5 Ways to Use Animated GIFs in Your E-Learning
Animated GIFs—or image files that act like a short video that loops endlessly—are everywhere these days, on social media, in blogs, and even in e-learning courses! That’s right, instructional designers are using these eye-catching multimedia assets to grab their learners’ attention—and you can too. Check out these ideas to get inspiration on how to incorporate animated GIFs in your courses. 1. As Course Header Images If your learners have a ton of courses in their dashboard and you want yours to stand out, try using an animated GIF in the course header, like in this example: Mars Curiosity Rover. It’s a surefire way to get your course noticed. 2. As Attention Getters GIFs are eye-catching. Have you noticed how hard it is to look away even when you’ve already seen the same animation loop 10 times over? That’s what’s so great about them. Their movement naturally draws your learners in and incites them to pay attention. Not convinced? Take a look at this Rise 360 course: Space Travel–Themed Interactive Infographic See how the GIFs draw you in and make you want to click on the interactive parts? I thought so. 3. To Illustrate Key Messages But GIFs can do more than just catch your learners’ eye. They can actually help learners better understand the concepts you’re teaching them. Check out the GIFs in this course, for example: An American’s Guide to Driving in France. See how the GIFs support the key messages? 4. To Lay Out the Steps in a Process If you’re creating a how-to course, you might be tempted to make a video. And that’s definitely one way of doing it! But if people need to replicate the steps one by one, they might need to rewind each step and watch it over and over again. What a pain! Instead of creating a lengthy video or screencast, why not create a GIF of each step, making it easy for people to rewatch the steps as needed, like in this article on how to make coffee? 5. For Comic Relief If the topic of your course is particularly dry, it might be a good idea to work in some humor to make sure your learners don’t fall asleep. GIFs are a great way to do that! However, be careful to not overdo it. A humorous GIF here and there is one thing; peppering every section of your course with them is another. Here's an example that uses humorous GIFs effectively. Another thing to keep in mind with humor is that it’s subjective. Test your course out on a trusted coworker or two and make sure they find the GIFs to be both work-appropriate and funny. The Bottom Line As with anything, it’s important to keep in mind that too much of a good thing is bad. When using animated GIFs, make sure they’re helping and not hindering the learning process. After all, the goal is to get your learners to focus on the content and retain the key messages. If you’re sold on using animated GIFs in your courses but aren’t sure how to go about creating your own, check out this tutorial. Like this article? Subscribe to our newsletter to get the latest e-learning inspiration and insights directly in your inbox. You can also find us on LinkedIn and X (Formerly Twitter).An Introduction to SAM for Instructional Designers
The ADDIE model is probably the most well-known approach for mapping out the course design process. But it isn’t the only game in town these days. One popular alternative is SAM: the Successive Approximation Model. Created by Allen Interactions, SAM offers an instructional design approach consisting of a few steps that you repeat as many times as necessary. These iterations address common instructional design pain points like meeting timelines, staying on budget, and collaborating with Subject Matter Experts (SMEs). So what is SAM? And how is it different from ADDIE? Is one better than the other? Let’s dig in and uncover some answers to these questions. What’s the difference between ADDIE and SAM? ADDIE and SAM are two different approaches for crafting learning solutions that share some similar language. To better see where they differ, it’s helpful to understand how each of them works. Let’s start with ADDIE. ADDIE ADDIE stands for Analyze, Design, Develop, Implement, and Evaluate. It’s a linear approach—like a production line—with each step depending on the successful completion of the previous one. To borrow some terminology from project managers, ADDIE is a “waterfall approach.” And in a traditional waterfall method, analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation are all treated as ordered steps in the overall development process. While this model is preferred in many organizations, some folks say this sequential approach contributes to many of the challenges faced by instructional designers, including: Prolonged development cycles: Have you ever had your project come to a screeching halt in the development phase? It’s not uncommon for new training or technology requirements to emerge in the project development phase, bogging down your productivity with re-work. Communication challenges with SMEs and stakeholders: Even the most thorough explanations and storyboards are still open to interpretation. And with a sequential approach, SMEs and stakeholders typically don’t get to try a hands-on version of the project until well into the development phase. This can mean it’s not until you’re near the end of the project—when you’re out of time and money—that you discover your vision doesn’t match theirs. No time for testing: When projects run out of time or money, what’s the phase of the process we tend to skimp on? In my experience, it’s testing. Shortchanging this step may save you time, but with risky downsides like a training product that doesn’t work—or work effectively—to address a critical performance gap. Successive Approximation Model (SAM) SAM, on the other hand, is considered to be an “agile approach” that can be scaled from basic (SAM1) to extended (SAM2) to suit your needs. Both SAM models use iterative cycles to create the end product right from the start—all while continually analyzing and refining your work as it’s being produced. Proponents of using agile methods for creating e-learning claim that models like SAM can alleviate many of the challenges discussed above—in particular, improving the project team’s visibility into the instructional design process and reducing development time frames. The basic process—SAM1—can be a good fit for smaller projects or teams. This flavor of SAM is a simple model with three iterations of the familiar instructional design steps of evaluation, design, and development. Using this approach, everyone’s ideas and assumptions can be discussed, prototyped, and tested early on, bringing you closer to a usable product more quickly. And what if your project is more complex? That’s where SAM2 comes into play. SAM2 is an extended take on SAM1. It consists of eight iterative instructional design steps spread across three project phases: Preparation, Iterative Design, and Iterative Development. In addition to the incremental cycles, another notable feature of the SAM2 model is the preparation phase. It consists of two steps to help you prepare for your design and development work fast: gathering information and then holding a brainstorming and prototyping meeting known as a “Savvy Start.” Which is better—ADDIE or SAM? When it comes to evaluating which design model is a better fit for you and your team, it really boils down to what you’re trying to achieve and what your work environment will support. When applied in the right situations and fully committed to by everyone involved, SAM’s flexibility can get you to a successful final course fast. Its iterative approach both helps you use prototypes to get stakeholder buy-in quickly and also makes it easy to pivot should your course requirements change. However, many instructional designers work in organizations that have embraced agility in theory but not so much in practice. Applying an