Whether you are preparing for government jobs or upskilling to reach greater heights in career, the audio format will continue to influence learning, shares Dushyantt Kohli
Audio has never gone out of vogue as citizens today are able to learn on the move. With the utility of audio going beyond radio services and entering into the digital realm, people are provided new learning opportunities. Be it news, entertainment or educational information, audio is converting anytime into learning time, considering that accessibility has become ubiquitous and affordable. Since radio, the subsequent advancements in technology moved the audience towards television and personal computers for their everyday needs. More importantly, education and learning through the internet began to take shape in the early 2000s, laying the foundations for an EdTech industry. Due to the unexpected COVID-19 pandemic, students, schools, training institutions, and colleges now view learning outcomes through a different lens. Within a span of a year, e-learning platforms have disrupted the ecosystem.
However, as a developing nation, there are several challenges that we need to cope with. For instance, all the major e-learning platforms require high quality video streaming and internet connectivity so that users are able to avail the resources they have to offer. Unfortunately, several corners of India are yet to see the infrastructure that can present high-bandwidth content for all. Beyond this, people across generations are suffering from various health effects on account of excessive screen times as school lectures and live interactions are primarily in the video format.
In fact, recent reports suggest that the current average screen time every week is around 6.9 hours, on account of the ample time available during the pandemic. Indians access their internet mostly through their smartphones, and within a year, it has increased by 25 per cent, from 4.9 hours to 6.9 hours from April 2020 onwards. Such trends do not indicate a healthy precedent, and audio could prove to a suitable hands-free alternative. Even for education, video creation and development are arduous processes that require time and effort to achieve quality. We often forget that a majority of competitive exam aspirants hail from tier III, IV cities, and rural areas that lack the resources to afford video-based services. Withprice constraints and limited access to the latest technologies, the chances of aspirants who wish to crack examinations is hindered. On the bright side, the gap is now being addressed by audio services, through podcasts, audio lectures, and bite-sized audio clips on course concepts due to easy production processes and low costs.
Diversity in course offerings and exam prep
In the last couple of years, we have seen the proliferation of several EdTech apps, delivering different levels of education across all age groups. Similarly, several audio-based learning apps are offering multiple courses on their platforms, making it ideal for candidates preparing for government exams to be on top in the highly competitive space. Be it courses like current affairs, static GK, History or English. They are delivered by subject matter experts in the audio format, which helps in sequencing audio content for exam preparation, and cracking government jobs.
Moreover, some of these apps also have versions that cater to feature phone users, which function on low bandwidths and affordable data packs. It makes it easier for users to download or stream content while consuming far lesser data as compared to video services. In fact, exclusive exam preparation content is available in vernacular languages like Hindi, Bengali, and others as well, reaching a wider audience beyond the big cities. In addition to this, career coaches and teachers realise the quality, reach and potential of audio-based learning. The students are increasingly expressing a desire to learn from the best, and short audio content and clips from experts is the preferred format, and it is redefining their approach towards job seeking.
Effectiveness of audio-based learning
The quality learning programmes are often unaffordable even in the realm of digital. Here is where audio is playing a transformative role as it is bringing inexpensive services into the deep corners of the country by merely utilising existing infrastructure. In fact, several players in the podcasting and audio-based educational space are serving millions of students every day, making it an effective medium for consuming good quality exam preparation content.
The critics often question the efficacy of audio as a medium of learning. They argue that providing both text and audio material for preparation could overwhelm aspirants. However, there is enough evidence from the scientific world that points towards audio’s role in improving the cognitive abilities of listeners. The argument is that repetitive listening can lead to better retention of concepts. Analytical reasoning too can be understood through audio, which is contrary to popular notions that audio’s role in imparting education is inadequate for attaining reasoning abilities.
Going by examples from the real world, we can understand how customer care services, doctors and medics, and musicians develop an ear for sound, structure, and form. Similarly, even in audio-based learning, it becomes easier by replaying audio files and practicing concepts by visualisation. This trend is identifiable in India as more and more users are consuming audio content in their native languages, ensuring better retention.
Reasons for audio’s resurgence and how the future looks
One of the most impressive aspects of audio that has only been rediscovered during the pandemic is the positive effect of passive listening. Since the lockdown and COVID-19 restrictions were imposed, a majority of citizens remained indoors, relying on all the tools at their disposal to bring their lives back to normal. Audio-streaming services and apps underwent astounding growth, thanks to the increase in content consumption by users while staying home.
It further justifies the fact that people feel comfortable carrying out their daily chores and listen passively to educational content, thereby, saving precious time. Further to this, it is enabling the conversion of non-study time into learning time, due to hands free devices that play audio files through voice commands. Therefore, whether a person is preparing for government jobs or upskilling to reach greater heights in their career, audio will continue to influence learning, and impact even the future generations.
(The writer is the COO of Khabri.)
