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In this level we look at some different types of media and how they can be used to improve the user experience. This includes the use of video, audio, text-to-speech and avatars.

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How immersive technologies (AR/VR) will reform the human experience | Tiffany Lam | TEDx

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How immersive technologies (AR/VR) will reform the human experience | Tiffany Lam | TEDx

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In financial services I have only come across VR once and that was for induction at NAB - albeit it was a very brief part of the 2 day induction

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How immersive technologies (AR/VR) will reform communication and the human experience

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Virtual and augmented reality are among today's greatest immersive technology trends... but can they be used for more than just gaming and entertainment? In this talk, Tiffany Lam explores the use of immersive technologies like virtual and augmented reality to help tell stories better, bring people closer together, improve learning, and empower education through direct experience.

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https://trainingindustry.com/articles/learning-technologies/pros-and-cons-of-using-extended-reality-in-employee-training/

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eLearning Guild - AR, VR, and Enhanced Realities: Seven Perspectives on the Potential and Risks for Learning

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eLearning Guild - AR, VR, and Enhanced Realities: Seven Perspectives on the Potential and Risks for Learning

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One definition, from Kate Crawford and Meredith Whittaker, co-chairs of the AI Now symposium, held in July 2016: “Artificial intelligence (AI) refers to a constellation of technologies, including machine learning, perception, reasoning, and natural language processing.”

Another, from Stuart Russell, a professor of computer science and engineering at University of California, Berkeley, is building machines that are intelligent—that can see, hear, understand, learn, discover, help make plans, and decide how to behave.

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AI, or artificial intelligence, is a buzzword in the purest sense: It's a term that crops up seemingly everywhere, yet it means something different in almost every context. It's big, nonspecific, and ubiquitous.

So, what is AI?

One definition, from Kate Crawford and Meredith Whittaker, co-chairs of the AI Now symposium, held in July 2016: "Artificial intelligence (AI) refers to a constellation of technologies, including machine learning, perception, reasoning, and natural language processing."

Another, from Stuart Russell, a professor of computer science and engineering at University of California, Berkeley, is building machines that are intelligent-that can see, hear, understand, learn, discover, help make plans, and decide how to behave.

Russell, in a December 2015 TED talk, points out that AI is already everywhere: Google's search engine is an example of AI, as is Siri. Video games are based on AI, often dumbed-down so that the human player can actually win occasionally. The algorithms that correct your spelling and guess what word you're typing use AI, as do robots that perform literally thousands of tasks. But each of these examples uses AI differently and might represent different manifestations of AI, including what's known as machine learning or deep learning.

To further muddy the waters, AI can be classified into "general" and "narrow" AI:

General AI would describe a machine that, according to Russell, has human-level or greater intelligence and abilities. This machine, so far, exists only in the imagination-primarily popping up in movies and science fiction books.

Narrow AI refers to machines with specific intelligence; they can learn and perform specific tasks as well as humans can (or better). Examples range from the machines that beat champion Jeopardy, Go, and poker players to applications that recognize and classify images in photographs or robots that fold towels.

Based on these definitions, it's obvious that AI is already an inextricable component of eLearning. As machine learning becomes more sophisticated, the role of AI in eLearning is likely to increase dramatically.

What is machine learning?

Machine learning takes a smart machine (AI) and teaches it to use algorithms to make decisions, and, ultimately, to act without explicit direction. For example, the texting app on your phone learns that "Cali" is the correct spelling of your dog's name and (after many, many repetitions) eventually stops "fixing" it to "Kelly" or "Callie;" after even more "training," when you type "ca," it begins to spontaneously suggest "Cali."

When Amazon suggests items you might want to purchase or Netflix recommends titles, they are using machine learning. These services sift through enormous amounts of data, including your past behavior, and, based on algorithms, make decisions or suggestions.

The suggestions are automated, but machine learning is based on human guidance. People write the algorithms; humans tell the machines what to pay attention to, what to ignore-and how to decide what actions to take based on the information gathered. As with anything human-controlled, machine learning algorithms reflect the assumptions and biases of the programmers and, potentially, of the users.

In her paper on discrimination in algorithm-served ads that pop up during web searches, Sweeney (2013) explains that, in Google Ads, "an advertiser may give multiple templates for the same search string and the 'Google algorithm' learns over time which ad text gets the most clicks from viewers of the ad. It does this by assigning weights (or probabilities) based on the click history of each ad copy. At first all possible ad copies are weighted the same, they are all equally likely to produce a click. Over time, as people tend to click one version of ad text over others, the weights change, so the ad text getting the most clicks eventually displays more frequently. This approach aligns the financial interests of Google, as the ad deliverer, with the advertiser." It also, as the paper explains, incorporates the biases of the users, resulting in ads including the word "arrest" more frequently for searches of typically African-American names than for typically white names.

That bias is inherent in supposedly neutral machine-learning algorithms is demonstrated by a 2016 study by Princeton and University of Bath researchers. "We have shown that AI can and does inherit substantially the same biases that humans exhibit," the researchers write. "Bias in AI is important, because AI is increasingly given agency in our society for tasks ranging from predictive text in search to determining criminal sentences assigned by courts."

What is deep learning?

Can better results be achieved by turning more of the "decision-making" over to the machines? This is where deep learning comes into the picture. While still affected by the decisions of the humans who program them, deep-learning systems perform "unsupervised learning."

Deep learning is a sophisticated form of machine learning where the computer learns how to learn on its own, no longer needing human input. It uses algorithms that mimic neural networks in the human brain. They take in information and produce an output. It's not that simple of course; many layers of processing occur between the input of information and the output of a result. And, though not every action and decision is programmed by a person, the algorithm that provides initial guidance on decision-making is.

Deep learning can quickly learn patterns; photo recognition software uses deep learning to identify pictures of cats, in an oft-cited example. The computer is given thousands and thousands of photos and told that these are cats. The cats are different colors and different sizes and are in different positions or engaged in different activities. The computer "looks at" a set of features-devised by a human programmer-to determine what is, and what is not, a cat in the photos. As it processes more and more photos, the computer's accuracy improves. It has learned how to recognize a cat.

Language learning is another area where deep learning has made great strides. A Google Translate upgrade based on deep learning resulted in an overnight-dramatic-improvement, according to the New York Times Magazine.

As computers have become better at recognizing patterns, the systems have also become better at identifying other objects in an image and discerning subtle differences between images. This is a function of the deep network; different layers have learned to identify different items, and the system essentially "teaches itself" to sort and categorize items, even though no human has explicitly deconstructed the images and labeled each object.

What is reinforcement learning?

A variation of deep learning is reinforcement learning, hailed as one of 10 "breakthrough technologies" of 2017 by MIT Technology Review. Combined with deep learning, it's used, for example, by software that controls self-driving cars.

Reinforcement learning goes beyond recognizing and categorizing items to actually choosing a course of action. The software "learns" by practicing a maneuver over and over again in a simulator, using slightly different parameters each time. When the results are good, that set of parameters is favored; instructions that caused negative results are less likely to be repeated. After many trials, the algorithm learns to choose the actions that produce the best outcomes. The "reinforcement" is feedback from the environment. In theory, the system can continue to learn, and improve its performance, indefinitely.

What does it mean for eLearning?

Training deep learning and reinforcement learning systems requires a tremendous amount of computing power; until recently, only powerhouses like Google and Facebook possessed the computing power to train AI systems to perform specific, data-intensive tasks. However, open source tools and other advances are making it easier for corporate eLearning developers to consider using these tools. And the potential benefits to eLearning are enormous.

Chatbot technology, for example, is improving rapidly and shows the potential of "personal" interactions to aid or reinforce eLearning. AI is already used in learning programs that adapt to each learner's responses to provide a personalized eLearning experience. As the deep-learning abilities of eLearning become more sophisticated, eLearning will be able to adapt to each learner's preferences, performance, and behavior-leading to greater engagement. Even "required" eLearning can move away from a model where all learners wade through the same modules, watching the same videos and reading text on material many already know. The program would take each learner through an individualized course covering just his or her weak areas, presenting content in a format and at a pace best suited to that learner.

References

Caliskan-Islam, Aylin, Joanna J. Bryson, and Arvind Narayanan. " Semantics derived automatically from language corpora necessarily contain human biases." 2016.