agile approach like SAM can be difficult when your environment doesn’t encourage rapid feedback or flexible processes. In those cases, ADDIE’s waterfall model may be a better choice. Because ADDIE is a waterfall method that’s been used for years, it might make clients, stakeholders, and even team members more comfortable. And while it’s still not as flexible as SAM, many people find an adapted version of ADDIE that includes some iterative loops does a good job of splitting the difference between both methods. More Learning Whatever design model you follow—whether it’s ADDIE, SAM, or another one entirely—weighing your options for more thoughtful, responsive development practices can be a great way to build collaboration and grease the wheels for smoother training rollouts. Start by digging into these related articles from the archives. An Introduction to ADDIE for Instructional Designers What’s the PADDIE Model of Instructional Design? Best Practices for Effective E-Learning Project Management How to Manage E-Learning Project Scope Creep What design model is closest to how you really work? What are your thoughts on ADDIE vs. SAM? We love hearing from you, so share your thoughts in a comment. Follow us on Twitter and come back to E-Learning Heroes regularly for more helpful advice on everything related to e-learning.Your Handy E-Learning Course Review Checklist
Remember taking tests back in elementary school when your teacher told you to always check your answers before turning it in? Same for an e-learning course. Before you deliver a course to learners, you want to look over your course to make sure it’s the very best it can be. But when you’re reviewing your course, what should you look out for? Every e-learning project is different, so no one checklist will work for everyone; however, here are some of the main things you’ll want to watch out for in your review. Review the Course Content No surprise here. The content is the most important part of your course, so you want to make sure you’re hitting the mark. If you’re not a subject matter expert, you should find one to help you with this part. Here are some questions to ask as you look through your course: Are the learning objectives measurable? Does all the content support the learning objectives? Is there any content that could be taken out? Is there any content missing? Have all the facts been checked and referenced appropriately? Does the course follow a logical order? Do the images accurately represent the course material? Do the examples and/or scenarios accurately portray the real-life context? Will the learners find the characters relatable? Does the quiz focus on the course objectives? Are the quiz questions clearly stated? Are all the quiz options believable (even the wrong answers)? Do you clearly state what learners need to do to pass the course? Here are some additional resources to help you fine-tune your content: How to Write Good E-Learning Objectives for Your Online Course The Dos and Don’ts of Separating Need-to-Know from Nice-to-Know What to Do When Your Course Has Too Much Content How to Create a Successful E-Learning Knowledge Check Copyedit the Text If your course is like most, text is a key part of the learning experience. Grammar and spelling errors are not only distracting, they actually skew your key messages. Here are some things to keep in mind to make sure you’re getting your point across: Are there any grammatical or spelling errors? Are you using punctuation and capitalization appropriately? Are there any run-on sentences that you could split up into shorter, more concise sentences? Are you using the active voice? Are you using the same voice throughout (for example, “I” or “you”?) Can you replace any adverbs (for example, running rapidly) with more precise verbs (for example, sprinting)? Are there any superlatives like "high-quality" or "excellence" that you could take out? Is there any jargon you should take out or explain? Is the voice-over script written in a conversational tone? Does the voice-over script provide notes to the voice talent on pronunciation? If writing isn’t your strong suit, check out these articles for more tips: Top Writing Tips for E-Learning 5 Tips to Improve Your Technical Writing Skills More Than a Dozen Tips for Writing Awesome Audio Narration Scripts Listen Closely to the Audio If your course has any voice-over audio, make sure to listen to it with these questions in mind: Is the audio used meaningfully? Or is the narrator just reading the on-screen text to learners? Does the voice-over follow the script word for word? If not, do any of the slight changes make a difference? If not, edit the script to match the audio. If there are changes that affect the meaning, ask the person to re-record that section. Are there any distracting background noises that need to be taken out? Is the audio volume at a good level (not too loud, nor too soft)? Is the volume and quality consistent throughout the course? Does the tone and inflection sound natural? Never worked with audio before? This article will help you get started: Audio Basics for Online Course Design. Assess the Design While people say not to judge a book by its cover, the reality is that we all do it. The course design is the first thing your learners will notice. If you want them to pay attention, it’s important their first impression be a good one. Here are some questions to ask yourself to make sure you’re on the right track: Does the design respect the brand guidelines (if applicable)? Does the design complement the subject matter? Is the design cohesive throughout the course? Are the objects aligned as they should be? Are all the images of similar style and quality? Are images and illustrations meaningful? Or are they merely decorative? Are fonts used consistently throughout (type and size)? Are all screenshots free of personal information? Do all buttons and hyperlinks look and behave the same (for example, if one button has a hover state, do they all?) so learners understand they’re clickable? If your design skills need a little work, check out these helpful resources: Visual Design How-Tos for E-Learning Developers User Interface Design: 3 Things E-Learning Designers Need to Know Test the Functionality Building a course from scratch using a tool like Storyline that allows you to personalize everything (the player, menu, navigation, quiz options, etc.) lets you create your course exactly how you imagine it. But with all this freedom comes responsibility: it’s your job to make sure everything is working the way you intended. Here are some items to add to your review checklist: Buttons and Hyperlinks If you’ve personalized the navigation of your course in any way (by adding buttons, changing the branching options, etc), check and make sure everything’s working as expected. Here are the steps I recommend going through: Make sure there’s no Previous button on the first slide. Go through the course from start to finish, click on all the Next buttons. Make sure there’s no Next button on the last slide. Go backward through the course, clicking on all the Previous buttons. Now go through the course again, starting from the beginning. Click on any other buttons (that open a layer, for example) or hyperlinks and make sure they’re working as expected. Menu Can you access all the sections of your course from the menu? Are all the titles correct? Is everything in the right order? Player Is there a seekbar on all slides with audio or video? Does the seekbar end at the end of the audio or video? Or does it extend far beyond it? If your course has audio, did you include an audio button so learners can turn the audio off or adjust the volume? Animations Are the animations synchronized with the audio (if applicable)? Do all the animations appear and disappear as expected? Videos Does the video play all the way through? Is the audio high quality? Quiz Questions Go through