Week 2 - Group 3 Discussion

Hi everyone! Sharing my Rise AI project, you can check it out here: 

https://share.articulate.com/wimHn__kPhfpHaju64V55 

I made three main changes to my draft to strengthen student engagement. First, I added images and audio throughout the course to give the content more of an audiovisual dimension. Second, I reworked the opening hook of the lesson, moving away from a flat, objective-first introduction toward something that pulls learners in from the first screen. Third, I added interactivity to several blocks that were originally passive, turning them into moments where learners have to do something with the content instead of just reading through it, which I think makes a real difference in how much actually sticks.

What tied these three changes together was a shift in how I was thinking about the draft: less "how do I present this information clearly" and more "how do I get the learner to engage with it actively." The hook strategy the AI suggested was genuinely the piece that reframed the whole approach for me once the opening pulled learners in, adding audiovisual variety and interactive checkpoints felt like a natural extension of that same logic rather than separate fixes.

Hello!  I am excited to share my AI Assistant Project with everyone here: 

https://share.articulate.com/k1tH-k0QIMBbiFLHj94Jg

Here are my responses to the questions about the project:
- I really focused image editing.  I started with a team photo and from there I was able to separate the characters, adjust gestures and expressions. This really helped support the storytelling aspect. 
- I used the AI assistant to help with the sorting exercise. It was so much faster than writing it all myself and I loved being able to tell it to help with formatting too (like making sure all statements were in the form of quotes).
- Changing the tone and making text shorter is amazing.  For this prompt, keeping things professional was key but I also wanted it to be approachable so keeping it shorter and making the text "friendly" helped. 

For the initial set up of the course, I opted for text only because I wanted to control the interactions. By putting my storytelling aspects into the lesson descriptions, the text already interjected the story in, which made the flow feel natural and I didn't have to rewrite it with the lens of what was happening with the story. 

Really, the only challenge I had was that one time I tried to edit an image and it gave me completely different characters!  It only happened once but I learned that clearing the chat once in awhile is helpful.  We all need a reset sometimes 🙃

Hello Everyone:

My QS Link: 

https://share.articulate.com/YMSxvbEnH5qHnfcCNd7vU

I focused on four things in this project:

1. Creating a custom prompt that gave me consistency across the course
2. Converting blocks 
3. AI Audio
4. Creating a quiz

For the custom prompt I was inspired by the photography of Norman Seeff who is known for his portraits of celebrities in black and white. I explored this about a year ago in EL weekly challenge 513 and that was the mood I was in when I started--my ELC link is below.

https://jodisdemos.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/513+Icons+in+B%26W/story.html

The custom prompt was: 

Create a black-and-white editorial portrait , capturing a spontaneous, emotionally authentic moment. Use rich contrast, subtle film grain, dramatic but natural studio lighting, and a minimalist background. Emphasize personality, movement, and human connection rather than a formal pose. The image should feel timeless, intimate, expressive, and psychologically revealing, with clean composition and negative space for e-learning text.

I added custom AI visuals to every lesson--you can see them at the beginning of each lesson, in the tabs, accordions and process blocks.

I feel I got a lot of consistency across the course, but the editorial look started to fatigue me after a bit. I got bored with the whole course by the end.

I really liked you can download the images you generate and use them somewhere else. My only frustration was that I wanted a repeat character for the beginning of Lesson 2 (see AI Audio item) and I had to do that outside of Rise. If there is a way to do it, I couldn't figure it out.

For the block conversions, I really hated the flip cards so I turned them into tabs or a table.  I think I left one set because I ran out of ideas. :)

For the AI Audio, I added a mini-case study at the start of Lesson Two.  I let the scenario introduce the topic of communication to gain interest on it's own. I really liked how it turned out, and I didn't realize that audio block has the transcript feature so you can read along. I work with a lot of legal compliance clients and they LOVE transcripts! 

The AI Generated Quiz could save a lot of time, but I have to say it made me a little lazy. By the time I got to that exercise I was bored with my course and wanted to move on. :) IRL I would spend more time on the feedback and making sure the answers truly connected back to the content. 

