Measuring The Impact of iOS or Android platform Learning Models

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The rise of smartphones and mobile platforms in the last few years, particularly the operating system's from Google and Apple, Android and iOS respectively, have led to a new generation of training systems, whereby people can learn things via e-books and apps in their own time without having to sit in a room with a training manager to be told about a new system or an innovative way of working.

One of the benefits of using these smartphone systems as a way of training people rather than the more traditional methods is that everything can be done from anywhere. With old training styles, people would have all needed to be in the same room and at the same time in order to make sure that the training was being completed.

However, with mLearning, it is possible for people to complete new training in any situation where they have access to the internet via tablets, smartphones, and other devices which are running iOS or Android operating systems, even in remote locations such as trains and hotels whether they are commuting or on business trips.

According to the research firm Interactive Data Corporation (IDC), by 2013, the worldwide number of workers who will be using their mobile phones as part of their job will total over 1.3 billion, or around 35 per cent of the global labor market, meaning that learning through iOS devices will become far more prevalent over the course of the next few years.

However, while the benefits of using m-learning techniques like these are immediately evident to any HR department, with aspects such as the money they will save on hiring people to conduct training and having to run specific sessions, the main challenges for the platform comes from measuring its impact on employees themselves.

According to Intrepid Learning solutions, the best way to make sure that any HR department is effectively measuring the level to which their m-learning techniques are effective is through looking at successes and failures of the programs.

One way to seek out performance metrics of iOS and Android apps is straightforward enough; ask staff. Employees will have differing experiences when it comes to using these new learning platforms, and so making sure to leave questionnaires for staff to fill in, particularly in the early stages of the program, will allow HR departments to quickly see the level to which people are accepting the new learning methods.

This can be the most effective method of measuring the impact of any new system within a company, as the staff are by far the most likely to know which has helped them out most, as any HR professional will be aware.

It can also be important when engaging staff to make sure that you have a comparison to the older methods of training in order to be certain that m-learning is having the required impact.

Other ways in which the effectiveness of m-learning techniques can be measured include through a series of tests to make sure that employees are retaining the information that has been given to them through the process of training. This will allow HR departments to see how effective their training process has been.

One important consideration to make however, according to the Guardian, is whether or not to use a control group when measuring the impact of projects such as these. This will allow HR staff to see the actual real differences between using the methods and not using them, as opposed to just the effect year-on-year on those who have taken advantage of the technology.

However, this is something that must be carefully considered, because it adds extra costs to the project, as well as adding an extra dimension to the process of evaluation.


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