the quiz, making sure to select the correct answers and review the feedback. Make sure the score correctly shows you’ve gotten 100% at the end and that the correct amount of points is shown (if applicable). Go through the quiz again, this time selecting the incorrect answers and reviewing the feedback. Make sure the score correctly shows you’ve gotten 0% at the end and that the correct amount of points is shown (if applicable). Go through the quiz a third time. Alternate right and wrong answers. Check the score again and make sure it’s correct. Go through the quiz a final time, alternating right and wrong answers again but in the opposite order as the time before. Make sure the score is reporting correctly. Note that if you’re using a tool like Rise, you can skip this part of the review since all the functionality is prebuilt and it works perfectly every time. Check for User-Friendliness Once you’ve tested your course and you’re sure the content, design, and functionality are as expected, ask a potential learner to test it. They’ll be able to give you some great feedback about the course content and usability that you, as the course creator, are too close to the project to see. Here are some questions you should ask them when they’re done viewing the course: Content Was the course helpful and relevant to your job? What are the three most relevant things you learned? How confident are you that you can apply the new skill(s) you learned on the job? Is there anything you didn’t understand? Do you think the quiz accurately assessed your understanding of the course materials? Were the questions too easy, too hard, or just right? Was the feedback too detailed, not detailed enough, or just right? Usability Were the navigational instructions provided explicit enough? Did you always know where to click, or did you sometimes feel lost and unsure where to click? Armed with this checklist, you can deliver your course to learners knowing you did everything you could to make sure it fits their needs, works properly, and looks professional. Remember: if it’s not perfect (and no course ever is) you can always go back and make changes later on, after you get learner feedback. And while we’re on the topic of course review, here are some other great resources you should check out: Why We Love Articulate Review (and You Will, Too) Speed Collaboration with Articulate Review 3 Ways Articulate Review Is a Big Gift for Course Developers 5 Steps to an Easier E-Learning Course Review Process Follow These 3 Tips to Put the “Pro” Back In Your Review Process Rise Example: A Course for Stakeholders on the Review Process What do you think of this checklist? Is there anything on your review checklist that I missed? If so, please share in the comments section below! Subscribe to our newsletter to get the latest e-learning inspiration and insights directly in your inbox. You can also find us on LinkedIn and X (formerly Twitter).6 Rise 360 Blocks to Use Instead of Bullet Points
Bullet points have been a staple in presentations and e-learning courses since the beginning. It’s easy to see why—they’re a simple and effective way to organize content. However, like anything, they work best when used in moderation. Thanks to all of the block options in Rise 360, bullet points aren’t the only fast and easy option for presenting your content. However, if you’re used to relying heavily on bullet points, you might be struggling to come up with ideas for creative alternatives. You’re not alone! Let’s look at some block types that work well for content traditionally reserved for bullet points. 1. Checkbox Lists You might wonder, what’s the difference between a bullet-point list and a checkbox list? Interactivity, that’s what! Checkbox list blocks in Rise 360 let learners interact with the content, making them less likely to skim over it. Checkbox lists are especially useful when you want learners to reflect on each item and check it off when they’re done or if it applies to them, like in the example below: Explore the interactive version or send a copy to your Rise 360 dashboard. Do you ever use your pointer finger as a guide when you read, to underline the sentence you’re currently scanning with your eyes? Checkbox lists work in a similar way—preventing learners from losing their spot and helping them stay focused on the text they’re currently reading. 2. Flashcard Grids Next let’s take a look at another one of my go-to Rise 360 blocks for bullet-point content: the flashcard grid. Using flashcards is a great way to minimize the amount of text displayed at any given time, which in turn reduces the cognitive load and makes it easier for learners to focus. With flashcards in Rise 360, you have the option to use text on both sides, images on both sides, or one of each. It’s up to you! Here’s what it looks like when you use text on both sides: Explore the interactive version or send a copy to your Rise 360 dashboard. And here’s another example, with images on one side and text on the other: Explore the interactive version or send a copy to your Rise 360 dashboard. See how the images draw you in and make you want to click? If you like the way that looks but don’t have any graphics on hand, don’t worry. Thanks to Content Library 360, you have access to millions of images and illustrations—right from within Rise 360! 3. Labeled Graphics You can also use one illustration to represent all of your bullet points, like in the example below, and add interactive markers the learner can click on to view the text. Explore the interactive version or send a copy to your Rise 360 dashboard. Illustrations aren’t the only option for this approach; photos can work just as well. Check out the example below to see for yourself: Explore the interactive version. For tips on finding the imagery you need, head on over to this article: How to Find the Images You Want in Content Library 360. 4. Carousels Another creative way to transform your bullet points is by using a series of large images in a carousel block and adding the text below, like in this example: Explore the interactive version or send a copy to your Rise 360 dashboard. Are you starting to see a theme here? Whenever possible, it’s a good idea to use relevant images alongside text-based content. It adds visual interest and breaks up the monotony, increasing the likelihood that your learners won’t gloss over your content. 5. Accordions If your bullet points are longer and you’re looking for a way to make them less visually intimidating, accordion blocks are a great option. When learners arrive on the screen, they only see the titles. When they click on the plus (+) icons, they see the additional information for each tab one at a time, making it easier to digest. Take a look at how it works in the example below: Explore the interactive version or send a copy to your Rise 360 dashboard. Note that while the example above is text only, you can also add images to each tab if you’d like. It’s up to you! 6. Tabs Much like accordion blocks, tabs break up your content and allow learners to focus on one thing at a time. Explore the interactive version or send a copy to your Rise 360 dashboard. In the example above, each tab contains only a sentence or two of text, but that’s something you get to determine. And, of course, you can also add any other relevant multimedia elements you have on hand. More Resources If you found this article helpful, be sure to check out the resources below for more inspiring ideas: 7 Creative Ways to Use Images in Rise 360 Courses 5 Ideas for Turning Boring Bullets into Engaging Interactions Basic Elements of an E-Learning Course Want to try out these Rise 360 blocks, but don’t have Articulate 360? Start a free 30-day trial, and come back to E-Learning Heroes regularly for more helpful advice on everything related to e-learning. If you have any questions, please share them in the comments.What is E-Learning?