Crawford, Kate and Meredith Whittaker. " The AI Now Report: The Social and Economic Implications of Artificial Intelligence Technologies in the Near-Term." Summary of the AI Now symposium. 7 July 2016.

Hof, Robert D. " Deep Learning." MIT Technology Review. 2013. Downloaded 6 March 2017.

Knight, Will. " Reinforcement Learning." MIT Technology Review. 2017. Downloaded 6 March 2017.

Lewis-Kraus, Gideon. " The Great A.I. Awakening." New York Times Magazine. 14 December 2016.

Sweeney, Latanya. " Discrimination in Online Ad Delivery." Queue 11, no. 3:10. 2013.

Velusamy, Balasubramanian, S. Margret Anouneia, and George Abraham. " Reinforcement Learning Approach for Adaptive E-learning Systems using Learning Styles." Information Technology Journal 12, no. 12: 2306-2314. 2013.

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AI, or artificial intelligence, is a buzzword in the purest sense: It's a term that crops up seemingly everywhere, yet it means something different in almost every context. It's big, nonspecific, and ubiquitous. So, what is AI?

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AI could be used in education to:
1. Customise/personalise cirriculum based on individual needs and gaps
2. Assist to produce 'smart content' e.g. sourcing updated content, different formats of content, customised content
3. Task automation e.g. assessment marking, administrative tasks
4. Study assistance e.g. tutoring, chat bots
5. Admissions processes and selection

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Artificial intelligence, an area of computer science concerned with the ability of machines to simulate human intelligence, is swiftly remaking the world of work.

From health care to industrial manufacturing, the ‌ramifications are endless. In marketing, chatbots have already transformed customer experience. On-demand personalized service is the new norm.

Within human resources functions, the applications are numerous. From recruiting to personalized coaching and development, it will soon be unthinkable to manage human assets without machine intelligence capable of responding to the unique needs of every individual. For this reason, there is one area within HR for which artificial intelligence is uniquely suited: learning and development.
AI and the Knowledge Explosion
Artificial intelligence is well suited for learning because the needs of learners have grown increasingly complex and difficult to satisfy with a one-size-fits-all approach. There has never been so much knowledge in the world. Due to the increasing pace of change in business, there has never been so much debate about what to learn and how to learn it. Increasingly, learners need artificial intelligence to help them navigate knowledge in a way best-suited for them.

The very concept of knowledge is now fraught with all the political and economic tensions of the day. With the growth of user-generated content, websites and blogs, content is proliferating at an astronomical rate. There has never been so much to read and learn.

The concept of the long tail most saliently reflected at Amazon means that any content, however niche, can find its ideal audience as long as the engine cataloging it and powering its discovery is up to the task. Optimists say this matching of content with every need and taste is a strength of the internet. The more cynical observers point to the more destructive aspects. Fake news is now here to stay. For better or worse, anyone can now exist in a world that mirrors whatever content they choose.

With that comes the question of what is necessary to learn. With so much to read and digest, what does it mean to be educated or proficient in an area? What knowledge is unquestionably part of a domain? Few industries have a broad certification exam, as with the CPA designation for accountants or the CFA series for finance.

The concept of canon as in English literature is also debated. Who deserves to tell everyone else what must be read and learned in order to be considered educated? And now that all knowledge is theoretically archivable and searchable, what does it mean to be knowledgeable about an area, reading aside?

Some argue memory is no longer necessary - that basic recall no longer counts as knowledge since a computer can handle it. Perhaps standards have been raised such that application, evaluation and creation of knowledge are the bedrock skills.

Then there are authors such as Nicholas Carr who argue our reliance on AI to perform simple automated tasks like factual recall is decreasing our cognitive capacity and that it's cognitive work - the simple act of struggling to remember something - that produces intelligence in the first place. In other words, can you apply, evaluate and create knowledge if you can't recall knowledge in the first place and have grown accustomed to outsourcing that function to computers?
AI and Adaptive Learning at Work
These developments mean that employees arrive at the workplace with dramatically different strengths, weaknesses, backgrounds and beliefs about what constitutes knowledge and skill. Jobs and careers no longer follow predictable paths. Entirely new roles have been invented. Legions of new graduates now aspire to roles like "people scientist" and "master data storyteller."

The future of business is chaos, wrote Robert Safian in a 2012 Fast Company article. This is leading to a new generation of workers who embrace instability, continually reinvent careers and business models and are poised to thrive in the new economy. He called these new workers Generation Flux.

A growing distrust for formal education has resulted in the widespread belief that technical skills mastery of various tools and software is paramount. Some clarify this and say it's not mastery of specific tools and software, but rather a generalized computational thinking, or knowing how to make computers work for you that matters. Others maintain an education that teaches how to think and not what to think is what works in today's fast-paced and disruptive world. It's not just computational thinking but systemic thinking and general analytical ability that matter.

Regardless, those who thrive in this environment are agile and adept at redefining themselves continually. It's tiring for some and energizing for others because of the massive opportunity available.

Badging and microlearning have been touted as the solutions to the chaos and complexity of the new knowledge economy. If it's not clear what to learn and how to learn it, bite-sized content makes it a lot easier to consume a range of content quickly.

Let's take this a step further and suggest that the next generation of content has now arrived: It's no longer enough for content to be bite-sized, modularized, and conducive to recombination. It now must be backed and synchronized by data, and made personalized through artificial intelligence as if governed by a robot who perfectly understands you, your needs, your background and your style. The technological term for this is adaptive learning.

What's adaptive learning? It's when learning data is used to personalize a learner's experience so that it adapts in real-time to behavior and performance. Every moment is optimized so the perfect piece of content is presented at the perfect time for each learner.

The adaptive learning field which uses computers to actively tailor content to each individual's needs draws upon knowledge domains as diverse as machine learning, cognitive science, predictive analytics and educational theory to make this learner-centered vision of education a reality.

This isn't anything new. It is already the standard in our consumer lives. Amazon, Pandora and Netflix make personalized and continually tailored recommendations based on your past decisions and behavior. This trend is shifting from consumer entertainment to corporate learning.

How does it work and how do we ensure that learning accounts for holistic mastery? That it emphasizes efficiency and engagement as well as short-term and long-term goals?
The Four Educational Theories Embedded in AI
Adaptive learning comes in different varieties but there are four educational theories embedded in the algorithms that power the personalized learning paths taken on our platforms. Together, these algorithms deliver holistic mastery or true knowledge acquisition:

Metacognitive Theory: This theory holds that learners learn best when they know what they don't know. From a technology standpoint, as learners move through content the platform captures data concerning accuracy, confidence and time. The platform takes this data into account, serving up content that helps each learner increase accuracy but also improve awareness around accuracy and confidence level so that the learner walks away "knowing what they know."

The Theory of Deliberate Practice: This principle holds that understanding where we are weakest helps us focus our practice. To address this, an AI platform continuously adjusts the content to focus on each individual's weaknesses, ensuring that time is used efficiently and effectively.

The Theory of Fun for Game Design: Learners are most engaged when challenged but not too challenged. If too many questions are answered wrong in a row, for instance, an AI platform will serve up a question that proves a quick win for the learner and builds confidence.

Ebbinghaus Forgetting Curve: This theory holds that to truly learn something, learners need to commit it to long-term memory and that the best time to do so is just before learners are about to forget it. Incorporating this theory, AI platforms can use data to predict when someone is most likely to lose a concept from short-term memory and recharge it so that the learner commits it to long-term memory.

Learning is ripe for the artificial intelligence revolution. The needs of learners are increasingly complex. The incredible explosion of knowledge makes it near impossible to master a field in the way it once was. The pace of change in business means that by the time a learner has developed a new skill, it is already obsolete. Learners need artificial intelligence to help navigate knowledge in a way best suited for them and for the good of the organization.
Zach Posner is senior vice president and managing director of learning science platforms at McGraw-Hill Education. He can be reached at editor@CLOmedia.com.

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Artificial Intelligence Comes to Learning

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Artificial intelligence, an area of computer science concerned with the ability of machines to simulate human intelligence, is swiftly remaking the world of work. From health care to industrial manufacturing, the ‌ramifications are endless. In marketing, chatbots have already transformed customer experience. On-demand personalized service is the new norm.