Thanks for the opportunity to share! I'm going to look at everyone's projects to see how others interpreted the assignments. 

Hi Nicole - I liked your use of the AI assistant to get some really creative AI images. I think the images pair nicely with the content it's surrounded with.

One suggestion would be to maybe break up the lessons a little bit, especially around your knowledge checks, by adding a continue button. This might allow the learner to pause and focus on the question instead of potentially scrolling past. 

Great job! Love the course look and overall feel.

Nicole76​ 

Good Job.

I really liked the teamwork image in the first lesson it helped set the tone for the topic. 

• I  noticed some variation in font sizing. Consider adding more spacing between some of the blocks so the content feels less crowded and gives learners more visual breathing room, text formatting could help the overall design feel more polished and cohesive.

• The image you selected for the “Circle of Safety” section was a great choice. The smoke ring (for lack of a better term) visual in the image reinforced the concept and helped communicate the idea in a memorable way.
  
  
• You already have a good amount of learner engagement throughout the course.
  
  • As a next step, I would encourage you to explore some of the less commonly used options in Rise’s Interactive and Custom blocks. Experimenting with different block types can add even more variety and create additional opportunities for learner interaction.

I liked the illustrations that you added to the blocks and flash cards.  The scenario was great as well and I think that the pauses to reflect between blocks was effective.  Quotes were a nice touch.

HARSHITHA18​ 

I really like how you used color to visually separate the quote blocks and other key sections from the rest of the content. It creates a stronger visual hierarchy and helps guide the learner through the experience.

• The variety of interactive blocks you incorporated throughout the course keeps the learning experience engaging and prevents the content from feeling repetitive.
• The use of relatable images was effective in reinforcing your key points and helping learners connect with learners.
• One of the strongest elements for me was the “Reflection Questions for Managers” section. The use of color, along with the Continue button as a pause-and-reflect moment before revealing additional content, was a very creative way to encourage learners to think before moving forward.
• I also liked the Mental Health Check-in scenario toward the end of the final lesson. It serves as a valuable reminder for managers about the importance of recognizing employee needs and knowing how to provide support.

What was the most challenging aspect working with the AI, if at all?

I also found the instant convert one of the most valuable features. If I didn't like the way something felt/looked, it's nice to be able to change it quickly without the stress of feeling like I need to start from scratch.

Well done with your AI image prompts. They are fairly consistent and I like the blue with the orange. Really pops.

I like the updates you made with the use of AI tools to refine the content in first lesson, including the summary audio and custom illustrations, they are good complement to the topic.. I also like the purple color palette and how the contrast helps create a visually distinction of the content. Two other areas that stood out for me are the guided progress check block which as a great addition because it provides structure and helps guide the learner through the experience; and the quiz it showed a thoughtful approach to enhancing learner engagement.

One area to consider refining is the typography. Limiting the design to 1–2 font sizes throughout the lesson would help create stronger visual consistency and improve readability. 

I really like the art style you went with for the cover image and starting with the audio up front. The first lesson is great. Maybe split up the in lesson questions so they aren't together at the end. Also, that audio for the progress is a cool addition!

I like the use of the purple palette and could see that being used throughout a course. I especially liked the 4 pillars image in the palette color. I want to work at the company that celebrates at work like they do, which would also be my only suggestion in that a designer would need to ensure that the image would align with their work environment (and then be happy to work there;).

I can't get your link to load. It looks like you have the URL to the production course and not the share link. Publish > Quick Share should generate the link you need. 🙂

Hello, Matthew - 

I keep encountering an error screen when trying to view your course. carynsalamy​ provides a solution to sharing your course.

Sorry, I too had a loading issue 

I agree with you regarding similar images. The same 'people' kept appearing unless I specifically asked for something else. I like your use of images. They turned our really nice. 

The AI assistant seems to really like the accordion, tab, and process interactions. There was one interaction that had multiple accordions. Ideally, I'd suggest swapping that out for something else so there aren't so many in the lesson. But overall, it looks great!

I really love how your course turned out. Your images that contained text turned out really well. I find I still struggle to get those just right, but that might be a patience thing on my part.