Have you ever watched a YouTube tutorial or signed up for an online course? If so, then you've experienced e-learning. The term “e-learning” might sound intimidating, but it's just a fancy way of talking about the use of electronic devices (computers, tablets, or phones) for educational purposes. In this article, we'll explore a more detailed definition of what it is, why it’s valuable, and more. Sound good? Read on! How Do We Define E-Learning? Many people would recognize a basic e-learning course as a slide-based online activity that contains simple navigation buttons (such as Next and Back) and incorporates quizzes with true/false or multiple-choice questions. But not all e-learning courses share the same fingerprint. For example, it could be an inherently responsive web-based course that allows learners to have a great learning experience no matter what device they’re using to view their course. Or maybe it’s a software simulation that demonstrates the click-path through an application. Or an interactive course that features role-playing and complex decision-making. In this article we’ll take a deliberately broad view of e-learning, and appreciate its near-infinite and ever-evolving forms. Why Is E-Learning Valuable? E-learning offers many benefits that more traditional training options, such as facilitated sessions or lectures, don’t provide. For example, e-learning ... Can be either an asynchronous or synchronous activity: Traditionally, e-learning has been asynchronous, which means there is no predetermined time for the learning to take place. Everyone can go at their own pace, and take their time to learn what they need to know, when they need to know it. However, more synchronous e-learning is now being offered through web conferencing and chat options. The great thing about e-learning is it gives you the option to do either or both. Has a global reach: E-learning can simply be placed online and easily accessed by people around the world. There is no need for expensive travel or meetings across multiple time zones. Spans multiple devices/mobile: Online courses can work on computers as well as on mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets. This means e-learning courses can literally be in the hands of the people who need them at all times. Is just-in-time/needs-based: E-learning authoring software is so easy to use that anyone can create, publish, and share a course within a few hours, allowing you to provide people with resources and training they can access right when they need it. Is more efficient: With e-learning, you can develop a course that can be distributed electronically to thousands instead of having to organize in-person training sessions whenever people need to be brought up to speed. Reduces costs: All of the abovementioned factors result in a cost savings for organizations that use e-learning courses to replace some of their traditional instructor-led training. Allows for consistent quality and content: When you develop an e-learning course, you can deliver the same message to all learners consistently. In classroom training, the message, equipment, and other conditions can vary widely from one session to the next, which can affect the outcome of the course. And that’s just the beginning! As you can see, e-learning can be an extremely valuable asset to your organization. How Do You Create E-Learning Courses? In the early days, e-learning courses were typically custom creations, coded by programmers and developers using highly specialized apps. In those days, it could easily require an entire team to create a simple, linear e-learning course. E-learning design is now much more accessible. Today’s course development apps, also called authoring tools or authoring apps, are so advanced that anyone can create e-learning courses—without any programming or coding knowledge. There are many different types of authoring apps out there today, each with their own set of capabilities. Some apps, like Rise 360, have been specifically engineered to create e-learning courses that dynamically adapt to any screen size (also known as responsive e-learning courses). Other apps, like Storyline 360, are designed to create highly interactive slide-based courses. And of course there are also PowerPoint add-ons like Studio 360, which make turning PowerPoint presentations into e-learning courses a snap. Each app has a unique feature set, making it particularly well suited for a specific type of project. When you’re trying to decide which authoring app to use, always start by looking at your project requirements and objectives. If you’re having trouble figuring out which app is right for your project, here are a few articles that could help you decide: Overview of E-Learning Authoring Software Top 9 Considerations for Choosing the Right E-Learning Authoring App Why You Need the Apps in Articulate 360 and When to Use Them How Is E-Learning Shared? Once you’ve created an e-learning course, you need to distribute it to learners. There are many ways to do this, and—like everything else related to e-learning—those ways are constantly evolving and improving. Here, I’d like to look at two ways to share content: informal distribution and formal distribution. Informal Distribution Informal distribution of e-learning content typically means users are trusted to view the e-learning course, and their participation isn’t tracked or scored. One way to informally share an e-learning course is to put it on a web server, then send participants the link and have them view the course. You don’t really have a systematic way of knowing whether learners have completed the course, but sometimes that’s not necessary. Formal Distribution Sharing an e-learning course formally means there’s a need to track and record learner results. Most organizations that have a need for formal distribution of e-learning have specific systems and standards in place for this. Tracking is usually done in what is called a Learning Management System (LMS). An LMS allows you to administer, track, report, and document the delivery of your e-learning courses. Get up to speed on LMSs here. Certain standards are in place to report the information to the LMS, including AICC, SCORM, cmi5, and xAPI (Tin Can API). For a short overview of these norms, hop on over to this article. Starting to feel overwhelmed by all the acronyms? Make sure to bookmark the E-Learning ABCs so you can refer back to the definitions of the most commonly used e-learning terms at any time. What Makes an E-Learning Project Successful? Many factors contribute to a successful e-learning program, but the top two are: A production process that uses the right apps Solid instructional design Let’s take a closer look at these two essential elements. Apps Powerful apps let you create the functionality and interactivity that you want for your learners. They help you make e-learning that looks and works great, which goes a long way toward a successful e-learning course. The more user-friendly the app, the less time you’ll spend on technical issues. This frees you up to commit to the instructional design to craft a great learning experience. Instructional Design One way organizations measure the success of an e-learning project is by how much the learner’s knowledge and skills have improved after they’ve taken the course. To provide your learners with the best odds, you should have content that is designed in an instructionally sound manner. Instructional design is all about creating educational experiences that maximize learning and present content in the most effective way. If you’re new to instructional design, I recommend reading up on the basics to help you create instructionally sound courses with solid learning objectives. You can have the most fabulous-looking course in the world, but if the content quality isn’t top-notch, it won’t have the impact you desire. The Bottom Line E-learning course development is constantly evolving. Authoring apps will continue to improve; however, your focus should remain on using those apps to create the best e-learning possible. In its relatively short history, e-learning has come a long way, and offers immeasurable opportunities to help people learn better. I hope this overview of e-learning inspires you to push yourself to create engaging courses that will delight your learners. If you want to learn more, you should check out: An Introduction to Instructional Design Basic Elements of an E-Learning Course 4 Easy Ways to Organize Content for E-Learning This article is part of our E-Learning 101 e-mail course, a series of expertly curated articles that’ll help you get started with e-learning—delivered right to your inbox. You’re only a click away from becoming an e-learning pro! Sign up here to enroll.How to Design Your E-Learning Course Using Gagne’s 9 Events of Instruction