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“A bot is a tool that helps users complete tasks which can be easily automated. Many current bots are chat-based and are bundled inside messenger apps. You think you are ‘talking’ to a human, but you aren’t – it’s an automated service that can make sense of what you are typing. The chatbot, depending on the service it is attached to, can then transform your typing into commands that can be executed.”

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"A bot is a tool that helps users complete tasks which can be easily automated. Many current bots are chat-based and are bundled inside messenger apps. You think you are 'talking' to a human, but you aren't - it's an automated service that can make sense of what you are typing.

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Wearable technology may:
1. Be a distraction and hinderance more than a learning aid e.g. continuous exposure to other apps and social media
2. Result in over reliance on such technology and stifling individual thinking/ critical analysis
3. Reliance on consistent and reliable internet access (depending on the type of wearable)
4. Prolonged usage may relate in health risks
5. Privacy issues, as discussed below

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Eye-trackers that detect when your mind is wandering. Clothes that let you "feel" what it's like to be in someone else's body. Sensors that connect your heart rate to how engaged you are in class. These are the kinds of wearable technologies that could soon impact how we learn.

That was the takeaway from a recent gathering of researchers studying how personal data might improve learners' self-awareness and performance. At the first ever aWEAR conference on the use of wearable technologies in education, held this week at Stanford University, experts shared how self-tracking tools like Fitbits and motion sensors might give humans insight about the way they learn.

While it's become a habit for people to count their steps or log their hours of sleep, similar "quantified self" practices in education are in early stages of development.

Ralph Mercer, a researcher at The Open University in the UK, sums up what education experts imagine as they experiment with wearable tech in K-12 and college settings: "Is it possible to self-track our learning journey? Can we figure out what made one learning day better than another one? Can we make that data visible in a meaningful and academic way?"

To understand how self-monitoring devices might impact education, first we need a definition of these technologies. According to Rich Voithofer, associate professor of educational technology at Ohio State University, wearables are an "intimate two-way interface between ourselves and the world." Unlike a computer or cellphone that we choose to interact with, wearables collect information about us automatically, and they might give unsolicited prompts to take action. Think of a Fitbit that softly nudges you to get up from your desk and take a few steps every so often.

As the cost of wearable technologies continues to decline, researchers have more opportunities than ever to study the relationships between human physiology and learning. Is there a correlation, for instance, between heart rate or skin temperature and engagement in class?

"We're trying to get at mental states that can be somewhat inferred through the body," says Catherine Spann, a researcher at the University of Texas at Arlington's LINK Research Lab. She and her colleagues outfitted students with Empatica's E4 wristbands that measure heart rate variability and electrodermal activity-a measurement that indicates emotional responses. The idea is to better understand how "emotions that are felt in the body" impact learning.

At SUNY Oswego, assistant psychology professor Roger S. Taylor has been tracking students' heart rates to see how they relate to emotions throughout their days in class. Every three hours from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m., a text message prompts students to enter their heart rates and answer questions to put those numbers in context, including "what are you feeling" and "are you in a small or large class?" By mapping students' emotional states over time, Taylor hopes to get a better understanding of the relationship between learning and feelings.

Researchers are even studying how posture might relate to learners' ability to retain information. By planting Microsoft's Kinect motion sensors in classrooms, Chadi Kari and colleagues at the University of the Pacific are tracking 48 skeletal positions of students. "Can we correlate sitting posture and the attention of students?" Kari asks. "Are some activities better at reinvigorating students?"

Another way to bring wearable tech into the classroom is to empower students with their own data. Drawing on Peter Drucker's "if you can't measure it, you can't improve it" theory, educators are thinking about how wearable technologies might spur introspection among students. If a learner can see physical signs of her learning in real time, could she make adjustments similar to how a Fitbit owner might choose to take a few extra steps?

In some cases, researchers posit that students will learn better when they're analyzing their own data-as opposed to hypothetical numbers from a textbook. Victor Lee, associate professor of instructional technology and learning sciences at Utah State University, studied elementary school students who-outfitted with personal health trackers-analyzed their heart rates and step counts after they walked uphill and downhill. Those students performed better in statistical reasoning than peers who analyzed numbers from textbook prompts.

As with any emerging technology, ethical questions abound for the use of wearables in education. Who has access to learners' data, and for what purpose?

"We need to develop our ideas of information transparency as we integrate wearables into education."

"Ethics often falls behind the technology," says Voithofer of Ohio State. Personal data becomes more abstract when it's combined with other datasets or reused for multiple purposes, he adds. Say a device collects and anonymizes data about a student's emotional patterns. Later on that information might be combined with information about her test scores and could be reassociated with her. Some students might object to colleges making judgments about their academic performance from indirect measurements of their emotional states.

Before researchers, educators and companies implement wearable technologies in learning environments, Voithofer warns them to carefully consider how data is gathered and used. "We need to develop our ideas of information transparency as we integrate wearables into education," he says. "Transparency is central to ethical accountability."

It's worth a reminder, too, that not everything that counts can be measured. An over-reliance on data can lead researchers to make false assumptions about how students learn.

"Students come into the classroom with many thoughts and feelings, and social, family and financial issues," says Spann, from UT Arlington's LINK Lab. "They are a whole person, and it's quite important to keep that in mind."

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Wearable Tech Weaves Its Way Into Learning - EdSurge News

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Eye-trackers that detect when your mind is wandering. Clothes that let you "feel" what it's like to be in someone else's body. Sensors that connect your heart rate to how engaged you are in class. These are the kinds of wearable technologies that could soon impact how we learn.

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This article provides some additional insights into other uses of VR e.g. field trips

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We've been hearing a lot over the past few years about how virtual reality has the potential to transform the way we learn and teach, from providing in-depth knowledge and helping us understand complex subjects to facilitating language immersion and virtual trips.

Although in theory VR technology should be an amazing tool for learning and teaching, the reality is that it's been slow to take off in educational settings, in large part due to the fact that it's still so costly to implement.

Even so, predictions are that by 2019 VR will start becoming mainstream, and some of the major players in the education and technology sectors including Google and Facebook are already pursuing applications for the classroom.

To give you an idea of how VR will eventually facilitate learning, we decided to take a look at some of the most notable examples of how virtual reality is already being used by schools and learning institutions around the world.

1. Virtual field trips

Virtual field trips have become one of the most popular applications of VR technology for learning, and many schools have begun using Google Expeditions to transport students to faraway and even inaccessible parts of the planet.

The Google Expedition app is free to download on IOS or Android and teachers can invest in some of the low-cost cardboard headsets that can be attached to a smartphone. With these simple headsets, students can actively explore anything from Machu Picchu to outer space or the deep sea.

2. Language immersion

One of the best ways to learn a new language is through full immersion, as this requires students to listen to and speak the language they're learning all day, every day. Since most of us can't afford to jet off to another country for weeks or even months at a time, virtual immersion is the next best thing. Virtual reality simulations can trick the brain into thinking the experiences are real, and a number of new language learning apps that use VR are now being developed.

One such app is Unimersiv, which can be used together with the Oculus Rift headset. The app allows learners to connect with people from all over the world and practise their language skills while playing games and interacting with other students in a virtual world.

3. Skills training

Virtual reality simulations can also help students learn practical skills, and one of the biggest benefits to training people in this way is that students can learn from realistic scenarios without the risk of practicing an unfamiliar skill in an uncontrolled real-life situation.

An experiment carried out by Google's Daydream labs found that people who got VR training learned faster and better than those who were merely shown video tutorials. The interactive learning experiment was aimed at teaching coffee making, and students were either shown a YouTube tutorial on how to pull espresso shots or allowed to practice it in VR.

After training for as long as they liked, the students from both groups were asked to make coffee in the real world. Sure enough, the students who learned with VR made fewer mistakes and were quicker at pulling the espresso shots than those who watched the video tutorials.

4. Philosophical theories

Even philosophical theories can be brought to life with virtual reality. The Sevenoaks School in the United Kingdom recently started using VR headsets in its philosophy lessons as a way to introduce students to French philosopher Rene Descartes' dream argument.

