Turn personal training into shared practice with social e-learning
Most workplace knowledge is not acquired through formal courses. It happens more naturally and subtly through conversations, simple Slack messages, observing colleagues virtually, and observing how managers handle difficult situations in meetings and recorded scenarios. Formal training often documents this knowledge, but rarely recreates an environment where learning feels organic.
Social learning bridges that gap. At its core is observation, interaction, and shared meaning. These principles were described decades ago in social learning theory. What matters today is not the theory itself, but how it works in modern distributed teams.
In this article, we look at social learning as a system and explore why it’s important, how it influences behavior in the workplace, and how a learning platform like iSpring LMS can support training without turning it into an inauthentic, forced social network.
Why traditional eLearning struggles to make an impact
Traditional training settings are optimized for control. Assign courses, enforce deadlines, and measure completion. This approach is great for proving that training took place. However, it is of little value if you need to prove that the trainee’s behavior has changed in line with the planned learning objectives.
Here’s why:
Learning is decontextualized. Courses exist separately from daily work. There is no visible peer influence. Learners do not know how others apply their knowledge. Feedback may be delayed or absent. Questions go unanswered and insights disappear. Motivation is external. People don’t learn to improve, they learn to conform.
Social e-learning enhances structured training by making learning more natural to apply in real-world work situations. Layer interaction on top of formal content to give learners a reason to participate beyond just checking a box.
What is a learning community?
Learning communities are not forums with no participation or comment sections filled with “Thank you!” Post. In effective organizations, it manifests itself in several powerful ways.
New employees ask questions publicly and get answers from their peers as well as their instructors. Employees share examples of how they have applied the training in practice. Managers recognize progress, not just completion. Learning becomes part of everyday communication.
In this way, a learning culture is formed through repeated social signals that learning is visible, valued, and shared. Over time, these signals shape behavior much more than historical policy.
The role of LMS in social learning
An LMS can support or suppress this dynamic. If a learning platform is designed solely for content delivery, social interactions can be lost in the process. Although learners technically have access to discussion tools, there is no reason to use them. That’s why choosing an LMS with solid social learning capabilities is a great investment in building a true learning community at work.
A social learning-enabled LMS builds interactions into the learning flow. Notifications, comments, reactions, and messaging signal that learning is happening among people, not in isolation.
Platforms like iSpring LMS for social learning do this very well. Rather than positioning social features as an optional add-on, iSpring treats them as part of the learner experience, supporting conversation, visibility, and real-time connectivity around training.
Social features that actually change behavior
Not all social features facilitate learning. Some simply generate LMS noise. The difference lies in whether the interaction supports reflection and action. Below are examples of social mechanisms that consistently bring about change.
1. Activity feed and learning updates
When learners can see progress updates, achievements, and upcoming events in one place, learning becomes part of the rhythm of the workday. The real business is no longer hidden behind the course catalog, and this visibility creates momentum. For example, in iSpring LMS, the Newsfeed is a central space where trainees can see updates, accomplishments, events, and co-worker activity in real time. Reactions provide additional social context to learning.
2. Comments and discussions related to content
Discussions are most effective when they are situational. Asking questions directly below the lesson or assignment will keep the conversation relevant and easier to search. Over time, this transforms the course into a living knowledge space.
3. Direct Messages and Mentorship
Private messages between learners, instructors, or mentors can help prevent misunderstandings and build stronger collegial relationships faster. People ask more questions when they don’t have to schedule meetings or switch platforms. Group chats are especially effective for onboarding, peer support, and ongoing collaboration around shared learning goals.
4. Gamification with social meaning
Badges and leaderboards work best when they reflect meaningful actions such as helping others, completing learning paths, and contributing insights. When used judiciously, gamification enhances participation and sharing of progress rather than competition for its own sake.
5. Live learning moments
Webinars, virtual classrooms, and live sessions create shared experiences. Even in remote teams, learning feels collective when people interact in real time. Therefore, your LMS must support integration with major video conferencing tools such as Zoom and MS Teams.
How social learning improves completion rates
One of the strongest arguments for social learning is its effect on learning completion and retention.
When learners feel seen – their progress is visible, their questions answered, and their contributions valued – their motivation changes. Completion becomes a byproduct of effort and trainees feel less pressure.
Collaborative learning environments consistently demonstrate that:
Higher course completion rates. Speed up new employee onboarding. Improves knowledge transfer between teams. Stronger alignment with corporate values.
These outcomes emerge when learning systems support interaction rather than mere management.
Pro tip: Use group-based learning tracks in iSpring LMS to place learners into shared cohorts. This way, progress feels collective rather than individual, reducing dropouts and increasing completion.
Building a sustainable learning culture
A sustainable learning culture doesn’t require more courses or more complex interactions. What helps build it is a series of repeatable actions that make learning visible, shared, and easily actionable.
1. Connect discussion prompts to actual work tasks
Add short, actionable discussion prompts after major modules and tracks (e.g., “How does this apply to your current project?”). This moves learning from theory to application and creates peer-generated, reusable knowledge. Trainees can discuss these questions during a live Zoom meeting, in a group chat, or even privately.
2. Assign visible learning roles
Rotate simple roles such as discussion starter or practice leader within the learner group. When responsibilities are distributed, there is an expectation of participation and less reliance on the instructor. This is also a great way to encourage peer accountability and normalize knowledge sharing across the group.
3. Be proactive within the platform
Instructors and managers can answer questions and have contributions approved directly in the LMS, rather than moving the conversation to email or a chat app. Prompt, contextual feedback is one of the strongest predictors of retention.
4. Track interactions with completion
Monitor discussion activities and peer interactions as the course progresses. Learners who stop interacting often leave before the deadline passes, giving the L&D team an opportunity to intervene early.
To support these actions, organizations need learning and development tools that are built with visibility and interactivity in mind. Be sure to do your research and choose a platform that integrates social learning features into your core training process.
last word
Most organizations already have some social learning in place, but it happens informally and easily disappears. If questions, explanations, and workarounds are not shared, team members will solve the same problem over and over again. Companies that take social learning seriously capture and share these insights.
When launching your social learning strategy, don’t try to do everything at once. Start small and design repeatable workflows. These include short discussions, tangible contributions, and shared practices tied to real work. These patterns are more reliably scalable than a single course and provide tangible benefits over time.
iSpring LMS
iSpring LMS is designed to close skill gaps across the entire employee lifecycle, from onboarding to continued growth.
