Mobile learning gains pace in India

With more study material being available online and growing use of mobile devices like smartphones and tablets, the learning process is shifting online in India, a study by talent management firm Skillsoft said on Wednesday.

"For many in India, mobile has become their platform of choice, where employees are empowered to access learning on demand," Skillsoft manager Asia Aruna Telang said in research report, "The state of mobile learning in India".

The report elicited information from 545 decision makers managing human resources or learning and development budgets in organisations and learners across 16 nations in Asia Pacific.

A telling insight from the report revealed that nearly 80 percent of the respondents in India agreed that mobile learning would increase learning engagement, while 27 percent felt that mobile learning adoption rate is low in organisations.

Preferred formats of mobile learning are video tutorials for 48 percent respondents, slide shows for 40 percent respondents and interactive participation for 39 percent, the report added.

Some of the challenges respondents highlighted for the latest form of learning are network issues like connection stability, speed and VPN requirements (62 percent respondents), concerns about network security (58 percent) and inadequate IT support (48 percent).

Though 48 percent respondents felt that additional operating costs is an issue with mobile learning, 45 percent of the surveyed organisations are planning to implement mobile learning in the future.

"Much of the success of mobile learning in India can be attributed to the 173 million mobile internet users in India, which decision makers and business professionals can no longer ignore.

"Cloud-based learning is evolving to match the expectations of the mobile employee where learning opportunities often occur throughout the day," said Vinay Pradhan, country manager-India, Skillsoft.