Not sure how to go about designing your e-learning course? In his book Principles of Instructional Design, Robert Gagne and his co-authors lay out a set of guidelines to ensure your learners acquire the knowledge and skills they need. Let’s take a closer look at each of the 9 Events of Instruction and how you can incorporate them into your e-learning courses. 1. Grab the Learner’s Attention Research shows that attention spans are getting shorter and shorter. Your learners will decide in a matter of seconds whether your course is worth their time—so make sure to start with a bang! A little vague on how to do that? Try one of these techniques: Show a short, fast-paced video that introduces your topic. Ask a thought-provoking question about the subject matter. Tell a story that they can relate to. State a surprising fact to pique their interest. Combine upbeat sound effects with great graphics and timely animations to create an enticing intro. The key is to keep it short and sweet— give learners just enough to make them curious. Think of it like a movie trailer: You don’t want to reveal too much, or they won’t want to sit through the whole thing. Here are a couple great examples to inspire you: Diabesity Broken Co-worker 2. Explain the Objective(s) This may seem pretty straightforward, but it’s important to note that you should express the objectives in a way that resonates with the learner. There are many different ways to go about this; here are a few examples: Present the objectives as statements in a bullet-point list. E.g., “At the end of this course you will be able to spot shoplifters and take the appropriate action to stop them before it’s too late.” Turn the objectives into questions, inviting the learner to reflect. E.g., “How can you identify potential shoplifters? What would you do if you saw something suspicious?” Frame the learning objectives as a challenge that the learners need to overcome in order to pass the course. E.g., “Your mission is to identify potential shoplifters and stop them before it’s too late!” The key is to focus on what the learner is going to get out of the course, so they see what’s in it for them. Check out this article on how to define your learning objectives or this one on Bloom’s Learning Taxonomy for more help with this step. 3. Help Learners See the Relationship Between the Content and What They Already Know Showing learners how this new information or skill relates to their prior knowledge and experiences will help them assimilate it more quickly. You can do this by: Asking open-ended questions about past experiences or concepts they have already learned to encourage reflection. Quizzing them on prior knowledge and then building on it. Presenting a scenario or a problem and asking them to resolve it. If they are unable to do so with their preexisting knowledge alone, present them with the new information they need. By building on what they already know instead of starting from scratch, learners are able to more easily retain new information or skills. 4. Present the Content This is the meat of your course. There are infinite ways to present your content, so be creative! Some popular methods include: Gamification. Turn your course into a game by incorporating challenges, rewards, and other gaming elements. Read this article to find out more about how to apply gamification techniques to e-learning. Interactive Video. Add interactivity to your video by placing hotspots at strategic moments, allowing learners to answer questions, get more information, or change the course of the video. Not sure how to do that? Check out this article to see an example and learn how to make your own interactive video. Storytelling. Incorporate the course content into a narrative that your learner can relate to. You can choose to make the learner a character in the story, or an outside observer. Read this article for tips on writing great e-learning scenarios. To keep your learners interested and engaged, it is important to vary the way you present content. Even gamified courses can become mundane if it’s all learners encounter. 5. Guide Learners Through the Course While learners are technically “on their own” during an e-learning course, we certainly don’t want them to feel frustrated, lost, or abandoned. Keep in mind that you need to support your learners on two levels: by helping them understand the concepts and by providing them with clear instructions on how to complete activities and advance in the course. You can do this by: Building in hints to help learners with difficult concepts or questions. For example, you can place a question mark next to the concept or question that, when hovered over, displays more information to help them understand or answer the question. Providing examples to illustrate the content. Putting theoretical content into context will help learners to better understand and apply it. Including on-screen instructions when the learner is presented with a new activity type or when they need to do something in order to move onto the next section of the course, such as “Drag the correct answer to the green box and then click on Submit.” The best way to find out whether you’ve provided enough guidance in your course is to ask someone to test it and let you know if they find anything confusing or disorienting. 6. Give Learners the Opportunity to Practice Once you’ve presented the content to your learners, you’ll want to give them the chance to apply it as soon as possible to make sure it sticks. Depending on the subject matter, this can mean any number of things. Some examples include: Creating simulations. For example, in a software training course, the best way to let learners test their skills without leaving them completely out on their own is to create a simulation in “try mode.” That way you can still give them hints if they can’t figure out what to do next. Designing decision-making scenarios. By asking learners to apply course content to a situation or problem they may actually encounter in real life, you give them the opportunity to test their comprehension. The sooner learners apply their new knowledge, and the more realistic the scenario, the more likely they are to retain and apply it in real life. 7. Provide Learners with Feedback There is no point in allowing your learners to practice if you’re not going to give them feedback on their performance. There are several ways you can do this, including: Build in branching that changes the course of the activity based on their answers. They will understand where they went wrong based on the consequences. Offer a second chance when they answer incorrectly. Give a hint and let them try again. Provide the correct answer so they’re not left guessing. Explain what they should have done and give them the correct answer. Depending on the subject matter, your target audience, and the way you’ve designed your course, you can determine which method is best. 8. Assess Learner Performance Now it’s time to see if your content helped your learners achieve the learning objective(s). The evaluation or assessment should resemble the practice section, but this time learners will not receive hints along the way. Make sure you don’t include any new information or skills in this section. You should only test learners on what they have already learned. 