I've been given the task of building a company and industry acronym course for new and current employees (there's a lot of acronyms, I'm probably going to break up the acronyms like A-C, D-F, etc). I've had a few ideas, trying to focus on interactivity, such as matching games, click - reveal, etc. but nothing is set in stone. Does anyone have suggestions as to how I should go about creating a course trying to include interactivity? Thanks!
I'd center the course around a reference tool that provides assistance sorting through a new lexicon later. A simple table of acronyms in a printable sheet or sheets might do the trick.
Beyond that, a lexicon really only applies when it is applied So if I were forced to build a course to orient folks to a new lexicon (after first recommending NOT building a course), I'd work this using a couple of potential strategies (understanding that I don't know the goal of the program or the audience at this point):
1) Situate the lexicon using authentic contexts. Use short bits of someone using the language in a specific context. This can be text description of a dialog or an audio recording. Ask the participant to pick out the acronyms they don't recognize and, based on the context, see if they can guess what the acronym might mean. Then have them look the acronym up in the reference. This type of drilling can help to tie the acronym to a relevant context. It's one of the only good ways I can think of to get folks to remember language stuff.
2) Build a mental model of acronyms by group or structure. If there is some kind of order to the lexicon, try to build a mental picture that helps the learner see themselves as a part of that lexicon. Again, this is an exercise in revealing relevance.
I had to do one like that a few years back. I used the Engage glossary interaction. Personally I found the course kind of pointless, but the client wanted it.
I'd stay away from extra interactivity without clear performance expectations.
Find out at what points they need to really know an acronym and then build some simple scenarios. But if it's more about awareness, then I'd keep it simple.
I agree with Steve on this one. This is something that would be better of as a help aid then a course. And the help aid doesn't have to be just boring text if the client wants something fun and engaging. You can make it look like an infographic or add reference photos. Instead of grouping them by letters (A - D, E-G), you can group them by category or by use. You can create this as a PDF with links, a easily maintainable web page that can be accessed by the employees, etc.
3 Replies
I'd center the course around a reference tool that provides assistance sorting through a new lexicon later. A simple table of acronyms in a printable sheet or sheets might do the trick.
Beyond that, a lexicon really only applies when it is applied
So if I were forced to build a course to orient folks to a new lexicon (after first recommending NOT building a course), I'd work this using a couple of potential strategies (understanding that I don't know the goal of the program or the audience at this point):
1) Situate the lexicon using authentic contexts. Use short bits of someone using the language in a specific context. This can be text description of a dialog or an audio recording. Ask the participant to pick out the acronyms they don't recognize and, based on the context, see if they can guess what the acronym might mean. Then have them look the acronym up in the reference. This type of drilling can help to tie the acronym to a relevant context. It's one of the only good ways I can think of to get folks to remember language stuff.
2) Build a mental model of acronyms by group or structure. If there is some kind of order to the lexicon, try to build a mental picture that helps the learner see themselves as a part of that lexicon. Again, this is an exercise in revealing relevance.
I had to do one like that a few years back. I used the Engage glossary interaction. Personally I found the course kind of pointless, but the client wanted it.
I'd stay away from extra interactivity without clear performance expectations.
Find out at what points they need to really know an acronym and then build some simple scenarios. But if it's more about awareness, then I'd keep it simple.
I agree with Steve on this one. This is something that would be better of as a help aid then a course. And the help aid doesn't have to be just boring text if the client wants something fun and engaging. You can make it look like an infographic or add reference photos. Instead of grouping them by letters (A - D, E-G), you can group them by category or by use. You can create this as a PDF with links, a easily maintainable web page that can be accessed by the employees, etc.
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