As Elliott Masie states, there will be numerous mediums and vehicles available for accessing learning content. These vehicles include videos, learning apps, gamification, podcasts, etc. Learners will also continue to have to access and download PDFs.
While all of the mediums cited offer advantages, one, I believe, will revolutionize training.
Millennials represent the largest generation in the U.S. labor force, with over 56 million currently working or seeking work (Fry, 2018). Statistics indicate millennials represent 29% of all gamers (Duran, 2017), and that 54% of millennial gamers are employed full-time (Taylor, 2019). Millennials spend approximately 6 hours per week (Nielson, 2019) gaming or viewing gaming content. This phenomenon that has occurred over the last thirty years creates a golden opportunity for training professionals with this emerging workforce.
Imagine packaging the learning content that you are trying to impart to an interactive video game. Not only will two out of three millennials understand the platform, and are comfortable in using it, the interactivity element will be consistent with the world in which they currently reside.
The use of video games to teach combat strategies has been a longstanding practice for the U.S. military. They believe it augments the physical training they provide and allows for soldiers to continue practicing these tactics even when they are on leave (Scott Nicholas Romaniuk & Tobias Burgers, 2017). Further, the U.S. Army has created a recruitment campaign targeting gamers (CBS News, 2019).
While this may be considered the future of learning, it must be done so with caution because while two out of three millennials partake in gaming, one out of three does not. As an example, I have two children. My son is 24 and can play video games all day long. My daughter is 27 and has no interest, so learning based on gaming would likely not appeal to her.
I believe one of the biggest challenges the HRD world is going to face is remembering that technology such as gaming, cannot be the only mode of learning as it does not appeal to all learners. If HRD professionals want the transfer of learning to take place, then they need to remember, above all, their learners.
References
CBS News. (2019, March 28). Army turns to video gamers for new recruits. Retrieved April 15, 2020, from https://www.cbsnews.com/news/army-turns-to-video-game-conventions-for-new-recruits/
Duran, H. (2017, July 22). How different generations play video games, from platforms to genres. Retrieved April 15, 2020, from https://www.alistdaily.com/strategy/different-generations-play-video-games-platforms-genres/
Fry R. (2018, April 11). Millennials are largest generation in the U.S. labor force. Retrieved April 15, 2020, from https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/04/11/millennials-largest-generation-us-labor-force/
Nielson. (2019, June 06). Game on: Video games are a staple among millennials’ media diets. Retrieved April 15, 2020, from https://www.nielsen.com/us/en/insights/article/2019/game-on-video-games-are-a-staple-among-millennials-media-diets/
Scott Nicholas Romaniuk & Tobias Burgers. (2017, March 08). Violent video games to TRAIN soldiers: Here’s how U.S. military does it. Retrieved April 15, 2020, from https://www.business-standard.com/article/international/violent-video-games-to-train-soldiers-here-s-how-us-military-does-it-117030800172_1.html
Taylor, H. (2019, June 6). SuperData: U.S. millennials spend $112 a month on gaming. Retrieved April 15, 2020, from https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2019-06-06-superdata-us-millennials-spend-usd112-a-month-on-gaming
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