Change E-Learning?

The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the e-learning industry. With millions of people confined at home and children kept out of school in 2020, e-learning became the only available tool to keep students learning and interacting outside the classroom.

This forced use of e-learning platforms led a large number of otherwise skeptical users to discover them.

In addition, many organizations, including schools and universities, had the opportunity to test how well these tools integrate with, and improve, traditional courses of study.

This experience happened with a lack of preparation in using these tools and, in many cases, with bandwidth shortages. Despite these obstacles, the results were for the most part surprising, and they highlighted the potential of e-learning as an effective, fast and cost-effective learning tool.

These were grounds to believe that the already attractive future of e-learning had become even more promising. Most likely, the worldwide experience of the COVID-19 pandemic changed the world of education for good.

This created an excellent opportunity for all organizations willing to invest in this field, and to make their e-learning platforms more effective and attractive with the latest technological solutions.

What Should You Do Next?

Pick the trends that fit your audience: gamification and social learning for young learners, microlearning and analytics for busy professionals, and a mobile-friendly platform for everyone.

QPSoftware is a digital agency in Shanghai and an e-learning development agency with experience in e-learning projects. We have helped clients such as TechTrek and Motif approach e-learning successfully. We can also create WeChat mini programs to make your course more appealing in China and reach a broader audience. Contact us, and we will help you create the right e-learning solution for your audience.

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