Meditations on First Philosophy is one of the most influential philosophical texts ever written, and begins with the claim that dreams and waking life can have the same content. Thanks to the VR headsets, students are able to see just how immersive a simulation can feel and experience firsthand the possibility that life is nothing more than a simulation.

One student commented that "It's amazing to think that we can test and understand more about these centuries-old theories with the latest modern technology. It has brought a whole new meaning to Philosophy for me!"

5. Architecture and design

Schools are also finding that virtual reality technology is a great way to spark students' creativity and keep them engaged, especially when it comes to architecture and design. For the last three years, David Beach, assistant professor at the Drury University Hammons School of Architecture, has been researching ways to apply VR technology in his field and believes it opens up countless possibilities in architectural design.

The Oculus Rift hardware makes it possible for architects to take computer-generated 3D models and place viewers into those 3D models in order to bring their plans to life. At a primary school in Ireland, students have even been using VR to construct 3D models of historical Irish sites and then visit them virtually.

6. Special education

The Jackson School for special needs students in Victoria, Australia has been using the Oculus Rift headset with students in the classroom. Technology and special education instructor Mathieu Marunczyn explains that the Oculus Rift has helped spark his students' imagination and gives them a visual insight they wouldn't otherwise have. For instance, students can take a peek inside an Egyptian temple or view a jet engine to gain an understanding of how it all fits together, which makes lessons a lot more hands on.

Marunczyn also notes that structured lessons with meditative virtual reality apps like those that explore planets and stars tend to have a calming effect on his students, many of whom have some form of autism.

7. Distance learning

Virtual reality technology also has huge potential in the distance learning industry, and a recent study from Penn State University researchers showed that VR technology can improve learning outcomes for online students.

Stanford School of Business is already offering a certificate program delivered entirely through VR, and at the University the University of British Columbia Law School, students are enjoying virtual reality lectures using a VR social application called VR Chat. The application provides virtual online chat spaces where students with a VR headset can project themselves and interact with lecturers and other students.

8. Improved collaboration

Virtual reality technology has the potential to greatly enhance collaboration between teachers and students, both in distance learning and classroom-based teaching. Research shows that virtual and augmented reality simulations increase student motivation and improve collaboration and knowledge construction. One study conducted in a virtual world called Second Life allowed teachers to design, create and use collaborative activities to introduce exchange students to Chinese language and culture before they went abroad. The students showed improvements in key areas including reduced embarrassment when practicing their language skills and better social interactions between students.

9. Game-based learning

Virtual reality will likely completely change the way games can be used for learning. Game-based learning works because in increases engagement and motivation, and virtual reality can take this to the next level.

Jane Wilde, an instructor at Marlboro College in Vermont who has been using games and simulations in her lessons for some time now, notes that although virtual reality games are not the only source of fun and engagement in class, they can make a substantial difference.

"In my own experience game-based learning is motivating because it is fun," she says. "The playing field is leveled - a player's gender, weight, race don't have to interfere with their acceptance by other players. You are judged by your actions.

A lot can be accomplished in a virtual environment that would not be possible in real life. Also it is memorable - the visual and kinesthetic experiences in virtual worlds contribute to our ability to learn."

10. Virtual campus visits

Technology is changing the way students select universities and many schools have now started virtual reality campus tours as a way to connect with applicants on a wider scale. These campus 'visits' allow students to see what it would be like to attend universities in other cities and countries even if they can't visit in person.

The virtual reality tours use photos and videos of campuses and their surroundings that enable students to explore the campuses at 360-degree angles. For instance, the University of Michigan Football program now has a virtual reality tour that lets students experience what it's like to play at the university's stadium.

Want to get a feel for what VR campus tours are like? Check out this list of virtual campus tours you don't want to miss.

Marianne Stenger is a London-based freelance writer and journalist with extensive experience covering all things learning and development. She's particularly interested in the psychology of learning and how technology is changing the way we learn. Her articles have been featured by the likes of ABC Education, The Huffington Post, Lifehacker, and Psych Central. Follow her on Twitter @MarianneStenger.

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10 Ways Virtual Reality Is Already Being Used in Education | InformED

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We've been hearing a lot over the past few years about how virtual reality has the potential to transform the way we learn and teach, from providing in-depth knowledge and helping us understand complex subjects to facilitating language immersion and virtual trips. Although in theory VR technology should be an amazing tool for learning and...

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Interesting article specifically on VR in financial advice - however, I don't see functional advantages here.

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Financial advisers provide an immensely beneficial service to their clients, but the end result of their labours is often intangible to clients. The length of time it takes to grow wealth makes it difficult to demonstrate the value and impact of certain financial decisions made today, and can prevent clients from engaging fully with the advice process.

So what would it mean for client engagement if advisers could take the seemingly intangible benefits of their services and make them a reality, or at least a virtual reality? During a recent trip to technology, film and music festival South by South West, Align Financial director and AFA Adviser of the Year Darren Johns saw a multitude of virtual reality (VR) technologies demonstrated, and immediately saw the potential benefits this technology could have for the financial services industry. "One of the big themes at the festival this year was people developing virtual reality technology and not really knowing what the application will be," he said. "There were quite a few firms developing the technology trying to get it to a mass-market affordable level, and that's where my interest piqued up."
Meeting a need
VR technology, according to Mr Johns, could be the next big thing when it comes to client engagement, enabling clients to see and interact with a future that doesn't exist yet, and develop from that experience a sense of what their decisions today will mean for tomorrow. "If you're talking to clients and they say something like 'I think we ought to spend a little less and save a little more, so in 10 years we can retire to a small rural property near Mudgee', the way financial planning is done at the moment we would tend to then put down some numbers, do some cash flow and scenario planning, and say 'look, if you saved an extra $24,000 a year for 10 years, you'll have $733,000 and you'll be able to do that', but on a balance sheet it's all very numerical," he said.

"The area that I saw virtual reality adding value for our profession is that the adviser could then say 'well you've described this future reality that I can make true, here's a little sample of it'. The client can put on their goggles and there they are actually walking through their new yard, or their beachside holiday house, by 2027. "You could actually create that virtual future and put those clients inside."

Mr Johns predicts that this type of immersive experience would reinforce client decision making by offering them a palpable feel of their future, and helping them make the commitment to a certain investment product or savings regime - a point with which Andy Fyffe, managing partner of digital content production and virtual reality firm Khemistry, strongly agrees.

"Financial planners are selling something you can't touch and you can't feel, because it's a future state that you can only attain if you invest and make other decisions and moves now, and I think if there's any medium that excels at helping people visualise a future state, it's this medium," he said. "You can tell people stories and they can picture it in their head, you can show people photos and make their imagination do the work, but this is the richest medium we've developed so far, and to me it makes sense that if the job is to help someone visualise a scenario, then this is the ideal medium for doing it and getting them excited about it."
Making virtual reality a practical reality
VR technology, and its less immersive counterpart augmented reality (AR), are already being utilised in a number of industries, with Mr Fyffe noting that the travel and tourism industry is presently offering immersive video to get clients' "pulse racing".

Professional services firm Deloitte has already begun looking into the applications that VR and AR technology could have in a number of industries, and the company's director of customer strategy David Johnson said that VR's ability to simplify complex considerations for clients could be a reality for advisers in the near future.

"We are starting to see AR and VR being used by clients today, primarily for customer engagement and the visualisation of data purposes, so it's not an overnight process and I think it will be a gradual introductory process to the financial services industry," he said. "But given what we're already seeing with Genworth and given what we're already seeing with brands creating in-branch experiences for the banks and so on and so forth, it is relatively imminent." The consensus is that this technology could see widespread use in the financial services industry within the next three to five years, and Mr Johnson contends that there will be some "early indications of what's to come" by the end of 2017.

"We're starting to see these things popping up already in very closely related fields, so I don't expect it to be that long before we see some good quality examples in financial planning. I think probably three years is a reasonable estimate for widespread use," he said.

However, one hurdle remains. While the technology already exists, as of yet its development as a financial services tool is somewhat immature, and the intricate nature of advice means any application, any software used by advisers, will need to be specially designed to meet those needs.
Tailoring the technology
"I think the application to our profession is a little way off because it's a little more bespoke and you're creating a different scenario set and a different imagined future for each individual client, and I don't know if that's here yet," said Mr Johns.