9. Help Learners Retain Information and Transfer Skills to Their Job Now that the learners have mastered this new information or skill, how can you make sure they retain it and use it on the job? While you can’t guarantee that learners will apply what you’ve taught them, there are a couple ways to increase the likelihood that they will, for example: Provide a printable job aid, such as a checklist or quick-reference document, that outlines the key concepts so learners can easily refer back to them. Give learners ways to practice their new knowledge or skill shortly after taking the course. Create a few short review courses or quizzes that they can complete during the weeks following the initial course to reinforce the knowledge or skill. Wrap-Up If you follow these guidelines, you’ll be well on your way to creating an impactful e-learning course. But don’t stop there—there are many other instructional design methods that can help you take your course to the next level. Check out the following articles for more instructional design goodness: An Introduction to Instructional Design An Introduction to the ADDIE Model for Instructional Designers An Introduction to Bloom’s Taxonomy And if you liked this article, subscribe to our newsletter to get the latest e-learning inspiration and insights directly in your inbox. You can also find us on LinkedIn and X (Formerly Twitter). And if you have questions, please share them in the comments. Bibliography Gagné, R. M., Briggs, L. J., & Wager, W. W. (1992). Principles of Instructional Design (4th ed.). Fort Worth, TX: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich College Publishers.Top Considerations for Choosing the Right E-Learning Authoring App
Choosing the right course creation app is a key factor for e-learning success. But with so many options available it’s not always easy to know which one is the best match for your needs. And you’ll likely have different priorities for different projects—like creating rich interactivity or publishing content as quickly as possible—so you’ll need an app that’s as versatile as the courses you create. So how do you fully evaluate your options to make sure the app you choose meets the needs of the courses you’re creating today as well as the ones you’ll need to develop in the future? Answering the questions below will help streamline your decision-making to determine a clear winner. 1. What’s your budget? Cost is a smart way to narrow your options. But don’t forget—the base price alone doesn’t tell the full story—not all apps come with everything you need. When comparing your options, do a deep dive into everything each authoring app offers you. Does it include free assets—such as templates, photos, illustrations, or characters—that can save you money? Are there built-in audio and video recording features or will you need to purchase separate software? Does it offer collaboration features or tools that allow you to collect feedback from stakeholders? What level of technical support is included? By weighing what is and isn’t included, you can see which option gives you the best overall value. 2. How easy is it to use the app? Think about your course creators. Are they quick to learn new apps or less comfortable with new technology? Are they experienced developers or subject matter experts (SMEs) building e-learning for the first time? Do they have time to ramp up or do they need to start creating content immediately? Be realistic about what you and your team can handle and take into account any upcoming deadlines. 3. Is there a free trial? Getting your hands on the apps you’re considering can answer a lot of questions. That’s why free trials are so helpful! They let you get a feel for how different apps work before you commit to buying. A useful way to decide between apps is to create the same short course in each one. This makes it easy to compare the development process as well as the final look and feel of each course. If a process takes three clicks in one app and ten in another, you might decide you want the faster option. You might also discover along the way that one app gives you more flexibility or features than the others. 4. What level of customization do you need? Thinking carefully about the level of customization you need can also narrow down which apps will work best for your situation. Are you hoping to quickly develop e-learning courses that look beautiful out of the box? Or do you need to have complete control over the look and feel of your courses—down to the last pixel? Could you meet your training goals with a library of modular learning blocks? Or do you need to create fully custom interactions or immersive scenarios? Make sure the app you choose supports the level of customization you need. 5. Do you need to create software training? If you’re designing software training, you likely want an app that supports screen recording and software simulations. But don’t stop there—look into what features it has to save you time on recording and editing. If you make a mistake, do you have to start over or can you edit individual frames in your recording? Can you automatically add annotations to your video during the recording process? Are there options to adjust the volume or video brightness? Can you decide on the format (screencast or software simulation) after recording or do you have to decide up front? The right features can make a noticeable difference in how fast you can create software training and revise it later if something changes. 6. Does it create mobile-friendly content? Having your e-learning courses work on mobile devices isn’t optional anymore—it’s essential! Even if your learners aren’t accessing courses on mobile just yet, it’s still good to plan for a future where they are. But not all apps make building mobile courses easy. As you explore your options, see if you can create inherently responsive courses or if you have to manually tweak your content to make sure it displays correctly on all devices. And when creating your sample courses, test them on mobile devices to make sure they look and work as expected. 7. How do you want to share your courses with learners? Once you’ve created your courses, you need to decide how to share them with your learners. For example, do you just need to give your learners access to the content? Or do you also need to track learner data (like scores, completions, and more) for compliance reasons? Your answers to these questions will help you decide the kind of hosting platform to use. And because different platforms require different file formats, it’s important to have this information before you choose an app so you can make sure it’s compatible. Learn more about the different options in this article: How to Share E-Learning Courses with Learners. 8. Will it cover your future needs? Course creation apps are a long-term investment, so do “Future You” a favor: think about what kind of e-learning you’ll need to create in the upcoming months and years. Are there topics or audiences you’re not creating content for now but likely will in the future? Will your organization’s needs shift as it better understands everything e-learning can offer? Will upcoming challenges mean you’ll need to scale up how fast you’re creating courses or who’s making them? You’ll be happier with your app choice in the long run if it can also cover these future needs. 