Forum Discussion
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I do have a "challenge" for everyone. Recently I had to create a course that had a section on American History. I used a fairly standard timeline interaction. I got feedback from one reviewer who said that "timelines and dates are an outdated and non-creative way to present history."
It's quite possible that she was just being mean, but I wondered if anyone had ideas about what a "modern" presentation of history would be? I've seen some lovely timeline interactions, and some were animated, but they were still timelines. Is there a way to present history that is not, on some level, a timeline? I feel so out of touch! :)
Hi Kristin,
Wow, that seems like a pretty harsh criticism! I'm sorry you had to deal with that. I don't think there's anything inherently outdated about presenting information in timeline format. Like you said, there are tons of different ways to make it feel modern and interactive.
As long as there's no expectation that learners would memorize dates and events, presenting date ordered events can be a compelling way to see the relationships and overlap inherent in historical events.
Many news sites—like the New York Times—use interactive timelines to organize content by key event. And they wouldn't do that if timelines weren't such a powerful storytelling device. It all depends on how they're done!
Here are some examples of timelines that you could try out if you're looking for something new:
And there are tons more where those came from! Just do a quick search for "timeline" and you'll find tons of other downloads and examples.
I hope that makes you feel more confident about your course design! It's never easy taking criticism, especially when it's worded in a way that doesn't feel constructive.
Thank you Allison! Some folks here are very talented at creating beautiful timelines, so thank you for that. I was concerned there was some new trend in Instructional design for presenting dates and events that I was unaware of. Sounds like maybe that's not the case, or at least not generally the case. I'm sure in certain situations there are ways to present the information that isn't just date-event-date-event. Thanks!
I totally get it! Don't worry, you haven't missed out on anything :)