"The technology exists; it's just a question of how attractive it is to one of the providers on our scale. And when I say 'our', I mean financial planning as a whole - it's not unique to Australia, it's nothing unique to our tax code, nor our superannuation system - it's pretty universal." So where will the bespoke software come from? Mr Fyffe suspects VR technology will find its way into the financial services industry by one of two mechanisms: a large corporate player develops a similar application for a specific product offering and expands it to suit advisers more broadly, or a disruptive startup sees the opportunity and builds a product designed to capture an as yet untapped market.

However, financial advisers will still need to take the first step to spur these contenders to action and catalyse the development of a suitable solution, Mr Johnson said. "The use cases are there, the way these technologies generally work best, or the adoption cycle comes when a planner goes 'this is specifically the part of the process that I want to solve a bit differently', so the technology exists," he said.

"If you don't have the right ways to apply it to a particular customer's needs, that's the area where the conversation needs to unfold, and that's the area where someone will choose to jump first and adoption will pick up." Mr Johns predicts that it won't be long before that conversation is had, noting that in an industry that strives for innovation, there are already many advisers with their eyes on a tool with this kind of client engagement potential. "There are those of us that are on a continual quest to improve the client experience and improve client engagement, and I think there's enough of us around that are wanting to do that," he said.
The case for virtual reality in financial services will be a key topic of the upcoming Adviser Innovation Summit 2017. For more information visit http://www.aisummit.com.au/

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Financial advisers provide an immensely beneficial service to their clients, but the end result of their labours is often intangible to clients. The length of time it takes to grow wealth makes it difficult to demonstrate the value and impact of certain financial decisions made today, and can prevent clients from engaging fully with the advice process.

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Do you see AR, VR, AI, wearables, beacons and robots having an impact on your eLearning course design in the coming future? Why?
For financial services AI in particular has a place, given online services, products and solutions. In my commentary above I specifically mention some of the examples, such as robo advice, chat bots, share trading. I dont believe VR has a direct place in financial advice, which is my specialty, as financial advice is a soft skills, interpersonal relationship intended to be built on trust.

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Which shell is that?

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H5P empowers everyone to create, share and reuse interactive content - all you need is a web browser and a web site that supports H5P.

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1. First person 2. 6 minutes of engagement 3. Personal quality 4. Full screen viewing 5. Image quality not key 6. Audio quality is key 7. Do not mix video & content 8. Use worked examples 9. Alternate headings & images 10. Video not enough in isolation

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When considering video for learning, what do key pieces of research say about impact on learning outcomes? As it turns out video may seem instinctively useful but that is not always the case. Our limitations in terms of working memory, episodic and semantic memory, attention and perceptual systems, all play a role in limiting the effectiveness of video. Understand how the mind works and you can use video more effectively and cheaply. Here's seven research-based facts that you should perhaps consider when using video in learning:

2. Attention maxes out at 6 mins

Philip Guo has tracked median engagement times versus video length, aggregated over several million EdX maths and science video sessions. He found that the average engagement time of any video maxes out markedly at 6 minutes, regardless of its length. An interesting side finding was that students who had enrolled for the certificate engaged more with the videos. Lesson: keep videos below 6 minutes. The edX researchers, confirmed by the MOOC factory in Lausanne, have found that, in addition to avoiding the dreaded 1 hour lectures, one should also avoid simply chopping up the existing 1 hour lecture into 6 minute chunks. Take time to rework and rehearse the chunks as small videos in themselves, not the result of meat-chopper editing.

3. Stay personal, informal and enthusiastic

An interesting research finding from MOOCs, where huge amounts of video have been used by millions of learners is that learners don't like over-produced, TV quality presentation. They much prefer more informal, personal and, above all, enthusiastic performances by their teachers. Hesitations, a chatty relaxed style even corrected errors. Lesson: More YouTube than TV.

In an HCI MOOC I took, from Stanford no less, the talking head was postage stamp size in the bottom right of the screen. Nass and Reeves showed that screen size does matter when it comes to learning.As my BBC film editor used to say - it's all in the eyes - you need to see the eyes of the presenter or lecturer. In fact, Nass and Reeves showed that size actually increases retention, so make your video as large as possible on screen or allow full screen viewing.
5. Image quality NOT key

Most video cameras these days produce good pictures. Even then you really have to know about ISO, depth of field, framing and so on to get the best results. However, on the basic issue of picture quality, it doesn't matter that much when it comes to retention. Our visual systems are used to dealing with twilight and variable conditions, so adjust easily.

Although poor quality video quality is rarely the problem when it comes to learning and retention, bad audio can cripple both. Poor quality images are not necessarily damaging in terms of learning and retention, poor quality audio, however, is bad news. Nass and Reeves showed that poor audio (hissy, distant or robotic) can seriously affect retention. That's because our auditory systems have evolved to deal with dialogue as hi fi - close to our ear.

7. Do not mix video and text

Video and accompanying text is a no-no. Never put the script up at the same time as the video. It overloads working memory and damages learning. Mayer (2001) suggests that both a visual and a narrative description increases the amount of time information about the process can be held and processed in working memory, leading to measurably lower retention.

In research on 862 videos from four edX courses, for subjects that rely on symbolic, semantic reasoning, such as maths, physics and coding, worked examples (a la Khan Academy or Udacity) work far better. Less theory, more examples.

9. Alternate heads and images

With talking heads, go full screen and alternate with slides. Use talking heads for conceptual explanation and slides for diagrams, images and pictures that really do explain a point and don't merely illustrate the point. This is important, stock shots and images that done;t add to the learning are to be avoided.
10. Video not enough
In trials in nursing training we found that video was good for attitudes, procedures, processes and showing things that require motion but not so good for semantic knowledge, especially detail on numbers, such as doses, number of days, names of drugs, pathogens and so on. This 'semantic' knowledge required supplementary methods for learning. To this end we grabbed the transcripts from the video, used AI ( WildFire) to create online learning in minutes, not months, and focussed on the semantic detail.

This gave us the best of both worlds - video based plus text based learning. We then went on to show video followed by completely open input, where the learner has to recall what they think thy've learnt from the video (or segment), with AI semantic analysis of their answers. This is immensely powerful in terms of retention and recall.

There's lots more to be said about the use of video in learning. There's lots of different types of video and when it comes to learning, it is vital that the optimal technique is used. TV and film, in that sense, are not the most useful guides as, for learning, you often have to break their rules. Intuitively we may feel that rich, high quality, high production value video with animation, graphics, background sound, music and narration makes for great learning. But the evidence suggests otherwise. This approach can often result in 'seductive but irrelevant distractions'. Meyer and Moreno have researched this area in detail and found that cognitive overload and dissonance can often occur when too much information is being presented. Controlling the load on working memory is an important consideration. Lesson: video is not always a good medium for learning. Lesson: Video can inhibit as well as enhance learning.

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10 researched tips to produce great video in learning (some will surprise you)

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When considering video for learning, what do key pieces of research say about impact on learning outcomes? As it turns out video may seem instinctively useful but that is not always the case. Our limitations in terms of working memory, episodic and semantic memory, attention and perceptual systems, all play a role in limiting the effectiveness of video.

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1. Highly engaging 2. Easily gamified 3. Compatible with authoring tools 4. Fully trackable 5. Mobile friendly

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We adore video, we can't get enough of it, and there's no sign of our passion for it dwindling any time soon. According to research by Cisco, video will make up 80 percent of consumer internet traffic by 2019 [1].

As you might expect, music videos, comedy clips, and movie trailers are the most frequently watched content, but research suggests people also turn to video when they want to learn something. A global survey of video consumption found that 29 percent of respondents watched tutorials and "how to" videos alongside entertainment content [2].

Video has advantages beyond popularity. It can inspire, engage, enhance storytelling, add authenticity, and assist with mastery [3]. But it remains a passive experience; watch and learn. Enabling people to actively participate with video, make choices, and get involved can turn it into a more powerful learning tool.

Types of Interactive Video

What do we mean by interactive video? In its simplest form it is video content that requires the viewer to participate with it. There are a variety of ways to achieve this interactivity:

Branching. Viewers have to make a series of choices, usually about what happens next in the story. There are multiple paths and outcomes.

