Learn. Practice. Apply.
You might have seen these words before, haven’t you? This learning methodology is based on the ‘Absorb Do Connect’ methodology created by William Horton, which is mainly used for the development of e-learning courses. However, this doesn’t suffice for mobile learning. That is why Teach on Mars developed the ELPA methodology. ELPA is an acronym for: Engage, Learn, Practice, Apply. Engagement, Hook, Storytelling, … Whatever you want to call it, the principle is to guide learners by completely submerging them in their learning experience.
We, however, felt that this wasn’t sufficient enough. So, we created the iLearn Framework©️ as a blueprint for creating a different learning experience. It consists of 6 familiar concepts:
- Inspire: Inspiration moves and motivates us to start learning something new. It provides a reason to take action and grow towards our goals.
- Learn: Learning should be effective, efficient and in detail by using different learning methods and techniques while sustaining learners’ motivation.
- Exercise: Learners practice what they’ve learned in a safe, artificial environment. Making mistakes is encouraged as we learn from our mistakes.
- Apply: Real-life experience is an ideal setting to measure the impact of the skill that you have been working hard on.
- Repeat: Repetition is an important learning aid, as it allows for the transfer of a conscious skill into a subconscious one. A key thing to remember about repetition is that practice makes perfect.
- Nurture: The goal is to nurture those around you by taking them on a learning journey as well. This can be achieved by supporting them or them supporting you with the impact and the change you are trying to implement after your learning process.
The circular aspect of the framework symbolises society’s learning culture. As a member of our (learning) community you might be inspired and start a new iLearn circle. The same goes for the next generation of learners. Everything starts with a sparkle of inspiration…
Learning continuously plays an important role in our lives. Our desire to learn is always present within us, but this desire often is rather dormant. In an ever-developing world, the skills we need in our (professional) lives change, which leaves room for skilling, reskilling, and upskilling of employees. This framework relies on effective learning and emphasises engagement, motivation, connecting and thinking. That is why it promotes ‘social learning’, so people can motivate, correct and support each other while sharing their best practices and building a learning community. The iLearn Framework© helps to create a positive habit of learning.
