Forum Discussion
Less Is More Is Not Just About Content, but About Learning Experience
Many years ago, I attended a presentation by Dr. Michael Allen, the eLearning pioneer. I still remember (I learned!) two things:
He used M&Ms (chocolate!) as a mnemonic to remind us that content should be meaningful and memorable.
And he said something like this: "Alternate navigation is not interaction." In other words, clicking extra buttons on the screen to view more text isn't really an interaction. It's still a one-way content dump. Instead, a true interaction involves the user making a decision and encountering consequences, aka feedback.
More recently, he's called that the CCAF (Context, Challenge, Activity, Feedback) framework. I've seen others refer to CCC (Context, Challenge, Consequences).
I wish I could say that all my courses included only true interactions. But I've worked on a lot of compliance courses... 🤷‍♀️
Thank you for sharing this, JudyNollet.
Dr. Michael Allen's Designing Successful E-Learning was actually one of the first books that shaped my thinking when I entered the instructional design field. The idea of WIIFM (What's In It For Me?) has stayed with me throughout my career.
I also couldn't agree more with his point that "alternate navigation is not interaction." I've always believed that true interaction happens in the learner's mind, not just through their mouse clicks.
Interestingly, I actually enjoy designing compliance courses. Since they're usually designed for people across different job roles, I often find myself thinking, "I could be one of these learners." That makes it much easier for me to think from the learner's perspective and ask, "Why should I care?"
I also think compliance topics lend themselves well to scenario-based learning. When learners are asked to make decisions in realistic situations, and even when appropriate, with a touch of gamification, the learning becomes much more meaningful than simply presenting rules or policies.
I attended one of Allen's certificate programs back in 2004 and remember the M&Ms. I always liked his quote about "There's no such thing as boring content. Only boring treatment of content." That guided a lot of how I approached course design when I was working for a compliance vendor "back in the day."
I love that quote too. "There's no such thing as boring content. Only boring treatment of content." It has always resonated with me.
Especially back when we had far more technical limitations than we do today, figuring out how to design meaningful and engaging learning experiences around challenging topics was one of the biggest challenges in instructional design. For me, it was also one of the most enjoyable parts of the job.
