Today’s elearning courses look nothing like they used to back when elearning first started to grow in popularity.

In the infancy of this industry it was not uncommon to sit through elearning modules that consisted entirely of Microsoft PowerPoint slides and perhaps some Clipart sprinkled throughout. The learning management system would then track your attendance.

That was it.

Fast-forward to today and the industry has (thankfully) evolved quite a bit. The courses we take online often contain many different forms of media and engagement points. The presentation in general is far more dynamic and effective.

Media diversity is almost an expectation today. One of the more relevant forms of media to come to elearning has been video.

There really isn’t anything that impressive about video in it and of itself. Almost daily we see videos on Facebook, YouTube, new sites, and pretty much every site we visit.

What is noteworthy about video though is the way it has (and continues) to be a major factor in education. In fact, 91% of respondents in a survey indicated that video will play a major role in education in the future. This is up by 4% from the previous year (2015).

I think while we see an increase of video use from an education standpoint we will see modifications in how video content is produced. Optimal video length in elearning will be different than in a classroom. If the elearning content is to be accessed mostly via mobile devices then that will also impact the duration.

Video is certainly not going anywhere in education and online learning. If anything, its use will continue to grow.