Hotspots or tagging. The video includes clickable links to further information. These could be highlighted with a visual tag or hidden away, so viewers only find them by exploring.

Multi-view. The video is shot from a number of viewpoints, allowing the story to be seen from different perspectives.

Benefits in Learning

Interactive video is popping up all over the business world in marketing, advertising, shopping and, of course, entertainment. It's also gaining traction within workplace learning. Video is already a big trend in the corporate learning sector with 98 percent of organizations expected to use it in their digital learning strategy by 2016 [4]. Only a small proportion of corporate learning video is currently interactive, but this is set to change as the benefits are more widely recognized. Here are five reasons to use interactive video in learning.

It's highly engaging. Keeping learners engaged remains the Holy Grail of corporate learning. Mandatory compliance courses in particular can suffer from the accusation of being dull and boring. Interactive video is a learner-centric, active experience that relies heavily on storytelling so learners are much more likely to feel engaged with the content [5].

It's easily gamified. Interactive video relies on the viewer being in control and making decisions about what happens on screen next. It's easy to gamify these choices and create a game-based learning experience with points for optimum decisions, badges to reward achievement, and a final score.

It's compatible with authoring tools. You don't need a specialist tool to create interactive video for learning. Most popular e-learning authoring tools allow video content to be added or imported. It's also possible to use the built-in functionality of authoring tools to create interactions in video such as branching and hotspots.

It's fully trackable. One of the challenges for businesses using interactive video for marketing has been the inability to track customer interactions. But this problem is easily overcome if the interactive video is integrated with a learning management system (LMS). This makes it straightforward to collect data on learner choices and other information.

It's mobile-friendly. Video and mobile go hand in hand; more than half of all views on YouTube come from mobile devices [6]. Given this link, interactive video is a good choice for organizations wishing to connect with their learners through mobile content.

Key Considerations

Creating interactive video for the workplace requires a different approach compared to a standard e-learning project. There are both design and technical challenges to overcome, and you may find you need to collaborate much more than normal. Some key considerations include:

Finding the right team. Almost everyone has a cell phone that can film good quality video so there is a temptation to take a DIY approach to interactive video. Of course, there are people who are great film-makers, instructional designers, and developers rolled into one, but the chances are a successful interactive video project will require a multi-disciplined team. Seek out the best people for each role and appoint an overall director.

Developing a strong narrative. This is the most critical part of the process. The story has to be compelling so people are engaged and want to find out what happens next. It also needs some tension and points in the story where decisions must be made. Make sure you include an interaction as early as possible in the story that way learners are engaged from the outset.

Options for filming. There are several considerations when it comes to filming. Will you engage a professional filmmaker or shoot in house? Will the video be shot from a single point of view or multiple perspectives? Are you going to use actors or willing amateurs? The choice you make will depend on the learning objectives and budget available for the project, but agreeing upon the filming strategy upfront will save time and effort.

Using branch mapping. Interactive videos include many interactions with variable outcomes so you need a way of managing the complexity. Branch mapping is a familiar instructional design tool and it works really well for an interactive video project.

Post-production. Once all the filming is completed the next stage of the creative process gets underway. It can take longer than you think to identify and edit the best clips and create the interactive structure around them. Make sure you budget enough time and resources for the post-production process or your interactive video will fall flat.

Gamifying. If you are gamifying your interactive video you need to design for a game experience from the very beginning-don't add gamification as an afterthought. Think about the look and feel of the game, the scoring and reward system, visual feedback, and replay options.

Test for mobile. Where mobile use is important, make sure you thoroughly test out the interactive video on as many different devices as you can get your hands on. Also, think about bandwidth variations and how they might impact the learning experience.

Film quality. Poor video quality can put learners off and negate the impact of the video. But most interactive video projects will have to balance concerns about film quality with the reality of time and budget. A good rule of thumb is to produce the best quality footage possible, even if that means creating shorter clips.

Interactive Video Examples

There are some great examples to inspire those hoping to introduce interactive video into their learning approach.

"Lifesaver" This interactive film by the Resuscitation Council (UK) teaches people how to perform CPR by putting them in the heart of a crisis.

"Our World War" The BBC produced this interactive episode as part of coverage to mark the centenary of the start of the first World War.

"Choose a Different Ending" This is a YouTube film created for the UK's Metropolitan Police to raise awareness of knife crime and the risks to young people.

"Can you Manage Difficult Conversations?" Dealing with a difficult work conversation is the subject of this interactive learning video for managers. ( Sign in required.)

In summary, video and interactivity are two stalwarts of e-learning. They are regularly used in online learning because they engage employees and help them learn. But when combined their power is amplified and we are only just starting to recognize the potential of interactive video as a learning technology.

References

[1] Cisco. Cisco Visual Networking Index: Forecast and Methodology, 2014-2019. White Paper. May 27, 2015.

[2] Interactive Advertisign Bureau (IAB). Mobile Video 2015: A global perspective. Presentation. 2015.

[3] The University of Queensland, Australia. Insitute for Teachign and Learning Innovation. Video for teaching and learning. Pedagogical Benefits.

[4] Ambient Insight. T he 2012-2017 Worldwide Mobile Learning Market. December 2013

[5] Clothier, P. Interactive Video: The Next Big Thing in Mobile. Learning Solutions Magazine. October 28, 2013.

[6] YouTube. YouTube Statistics. 2015.

About the Author

Louise Pasterfield has more than 20 years' experience of working on learning solutions for private and public sector global organizations. Her passion is how to make learning absorbing so staff can apply what they have learned immediately into the workplace. She is the Managing Director at Sponge UK. Sponge UK is the Elearning Awards 2015 gold winner of Outstanding Learning Organisation and the 2014 gold winner of Elearning Development Company of the Year.

Permission to make digital or hard copies of all or part of this work for personal or classroom use is granted without fee provided that copies are not made or distributed for profit or commercial advantage and that copies bear this notice and the full citation on the first page. Copyrights for components of this work owned by others than the author(s) must be honored. Abstracting with credit is permitted. To copy otherwise, or republish, to post on servers or to redistribute to lists, requires prior specific permission and/or a fee. Request permissions from [email protected]

2015 Copyright © ACM. 1535-394X/15/12-2856391 $15.00

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elearn Magazine: Amplify the Power: Five reasons to use interactive video

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We adore video, we can't get enough of it, and there's no sign of our passion for it dwindling any time soon. According to research by Cisco, video will make up 80 percent of consumer internet traffic by 2019 [1].

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1. 2nd person 2. Directions to support visuals 3. Active voice  4. Short sentences  5. Memorable characters 6. Voiceover artists 7. use recording equipment

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Most corporate eLearning courses, and even adult continuing-education eLearning, involve an audio track, mostly as voiceover for video and also for animated characters. As a result, many eLearning professionals find themselves writing audio scripts as part of their work.

However, there's a lack of formal training for instructional designers about how to write an audio script that keeps the audience's attention and enhances learning. In this article, we will provide 10 tips for writing better eLearning audio scripts.

Writing for voiceover

Writing for voiceover is different from writing text that a learner will read; it's writing for the ear, not the eye. But when you learn to write for the ear, you become a better writer, even when you're writing material for reading on a screen.

Tip 1: Second person

In English, this means directing the script at the learner and using the word "you." You might also sometimes use a directive, where the "you" is implied. This is like a command: "Do this!" Writing in the second person means that you have to know who the target audience is and what they will do differently as a result of the course. Audio scripts are more memorable when you tell participants what they need to do and why. Listen to these two audio segments that demonstrate the difference between second person and third person.

Tip 2: Directions

eLearning audio is meant to support and enhance the visuals and is rarely the main event (unless you're doing a podcast). I can't tell you the number of times that we've reviewed eLearning courses and it's obvious that the scriptwriter didn't know what would be on the screen when the script is playing because the script doesn't support the visuals. In order to write a good audio script, you have to know the elements on the screen, where they are positioned, their labels, and what the learner is supposed to do with them. If you're writing a script for a particular authoring tool (for example Captivate, Articulate, or Lectora), go to the tool's website, view sample interactions, and write the script to explain how your selected interaction works. The script needs to match the screen, otherwise it causes cognitive dissonance for the learner and they focus more on trying to figure out what to do than what you are trying to teach them.

