Maldita.es launches its first WhatsApp course with challenges to learn how to detect hoaxes

In this microcourse, enabled in the Maldita.es WhatsApp chatbot ( +34 644 229 319 ), users will receive short video tutorials to recognize hoaxes and scams, with tests to put their skills into practice, which can be completed in a total of twenty-five minutes through short videos, infographics and interactive questions on practical examples.

5 challenges in 25 minutes

“5 challenges against hoaxes” is made up of five sessions that last five minutes each. The user only has to access the Maldita.es WhatsApp chatbot (+34 644 229 319) , saving the number in the phonebook of the mobile device and, after saying “Hello”, selecting the “Challenges against hoaxes” option. You can also write directly “I want to start the challenges” or access through the link https://maldita.es/retocontralosbulos .

What a hoax is and why they are created, how to recognize and manage a suspicious message or a scam, how to verify an image and what to do if a person you know sends you a hoax are the contents covered in the course. A panoramic view of misinformation, concentrated in small pills, to learn in a simple and fast way.

Each session is structured in three steps:

• A video tutorial or infographic explaining key ideas about the topic. 
• A challenge in which the user answers a question to test the acquired tools. 
• The solution to the test with infographics or short videos to set the tips.

Every time a challenge ends, the system offers the option to continue or postpone it to the next day. In this way, the user decides when and where they can dedicate a few minutes to the next session.

A course based on microlearning

Microlearning , or microlearning, is an educational strategy in which the content is condensed into short capsules, with games, videos, slides and questions, which address a single topic. 

According to the theory of “the forgetting curve”, formulated by the psychologist Ebbinghaus, the retention capacity decreases over time: 20 minutes after completing the process, 50% of what has been learned is lost. The article “Use of microlearning in mobile applications to increase knowledge retention and work performance…” , published by the United States National Library of Medicine, based on this theory, states that it is possible to improve memory retention through exposure repetitive, as happens in microlearning. If information is reinforced at regular intervals of time, it moves from short-term memory to long-term memory.

Microlearning , which is already used in learning health guidelines, has been particularly effective in improving self-care behaviors, as revealed by the study “The effectiveness of microlearning in improving self-care capacity…” . Specifically, the study indicates that it can enhance the ability to identify dangerous habits and promote the ability to ensure physical, mental and emotional well-being, two crucial aspects for raising awareness against misinformation.

“5 challenges against hoaxes” is part of Maldita.es’ commitment to promoting the dissemination of tools against misinformation among citizens of all ages and sociocultural backgrounds . In the coming months, Maldita.es will expand the thematic offering of these sessions through WhatsApp to provide people with specific tools against scientific misinformation or scams, among others.