Share Your Most App-Preciated Tools and Utilities for E-Learning #6

E-Learning Toolkit #6: Challenge | Recap

What’s In Your E-Learning Design Toolkit?

I’m always impressed by what course designers create using the built-in features and options in tools like Articulate Storyline 2, Articulate Studio ’13, and even PowerPoint. It’s amazing to see what’s possible when designers look beyond the intended use of a specific feature or workflow.

Equally impressive is the way course designers augment their authoring tools using simple, free or low-cost apps and generators to help them build courses.

Some popular categories include apps that generate color palettes, create custom image effects, and help designers manage their production times and billable hours.

Earlier this week, Tom shared some free apps that he uses in his course production process. Because new apps and web-based tools are always sprouting up, I thought it would be a good opportunity to see what you’re using to help you build e-learning assets and work more efficiently.

Screencast Challenge of the Week

This week, your challenge is to screencast one or more of your favorite apps, utilities, or web-based tools that you use to work more efficiently or build course graphics and assets.

Please focus on free, or low-cost, tools since they will have the widest appeal to most users.

NOTE: Don’t worry if someone already recorded a similar tutorial. The weekly screencast challenges are for you to show what you know using your own personal voice and style.

Suggested Workflow for Your Screencast

When you’re recording your tutorial, try to include a use-case example to show how you use the tool in your e-learning production process.

For example, I shared how Polarin works to create retro-style image effects and then showed an example of how I use those images in an e-learning course.

You may find it’s easier to split the two focus areas into separate screencasts. That’s totally acceptable because it will help you keep the runtime down for each movie.

Topics or Areas to Demonstrate

Not sure what to share? Here are some popular categories that should help get you started.

• Productivity
• Photographic filters
• Project management
• Video editors
• Comic style
• Distraction-free text editors
• Lorem Ipsum text generators
• Color pickers and palette generators

Record Your Screencast

You can record your screencast using any tool you like. Storyline’s built-in screen recorder is one option. Replay works well for including webcam video with your screen recording. Another popular option is Camtasia.

Share Your Screencast

Please use YouTube, Vimeo, or Wistia to host your screencast. That will make it easy for me to embed the tutorials in the weekly recap post for each challenge.

You’re also free to bundle your videos into a Storyline project (here’s an example). You’ll just need a place to host your published project. If you need help, I can host your files on our servers.

Ready? Set? Record!

About the Screencast Challenges

The weekly screencasting challenges are ongoing opportunities to teach, learn, and demonstrate your e-learning expertise. You can jump into any or all of the previous challenges anytime you want. I’ll update the recap posts to include your tutorials.

If you have a blog, please consider writing about your challenge entry. We’ll link back to your blog so your video tutorials get even more exposure. If you share your demos on Twitter, try using #ELHChallenge so your tweeps can track your e-learning coolness.