Innovating teaching and learning methods is not only a strategic requirement in higher education but also a condition for soft skills training programs to truly impact learners. At PTIT, where students are trained in a high-tech environment, the biggest challenge does not lie in the lack of soft skills content, but in how to organize teaching and learning activities to align with the pace, habits, and learning expectations of students.
In reality, soft skills training models are still primarily implemented through traditional methods or linear e-learning, with long lesson structures that are inflexible and difficult to adjust to individual needs. This approach makes the learning process more about "completing the course" rather than developing competencies. For technology students, who are accustomed to a digitized learning environment and fast interactive experiences, such teaching and learning methods can easily lead to a decrease in interest and limit the ability to apply skills in real-world contexts.
The application of microlearning opens up a distinct way of organizing teaching and learning, placing the learner at the center of the training process. Instead of delivering soft skills content in large course segments, microlearning breaks down knowledge and skills into short modules, focusing on specific behaviors, situations, or competencies. This approach allows students to learn flexibly, actively choose relevant content, and gradually develop skills through repeated experiences, rather than passively absorbing information.
In this model, AI is not deployed as a tool to replace the pedagogical role, but rather plays a supportive role in innovating teaching and learning methods through three main application directions. First, AI is used to assist in creating digital learning materials, helping to build illustrative content, scenario scripts, and more visually engaging learning resources for soft skills training. This contributes to reducing the rigidity of traditional learning materials while increasing the connection between learning content and real-world contexts. Second, AI is applied in gamifying assessment and practice activities, transforming the evaluation process from a pressure-filled testing format to more interactive and encouraging activities. Through short exercises, situational questions, and learning games, students are more actively engaged in the skill development process while maintaining their motivation to learn throughout the course. Third, all digital learning materials and learning activities are developed and implemented on the digital training platform Retudy. This platform serves as an integrated environment, helping to organize, distribute, and manage microlearning content in a unified, flexible, and convenient manner for both instructors and students. The application of AI in developing learning materials on Retudy contributes to enhancing the coherence of the program while facilitating the expansion and updating of content according to actual training needs.
From a teaching perspective, the combination of AI and microlearning also contributes to changing the role of instructors. Instructors are no longer just content deliverers; they become designers of learning activities, creators of practical scenarios, and guides for students to reflect after each experience. Consequently, the teaching method shifts from "content delivery" to "organizing learning experiences," where technology plays a supportive role, not a replacement for pedagogical elements.
However, innovating teaching and learning methods through AI and microlearning is not an automatic process. Without clear pedagogical guidance, technology can increase the fragmentation of content or reduce soft skills to isolated exercises. Therefore, implementation needs to be placed within a unified methodological framework, ensuring that each microlearning module directly serves the goal of developing and enhancing students' competencies.
It can be seen that the application of AI and microlearning in soft skills training at PTIT is not just a technological solution, but a new approach to innovating teaching and learning methods. When the method is designed to suit the learners, soft skills are no longer a formal learning content, but become competencies that are continuously developed, linked to the learning context and the professional requirements in the digital environment.