I also agree, there is a tendency to pull the same sort of image from the AI. I assume it has to do with the library being limited (where the model pulls info from). I believe you will be able to tweak the image creation even more, so if you like one element of the image, but you want to change something about it slightly you can clarify what you need in the next image generation. 

Allie,

You've built a solid course with strong visuals and a logical flow. With a few visual refinements and the addition of more interactive elements, you can build on an already strong learner experience and make it even more engaging.

A few observations:

• I liked your use of illustrated images to support each section. They aligned well with the content and helped reinforce the learning experience.
• One idea to further enhance readability would be to use additional background colors or add a bit more spacing between some of the content blocks. This could create clearer visual separation between topics and make the content even easier to scan.
• Check the font size in the Reflective Questions and Conversation Starters  (Section 2) it appears to be different on some o the cards. 
• As you continue building courses, you might consider experimenting with some of Rise's interactive or custom blocks that you haven't used as often.
  
  • Incorporating different interactions where they naturally fit the content can add variety, increase learner engagement, and keep the experience fresh.

 Nice work!

I love how eye-catching your course turned out! It's visually appealing and by keeping your color palette consistent, it makes scrolling through smooth. I can see that you were able to get the AI to pull your theme colors into the image palette. That's are really nice touch.

It is great that you took advantage of adding images to the flip cards. The topic is great, but it does need extra help to make it interesting, and you really stretched the AI Assistant's abilities to achieve that. So even if it was a bit of a challenge, you ended up with a nice final product.

For the purpose of this cohort, not allowing repetition with the interactions was great because it gave you the opportunity to try everything out. 

Did you get a chance to play around with the AI helping change tone of a paragraph? I found this feature to be extremely useful because I tend to be verbose. 

Caryn,

I enjoyed the overall design and found it to be visually engaging and easy to navigate.

A few highlights that stood out to me:

• The color choices throughout the training created a cohesive look and helped keep the course visually interesting.
• The imagery and content delivery in the Key Terms for Team Happiness, Key Reflective Practices Terms, and Key Concepts for Positive Teams sections were especially effective. The visuals complemented the content well and made the key concepts easier to understand and remember.
• Using color to break up the content blocks helped organize the information and improved the overall flow of the course.
• The Common Team Member Needs and Motivations section was one of my favorite parts. It encouraged learner engagement, was easy to follow, and presented the information in a memorable way.
• The Reflect Together and Spot Opportunity sections thoughtfully were placed. The combination of the visuals and content effectively reinforced your key messages and prompted learners to pause and apply what they were learning.
  
  

The course balances strong visuals with meaningful learner engagement. The thoughtful use of color, imagery, and reflective activities created an engaging learning experience. Nicely done!

I loved the flashcards. What prompt did you use to get them to look so similar? 

Hi René! Just went through your course and really enjoyed it! The structure is clear and it does a great job of keeping you motivated to move through it, with content that feels genuinely valuable rather than filler.

One thing that stood out was how effectively you used the AI Assistant to build out visual and interactive elements. It's not just informative, it's engaging to move through, which isn't always the case with e-learning drafts.

One suggestion: adding a final quiz would help reinforce the key takeaways and give learners a clear sense of what they walked away with.

Rene,

I really enjoyed the overall visual design. The images, color palette, and content blocks made the course feel engaging and visually appealing from start to finish.

A few highlights that stood out to me:

• The Thriving Team image was a great visual and complemented the content well.
• I liked how you labeled each Continue block for the different pillars. It provided clear structure and made the course easy to follow.
• The Jordan scenario was well designed. Pairing the image and text block with the acknowledgment check question helped reinforce the learning and encouraged learner reflection.
• Nice use of the Custom block (My notes). It helped emphasize key information without interrupting the flow of the lesson.

• I also really liked your use of the custom coded "My Notes" block, to identify which healthy habit would have the greatest positive impact on your work. It was a thoughtful way to promote self-reflection and personal application.
  
  

The course is well-organized and engaging with thoughtful design choices that support the learning experience. Well done!

That's wonderful to hear! 

One of the hardest parts of creating a course is the first step: getting started. I found the AI Assistant clears the way and then I can get to the more important stuff, faster.