9. What support is available? Research the level of support available to customers. Are tutorials and resources easy to find and learn from? If you run into an issue you can’t solve, can you contact a support team for help or do you have to pay extra for that service? And while it might not be the first thing that comes to mind when choosing new tech, remember that connecting with other users is priceless. They can quickly troubleshoot issues, give you tips for getting up to speed on the app, and help you see what you can create with it in new ways. An active user community can help you find these people quickly. And the connections you’ll foster in those communities will make your work easier and support you along the way. 10. What accessibility features are included? Consider how easy the app makes it to create accessible e-learning courses that all learners can take advantage of. While there are many steps you can take as a course creator to make your courses accessible—such as selecting colors with proper contrast and picking fonts that are easy to read—there are some things you’ll need to rely on an app for. Does the app offer built-in screen reader support? What about keyboard navigation? Can you add alt text to images and closed captions to videos? Keep these things in mind as you research apps, and make sure whichever one you choose will allow you to design projects that remove learning barriers. Wrap-Up There’s no one-size-fits-all course creation app that works for everyone and every project. However, some companies offer complete e-learning solutions that allow you to pick and choose different apps for different projects. For example, Articulate 360 includes multiple authoring tools—including Storyline 360 and Rise 360—so you always have the one you need, no matter what the project. It also includes tons of course assets—such as templates, characters, and images—a review app, and even free online training. Want to learn more? Check out this article: Why You Need the Apps in Articulate 360 and When to Use Them. And if you’d like to take Articulate 360 for a spin, start a free 30-day trial. No matter what apps you’re considering, it’s up to you to vet them to make sure you end up with one that fits your unique needs. Hopefully, these questions will help you more easily pick the right authoring software for you. For more tips and topics related to course creation apps, have a peek at the following articles: The Basics of E-Learning Course Creation Apps 3 Types of E-Learning Course Creation Apps How to Share E-Learning Courses with Learners Follow us on Twitter and come back to E-Learning Heroes regularly for more helpful advice on everything related to e-learning. If you have any questions, please share them in the comments. This article is part of our E-Learning 101 e-mail course, a series of expertly curated articles that’ll help you get started with e-learning—delivered right to your inbox. You’re only a click away from becoming an e-learning pro! Sign up here to enroll.4 Easy Ways to Organize Content For E-Learning
Picture this: you’re designing an e-learning course and you’ve gathered content from your Subject Matter Experts and completed your own research on the course topic. You’ve sifted through all your materials and sorted the “nice to know” from the “need to know.” Now you’re ready to go! You can start laying out the content in your course … except, you’re feeling a bit stuck. You know order and organization are key to a successful learning experience. And as an e-learning designer, you want to set your learners up for success and present content in a way that helps them focus on what they need to know. But how do you decide what to present first and what to present last? And how do you make sure not to overwhelm your learners with too much information at once? Let’s walk through four tried-and-true methods for organizing course content in a way that makes sense. Alphabetically This is a straightforward and logical way of organizing content. And since we all learn the alphabet at a very young age, it’s an intuitive and traditional system for organization. This method lets learners easily find specific information without needing to provide much direction or instruction. This works particularly well for presenting textual content such as terminology or keywords. For example, if you work in an industry with a lot of technical jargon or acronyms, it makes perfect sense to present those industry terms to your learners—along with their definitions—in alphabetical order. Order of Importance Another effective approach for organizing content is to place items in order of importance or priority. Learners are likely more focused at the start of your course and they may lose steam (and potentially interest and attention span) as the content progresses. That’s why it’s a good idea to share your most important content early on in your course, while also communicating what concepts or information take priority over others. For example, if you’re developing a product course for your sales team, would you present the $500 rust-proofing kit as your first product? Or would you start by showing them the $30,000 car? Probably the car, as it’s more important and leads to more revenue overall—a key consideration for a sales team. Sequentially When it comes to explaining a process or a task, it’s best to share the information sequentially. It makes much more sense for learners to view steps 1-2-3 in the proper order, rather than viewing them backwards or even out of order. By organizing your content sequentially, it’s easier for learners to retain the process so they can carry out the steps on their own. For example, say you created an e-learning course that trains salespeople on how to close a sale. It would make sense to share that process in chronological order, starting with how to approach and greet the customer, how to handle objections, and, finally, how to close. Going about this process in another order could confuse your learners and be detrimental to the learning experience. Categorically Sometimes the best way to share content is to cluster it into shared themes. By grouping similar content together in logical categories, you’ll help learners identify related subjects or patterns. This is a particularly useful method when all the information you’re presenting shares equal importance and nothing needs to be shared in any particular order. Breaking content up into shared categories also reduces cognitive load and helps learners digest related information. For example, say you’re creating an e-learning course that helps onboard your sales team and teaches them about all the products available in your organization. Instead of presenting all the products at once—which could be intimidating for a learner—you can break them up into categories (Electronics, Outdoor Living, Furniture, etc.) and let learners explore smaller and more manageable sections one at a time. Wrap-Up As you evaluate your own content, let your subject matter guide you. Sometimes your content will naturally lean toward one particular organization method over another. Other times, you may find multiple methods could work and it’s up to you to make the call. The most important thing to consider is what your learners will need to do with the content you share. Do they need to replicate the steps in a process from memory? If so, sequential organization is the way to go! Or, maybe they need to quickly and intuitively reference the material while they interact with customers. In that case, alphabetical or categorical organization might work best. Do you use other content organization methods in your e-learning courses? Let us know in the comments below! And as you continue collecting and organizing content for your e-learning course, be sure to check out these helpful articles: 5 Steps for Collecting Content for Your E-Learning Project What to Do When Your Course Has Too Much Content Why & How to Tailor Content to Different Audiences Follow us on Twitter and come back to E-Learning Heroes regularly for more helpful advice on everything related to e-learning. If you have any questions, please share them in the comments.3 Ways to Embrace Constructive Failure in Your E-Learning
