A Subject Matter Expert (SME) has the knowledge and experience you need to create course content. The trick is drawing out that information and using it effectively for your specific needs. The relationships you're able to build with SMEs will ultimately determine the quality of your content and how applicable it is to your particular course. In this article, we'll give you A Dozen Tips to Work Effectively With Your SMEs #1 Pick The Right SME For The Job - If you have a say in it, start the project off by suggesting the right SME for the job. The customer or stakeholder may make the final decision on selecting the SME, but providing them with guidance can help them make the best selection possible. Discuss the realistic time commitments, level of expertise needed, involvement required, etc. Beginning with a "qualified" and prepared SME can save you major hiccups in the future. #2 Embrace Collaboration – Understand that working with an SME is always a two-way street. They are … [Read more...] about A Dozen Tips to Work Effectively With Your SMEs
The ELearning Course Designer’s Blog
The Art And Science Of Building Engaging And Result-Oriented eLearning Courses
Distance learning, online learning, remote learning, and mobile learning are extremely popular today. Today’s online learners, however, are extremely e-savvy. Therefore, when it comes to picking an online course, their expectations on value are high. What online learners are looking for isn’t just high-quality content, but also a fulfilling learning experience. And that experience starts with the sign-up process and continues even beyond the time they sent in their final assessments and feedback forms. The Value Propositions Understanding how to build engaging eLearning courses is vital to your success. In short, remote learners are looking for courses to help them understand, retain, and use the knowledge they learn. But they also want to enjoy the time they spend on the learning platform. For IDs, delivering such value lies in producing courses that meet learner expectations. As an ID, the interactions you deliver through your eLearning courses must provide learners with the … [Read more...] about The Art And Science Of Building Engaging And Result-Oriented eLearning Courses
8 Steps For Creating Engaging eLearning Courses
Creating eLearning content is exciting. However, even though you may be an expert on the subject matter of the course, it pays to resist the temptation to immediately fire up your desktop, laptop, or tablet to churn out content. Take a step back and review the bigger picture first. A bit of long-term planning will result in a more stress-free experience and will produce more engaging courses for your learners. 8 Steps To Successful eLearning Creation Developing eLearning courses is equally an art as it is a science. However, to get it right requires a tried-and-tested plan. Here’s an 8-step plan to get you started: Conduct Sound Audience And Needs Research As an Instructional Design professional, you’ll only receive rewards for the time, effort, and capital investments you make in designing and developing your eLearning course if it “sells.” Ensuring that there’s a demand for your creations requires sound audience research before you invest a lot into developing the … [Read more...] about 8 Steps For Creating Engaging eLearning Courses
4 eLearning Course Responsive Design Rules To Live By
The days of learning only using a wide-format desktop screen are long gone. In fact, with the proliferation of devices with multiple screen sizes, it’s hard to know exactly which screens a course designer should use. So, what should Instructional Designers do? The answer is: Use responsive design techniques for the best results! The eLearning Challenge At Hand Responsive design addresses a real-life challenge that eLearning course designers and developers face. With portable devices and smartphones today, online learners can start a course on their 24-inch screen desktop at home, continue it on a 12-inch screen tablet during lunch, and finish a module on a 6-inch smartphone during their evening commute. Then, as they relax at home, they can review and revise key learning points on their 60-inch Smart TV. And if that’s not enough, they could even take a pop quiz using their 2-inch smartwatch screen! The challenge with these scenarios is that conventional course design principles just … [Read more...] about 4 eLearning Course Responsive Design Rules To Live By
How to Increase Learner Retention by Contextualizing Your Training
Adult learners typically struggle with understanding new concepts and ideas when such information lacks perspective – their unique perception. That’s because learning theory, be they Behaviorist, Cognitive, Constructivist or Motivational, underscores that, putting information into context, and giving perspective to knowledge produces better learning outcomes. Without adequate contextualization, most learners tend to disassociate from what they are learning. And when that happens, they may disengage from learning, leaving trainers an uphill task of re-engagement. UNDERSTANDING CONTEXTUALIZATION Contextualization is all about framing learning concepts in a way that’s familiar to the individual learner. To bring contextual value to your learning, it’s important to understand where your learner is coming from – not just his/her geographic location (we’ll touch upon that in a moment), but also their previous experiences, the terminology they’re familiar with and their expected application … [Read more...] about How to Increase Learner Retention by Contextualizing Your Training
The Onboarding Process: How To Help New Hires Adapt To A New Environment
Onboarding, the process of taking new hires, and integrating them into the company, can be one of the most important processes within a company. It can help form invaluable first impressions in the minds of new staff, and it can also ensure that new hires have a long and fulfilling career with the company. Unfortunately, statistics show that nearly 22% of employees quit within the initial 45 days of being hired [1]. Unless well planned, onboarding can lead to new hires exiting an organization quicker than HR can find replacements! Onboarding: A Multi-Layered Process In an organization with, say, less than fifty or sixty employees, and a single work location, a new employee can typically be onboarded in a matter of hours. Usually, the hiring manager will introduce the new hire to his/her new supervisor, and the onboarding process commences from there. However, where there are multiple locations, several cross-functional teams, and a hierarchy of management layers, onboarding can take … [Read more...] about The Onboarding Process: How To Help New Hires Adapt To A New Environment