Tip 3: Conditional logic

A conditional logic statement tells a learner to do something when or if certain conditions are met. "When" and "if" are the key words. Studies show that if you state the condition after the action, a large percentage of the participants will do the action without listening to the condition. People live in a busy world and often try to take shortcuts. With conditional logic statements, the "if" and the "when" are the most important part of the teaching, so this part of the statement should come first, before the action statement. A common instance of this is that your screen directions should be, "When you've completed the exercise, click the Next button." If you write, "Click the Next button when you've completed the exercise," at least some participants will click Next before they listen to the rest of the sentence. Listen to these audio segments and note your reactions to the action statements when they come before or after the condition.

Tip 4: Active voice

Active voice specifies what or who is doing the action. Using active voice is all about clarity. You need to tell learners whether they are supposed to do the action or whether someone else is supposed to do the action. The "who" is just as important as the "what." Read these two examples and notice that in the passive example, who does the action is unclear.

Active: Product engineers test products during development

Passive: Products are tested during development

When using the passive voice, a product engineer might take this course and would not know that this task is her job. Or a manufacturing line worker might listen to this passive sentence and think that testing is his job.

Also keep in mind that narrators should be active and not passive. Passive voice can sound dull and scholarly, but writing the same sentence in active voice will make it more interesting and easier on the ear.

Tip 5: Short sentences

Run-on sentences are difficult to read when they are in print. They are even more difficult to comprehend while listening to them. When sentences are too long, participants can easily get confused and stop paying attention. When writing audio scripts, shorter sentences are generally better than longer ones. If you have a compound sentence, break it into two sentences instead of keeping it as one. A compound sentence has two independent clauses joined by a coordinating word, such as "and" or "but."

Tip 6: Characters

Make your characters memorable. A memorable character can be fundamental to propel interest in a story. What makes a character memorable? Think about it. What characters do you remember from movies or TV? Why do you remember them? Was it their quirky qualities? Was it how they talked? Characters can make points that can truly be made no other way in eLearning.

Here's an example of a character who proved memorable to learners: Santa Fe Community College created a how-to program about the installation of home insulation. Most learners had only a GED or high school diploma and weren't used to learning online. This was a flipped course with an online component, then a classroom practicum. Getting the learners to do the online component was difficult. The writers invented a character named Carlito. Carlito didn't pay attention to his training and consequently he made frequent errors on the job. The key message was "don't be a Carlito," and it was memorable because of the humor and short duration of the "episodes." To view an example, click the link below.

Tip 7: Storyline

There's very little difference between storytelling thousands of years ago by ancient cultures and an eLearning story told today. Ancient cultures used stories so that their descendants would remember the lessons of their culture and history. The same is true today. Telling a relevant story is one of the most memorable learning methods. Stories should have these three parts:

A beginning that introduces the characters and the plot

A middle that includes some conflict or controversy

An ending that resolves the problem

Tip 8: Voiceover artists

Many (too many) eLearning developers are using voices that just don't have the emotional impact to tell the story. That's worse than boring. You can have the greatest script in the universe, but if it doesn't have emotional impact, it will fall flat on learner's ears. Many voiceover artists are more in love with their own voices than they are with "selling" the script they're reading. Good voiceover is a godsend. Bad voiceover is worse than having no voice at all. If you're going to use voiceover talent, find someone who can and will give some emotion to the script. The voice doesn't need to be deep and totally professional sounding; it just needs to sound real.

Tip 9: Recording equipment

Recording good audio requires a small investment (about $300); buy a decent digital recorder and a microphone. Recorders like Zoom or Tascam come with the added benefit of having built-in condenser microphones that sound pretty good. You will still need an external microphone, though. NEVER use your computer "microphone" to record. The sound recorded by these microphones is noticeably inferior. It's always easy to make a good recording sound bad with distortion, echo, etc., but it's impossible to make a poor recording into a good recording. Start with the best quality you can.

Tip 10: Sound effects

Since we almost never (almost) hear a single sound in isolation, sound effects (SFX) and ambient sounds are extremely important. Our environment surrounds us with sounds. Many are subtle, like the sound of air flowing through HVAC ducts, traffic rumbling outside, or rain on a roof. If you watch Mad Men (or most modern shows), you should close your eyes and listen to the soundtrack. It's very complex, with layers of sound, some louder, some softer, but layers and layers of sound that imitate the environment the actors are acting in. As training developers and designers, we should try to emulate this as much as we can.

Want more? How about a class?

To learn more about how to write and produce an audio script that is engaging and memorable, sign up for our eLearning Guild Academy course on Scriptwriting and Audio Production for eLearning starting in September.

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Top Tips for Producing Better eLearning Audio

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Most corporate eLearning courses, and even adult continuing-education eLearning, involve an audio track, mostly as voiceover for video and also for animated characters. As a result, many eLearning professionals find themselves writing audio scripts as part of their work.

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Adding a face to your module will add interest and motivation for learners. It gives them a person to connect with, in much the same way they would to an instructor or mentor in a more traditional setting. The avatar also can present material in a more conversational tone, perhaps even building up a story that will further engage learners and encourage knowledge retention.

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You may be wondering what else you can do to motivate your learners. Something you may not have considered is the use of avatars.
Now, when someone says "avatar," it can mean many different things. Google defines it as "an icon or figure representing a particular person in computer games, Internet forums, etc." However, in e-learning, the term "avatar" can also refer to a type of virtual coach. This virtual coach can be a valuable asset for learners.

Using Avatars

An avatar can be an important device for presenting an e-learning lesson. Adding a face to your module will add interest and motivation for learners. It gives them a person to connect with, in much the same way they would to an instructor or mentor in a more traditional setting. The avatar also can present material in a more conversational tone, perhaps even building up a story that will further engage learners and encourage knowledge retention.

Here are just some highlights on how avatars can aid e-learning:

guide the learner through the course

present content for the lesson

pose questions

provide tips

prompt reflection on the subject

speak directly to the learner

use a conversational tone that is appropriate for the topic.

Creating an avatar

Depending on your needs and budget, there is a whole range of methods you could use to create an avatar for a course. The avatar could take the form of a cartoon, a series of still photographs, a 3D character, or a video of an actor. It could use a narrated voice, a computer-simulated voice, or a series of speech bubbles. It could be animated or use stock photography. With a little creativity, you'll find that there are many tools at your disposal to help you create the avatar your course needs.

The important thing to keep in mind is that your avatar should be instructionally sound. However you decide to create the character, make sure it doesn't distract from the material you're trying to present. For instance, a wacky cartoon character may look interesting, but doing a lot of crazy flips and gliding by on ice skates may take away from a module on compliance training.

In other words, keep it subtle. Your learners will notice if you're trying too hard. For instance, using a doctor as an avatar for medical compliance training would be more relevant. So, create a character that your learners can connect to, either as a peer or a mentor. Then, make sure your avatar presents content in a clear, logical way.

Research on avatars

But are avatars really that effective for learners? There is a growing body of research on the topic of using virtual coaches in e-learning.

In the book E-Learning and the Science of Instruction, authors Ruth Colvin Clark and Richard E. Mayer describe the use of pedagogical agents to apply the personalization principle to training modules. Pedagogical agents are "on-screen characters who help guide the learning processes during an instructional episode."

Clark and Mayer believe that the use of an on-screen agent will engage learners to connect with the conversational tone of the lesson. This connection will motivate them to try to understand what this perceived "conversational partner" is saying to them. The authors suggest that the on-screen agents should have a "voice" that is narrated in a conversational style, and that the agent should move in a human rather than a mechanical fashion.

Karl Kapp, author of The Gamification of Learning and Instruction, insists that more than one avatar can be beneficial for learners. Each avatar should act in a different role to support the learner throughout the lesson. For instance, one avatar could be in the role of a mentor, teaching and guiding learners through new material. Meanwhile, another character would play the role of a "friend" who encourages learners and cheers them on, possibly giving advice and another perspective.

