About a quarter of Americans listen to podcasts. A big chunk of them are millennials (44% of podcast listeners are between 18 and 34 years old).

Podcasts popped 10 years ago with the introduction of the iPhone. Apple’s decision to include a podcast player in the iPhone was the pivot point. The result has been a drift away from radio and an explosion of podcast programming.

Alex Blumberg, long time NPR host, founded Gimlet Media in 2014. On the Goldman Sachs podcast, Blumberg said there are three reasons people listen in: an unusual sense of intimacy, the ability to productively multitask while driving or working out and great stories — the power of narrative.

If we zoom out from podcasts and consider tech more broadly, it’s clear that something important is going on. Now that we’re all connected with powerful devices and ubiquitous broadband, digital platforms have transformed the way we live, work, travel, learn and play.

1. Ban lectures. Given quality alternatives, it seldom makes sense for an instructor to transmit content via lecture. Using flipped classroom strategies, teachers and professors can record content and make it available for anywhere anytime consumption. Even better, teacher teams can build content playlists with a variety of high-quality learning options.

2. Recognize learning. Now that anyone can learn almost anything anywhere, it’s time for competency-based systems that recognize prior learning and ancillary (e.g., after school, summer, workplace) learning.

3. Reformat professional learning. If we want students to experience personalized and competency-based learning, then we should model it for teachers/instructors. Microcredentials are a great way to provide options in learning. Teachers can pick a topic, learn and practice when most convenient and they demonstrate growth in a relevant way.

Read the full article about what the rise of podcasts can tell us about learning by Tom Vander Ark at Getting Smart.