I was chatting with an e-learning designer about her struggles to get her boss to let her design something other than click-and-read e-learning. She summarized her challenge like this: “I work in a highly regulated, high-accountability environment. We design e-learning that makes it as easy as possible for people to pass the quiz. So how can I convince my boss to let me do something more creative or performance-oriented when passing the quiz is all anyone cares about—and failure is never an option?” Sound familiar? When it comes to learning topics with a strong performance component—things like proper hand-washing technique or customer service skills, for instance—merely forcing learners to pass a quiz isn’t enough. What learners need are opportunities to fail. Why fail? Because failure is both an unavoidable and powerful part of the learning process. When I say “failure,” I'm not talking about destructive failure that erodes someone’s self-confidence or leads to career stagnation. I’m talking about the kind of failure that opens up opportunities for further instruction and lays the foundation for learning. So how do you talk to your boss about the positive aspects of failure when you’re in an environment that characterizes all failure as inherently bad? Here’s some food for thought. Position Constructive Failure as a Good Way to Manage Risk People shy away from taking risks because failure is a possible outcome. But avoiding risk entirely isn’t realistic, nor does it foster the kinds of behaviors that spur individual or organizational growth. A more sustainable approach is to manage risk—a task where e-learning shines. That’s because e-learning designed with performance in mind encourages folks to explore and take risks in a predictable environment where there is less accountability. It gives people a safe place to practice applying their skills in a way that’s minimally destructive and less public, while giving an opportunity to intervene with some constructive support in the form of contextual feedback that tells people what they did well and where they need to improve. In short, e-learning that embraces a bit of “safe” failure gives your organization a smart way to help learners identify their mistakes and correct them in training, before they surface on the job. Talk About Learning As a Process Some organizations act as though learning is an event—something to be controlled in order to achieve the successful outcome of a passing score. But passing a quiz may only be a measure of someone’s ability to take a test, not necessarily of their ability to perform a critical task. If your organization is obsessed with quiz scores, start talking about learning as a dynamic process made more complex by the fact that it’s both highly iterative and highly individual. In other words, learning and growth happen when we give people safe environments to practice—which generally consists of an attempt, (potentially) failure, feedback, and then trying again. Address Your Own Failure Fears No one enjoys the prospect of failure—even “constructive” failure—including e-learning designers! But to really embrace learning as a process you need to face and overcome your own fear of e-learning failure. Here are some practical tips for doing just that. Set expectations and provide clear, achievable objectives. Afraid that learners aren’t motivated to take your course? People are more engaged and motivated when you demonstrate the relevance of training. Show them why they should care about the course right from the start. Explain what it is they’ll learn and how this new knowledge or skill will make them a better version of themselves. Present the objectives in a way that speaks to learners and make sure each one can be achieved within the technical confines of e-learning. Write focused, relevant, and compelling content. One common design fear is that learners will simply tune out because the content you’re sharing is dull. But just because the content is boring doesn’t mean you can’t do things to make it more engaging. For starters, focus on keeping your content concise, relevant, and compelling. Transform passive reading into interactive exercises or illustrate the significance behind dull policies and procedures with a real-life story. For more great ideas for avoiding boring training, check out this article 3 Ways to Avoid Designing Boring Compliance Training. Put more trust in learners. Our own fear of design failure often manifests itself in the form of e-learning courses full of features like locked-down navigation, narrated on-screen text, or a 100 percent passing score, all in place to keep people from “cheating” or “skipping ahead” or to make sure they “get all of the information.” Why so much distrust of learners? Sometimes it’s part of your organization’s culture, but that doesn’t mean you’re powerless to nudge the conversation in a new and more trusting direction. Some ideas for putting a little more trust in learners include: Giving learners the option to test out of topics—or to skip the quiz altogether if it’s not a mission-critical training topic. Swapping out passive lecture and reading for more challenging decision-making scenarios. If you’re creating a course that doesn’t have a lot of performance expectations tied to it, demonstrating respect for their time and intelligence by keeping content short and easy to digest. Finally, be clear on when people are being scored vs. when they’re practicing. Afraid your learners are confused about your expectations? Nothing erodes the circle of e-learning trust faster than an e-learning bait and switch. Take pains to clearly communicate which activities are for practice and which are for a grade. For some more targeted pointers on designing compelling interactions, check out this handy (and free) eBook. Ready to Learn More? Failure is only a true fail when you don’t learn and grow from it. So if you’re continuously building your e-learning skills, look no further than E-Learning Heroes for help. Start by sinking your teeth into these related articles: 9 Ways to Encourage the Adult E-Learner by Tom Kuhlmann 4 Instructional Design Tips to Create Awesome E-Learning Scenarios by Nicole Legault 10 Tips for Becoming a Better Designer by Yours Truly And if you’re looking for some more ideas or guidance from fellow designers, you'll find a lively network of helpful peers to learn from in our Building Better Courses forum. How are you helping your organization embrace constructive failure? Share your experiences in the comments below. And don’t forget to follow us on Twitter and come back to E-learning Heroes regularly for more helpful advice on everything related to e-learning.E-Learning Maintenance Checklist
As an e-learning designer, it’s good practice to periodically review your e-learning courses and make sure they’re up to date and functioning as expected. Depending on how many courses you create every year, this task may feel daunting, but think of it like this: if your training courses are outdated or broken, having employees spend time taking them is a wasted effort. To make it a little easier for you, I put together this list of things to watch out for when you review your courses. Outdated Information This is the main reason it’s important to review e-learning courses: stuff changes! And when an internal policy changes six months after you create a course, you won’t necessarily think to update that course. Here are some things you should look for during your review: Are there any references to events that have since passed? Are there any references to products no longer on the market? Is there any mention of people who have changed positions or left the company (photos or text)? Is all the information about internal processes up to date? Is all the information about laws and regulations up to date? Is all the contact information (email addresses and phone numbers) still accurate? Outdated Visuals Another thing to pay attention to during your review is the visuals. For example: Is the branding (logos, fonts, colors, etc.) used in the course up to date? Do any of the screenshots feature older versions of tools or images of people wearing outdated uniforms or logo apparel? Technical Issues Technology changes and web pages disappear, so when you’re reviewing your course, it’s important to be on the lookout for things that don’t work as expected. Here’s a list of issues to watch out for: Does the course still load correctly? Do all the links still lead to working web pages? Do all the buttons still work? Do videos still load and play back as expected? Content Mistakes You reviewed your course when you made it, but sometimes when you’re too close to something, you can’t see the forest for the trees. While you’re at it, you may as well take a look to see if there’s anything you missed the first time around. Things like: Are there any typos or spelling errors? Are there any capitalization or punctuation errors? Is there any incorrect information? Is content formatted in a consistent way throughout the course? Wrap Up Hopefully, this checklist will make the maintenance of your e-learning courses go a little bit more smoothly. And if you're looking for a way to stay organized as you update a long list of courses, download this helpful spreadsheet. New to e-learning? Sign up for our E-Learning 101 email course, a series of expertly-curated articles that'll get you up to speed with course development.