Adding avatars to your e-learning

Avatars may not be the solution for every e-learning module. However, using some type of virtual coach can benefit your learners in a variety of ways. It can make the lesson seem more relevant by presenting it in a realistic, conversational way. It can motivate your learners by encouraging them and presenting them with challenges.

More important, they can help with knowledge retention by providing a context and presenting the lesson in a more memorable fashion. Overall, I think avatars are worth considering for your e-learning design.

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You may be wondering what else you can do to motivate your learners. Something you may not have considered is the use of avatars. Now, when someone says "avatar," it can mean many different things. Google defines it as "an icon or figure representing a particular person in computer games, Internet forums, etc."

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This avatar was created for free from https://avatarmaker.com/

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How much are you currently using video, audio and avatars in your eLearning courses? In what way would you change the use of these tools?   In the courses I have undertaken myself I have not come across any avatars. Video yes.  In the courses I am developing (mainly responsible for content) there is limited use of video . No avatars. However, learning more about avatars and how these could be used was interesting.

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In this level we look at some different types of media and how they can be used to improve the user experience. This includes the use of video, audio, text-to-speech and avatars.

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1.    LXD recognizes that training is not always the solution.

2. LXD is human-centered.

3. LXD insists on inclusive design.

4. LXD seeks to create a positive and meaningful user experience.

LXD emphasizes that learning is a journey.

6. LXD relies on research-based findings to make design decisions.

7. LXD seeks input from users and participants.

8. LXD uses real-world metrics to measure performance improvement.

9. LXD recognizes the value of sharing and social engagement.

10. LXD is innovative and flexible.

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How did the term learning experience design (LXD) originate and what does it mean? In a search through academic databases, I found a mention of the phrase in an Educational Technology article from 2002 (McLellan, 2002). The author, Hillary McLelllan, explains how to apply the art of designing experiences to education and training. She discusses the importance of intentionally shaping the experience so that the learner leaves with something to remember.

Nearly two decades later, we are still exploring how to best shape experiences that help people learn. In the midst of this era of discovery, some principles have solidified and are now considered best practices. Perhaps learning experience design is the embodiment of what is best and most effective from the merging of instructional design and the many disciplines in its Venn diagram. This is not a new label to be pasted on old methods, but a new definition for an evolved mindset, improved practices and a broader perspective.

What are the important principles of learning experience design? I'll list the principles that stand out to me. If you blog or care to comment, please take this as a starting point and share the principles that embody learning experience design to you. Many of these principles are aspirational, in the sense that we may not have the opportunity to apply them in every situation. But, they serve as crucial guideposts for how we want to practice now and in the future.

1. LXD recognizes that training is not always the solution.

In the world of workplace training and education, there are many problems that cannot be solved with learning interventions. For example, a demotivating work environment, inadequate communication, or poorly designed software require changes that need more than a training solution. It is important to recognize the root cause of a problem and to communicate it to stakeholders. Although we may not be able to offer a solution, we should be able to refer the stakeholder to the proper channels. That's one of many reason it is important for learning experience designers to build relationships throughout an organization.

2. LXD is human-centered.

Rather than focusing on content development, human-centered design has a deep focus on the people they will serve. A human-centered design practice:

Builds empathy with participants, users and learners

Gets immersed in their world to learn from them

Understands the challenges, needs, feelings and pain points of the audience

Acknowledges their intelligence, talents and experiences

3. LXD insists on inclusive design.

As a discipline that embodies our best practices, inclusive design must have a place here. Inclusive design is a mindset and a practice that considers the diversity of human ability, age, race, culture, language and gender when making design decisions. For more on this, check out Getting Started with Inclusive Design (listen or read the transcript).

4. LXD seeks to create a positive and meaningful user experience.

The learner's experience is the totality of interactions a person has with every aspect of their intentional learning journey. This takes into consideration a person's motivation for gaining competence (internal or external), the context in which they learn, the ease of accessing what they need, the support they receive and the quality of their interactions with other learners, mentors and subject-matter experts. These are the touch points we can shape to create a positive and meaningful experience.

5. LXD emphasizes that learning is a journey.

Although learning professionals have referenced the forgetting curve since the beginning of time, we haven't done much about it. We continue to provide one-off courses with little support, long workshops, and sleep-inducing videos of corporate leaders.

Although the forgetting curve is not a strict progression and is dependent on the learners, their cognitive experience and motivation (Thalheimer, 2017), we know that one learning intervention is rarely sufficient for building long-term capabilities.

In the book, Design Thinking for Training and Development, authors Boller and Fletcher write, "Learning is a journey, but it's treated like an event." They describe a learning journey model that is based on sound instructional science. By adopting a long-term mindset, we can help people plan and pursue their own learning journey. See my book review.

6. LXD relies on research-based findings to make design decisions.

We've reached a point in our industry where learning research is well-disseminated. Proven methods like spaced learning, retrieval practice, scaffolding and worked examples are familiar to many practitioners. Learning experience design relies on instructional science and cognitive psychology to understand learning and to design and develop experiences. For more on this, listen to How to Practice Evidence-Informed Learning Design or download the transcript.

7. LXD seeks input from users and participants.

A key aspect of learning experience design is the ability to rid oneself of assumptions and biases. Getting input from audience members is one of the best ways to ensure our solution will support participants on their learning journey. We borrow tools from UX design, like personas and empathy maps to gain insight to participants. We can then combine their input with our understanding of how people learn, to craft an effective solution.

8. LXD uses real-world metrics to measure performance improvement.

As a performance-based practice, our field will advance when we consistently demonstrate that our work is making a difference. This means that training, support and other interventions must be in alignment with the organization's mission and goals. Then we can use available metrics to evaluate the effectiveness of our approach.

When the data we need is available, we will need to collect it, when possible. As we analyze changes over time, we can show our competence by reporting on what we've achieved and what we have not. Then dig in and figure out how to do it better.

9. LXD recognizes the value of sharing and social engagement.

We know that when people collaborate and communicate about what they are learning, it personalizes and strengthens their network of knowledge. A forward-looking practice offers opportunities for people to socially engage. By creating, promoting or encouraging communities of practice, learning through social media and interest groups, we can help transform insecure learners into self-directed participatory learners. This is a gift that will never end.

10. LXD is innovative and flexible.

LXD practitioners can be change agents affecting the core of an organization. A change agent has a vision for how things can be. A change agent will break down silos to collaborate, work with and learn from people in other fields. We will innovate to generate the best solution to a given problem, even if it is a completely new solution. We will try to instill a culture of learning wherever we work. And when constrained, as we often are, we will try to make small inroads, even when it's difficult to be patient.
References:

1. McLellan, H. Staging Experiences: A Proposed Framework for Designing Learning Experiences. Educational Technology, v42 n6 p30-37 Nov-Dec 2002. (Republished in Narrative in Instructional Design.)

2. Thalheimer, W. How Much Do People Forget? 2010. https://www.worklearning.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/How-much-do-people-forget-v12-14-2010.pdf.

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10 Principles of Learning Experience Design

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How did the term learning experience design (LXD) originate and what does it mean? In a search through academic databases, I found a mention of the phrase in an Educational Technology article from 2002 (McLellan, 2002). The author, Hillary McLelllan, explains how to apply the art of designing experiences to education and training.

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The key skills of a Learning Experience Designer go beyond those of traditional Instructional Designer. These additional skills come from Learning Experience Design’s parent disciplines, learning science, design thinking, user experience design (UX), content design and curation, learning technology, evaluation, and data analytics.

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Learning Experience Design is becoming "a thing." More and more folks are changing their titles from Instructional Designer to Learning Experience Designer. What is Learning Experience Design, anyway? Why the change? What's the difference? In this webinar, Dr. Marty Rosenheck shared what it takes to become a Learning Experience Designer and steps you can take to get there.

We had a ton of audience questions and engagement during this webinar! Marty followed up here on some questions that we didn't have time to address during the webinar, and you can also join in on the LinkedIn discussion here and see one attendee's amazing sketched notes from the webinar here.

What is the difference in the skill set of an Instructional Designer (ID) vs Learning Experience Designer (LXD)?

The key skills of a Learning Experience Designer go beyond those of traditional Instructional Designer. These additional skills come from Learning Experience Design's parent disciplines, learning science, design thinking, user experience design (UX), content design and curation, learning technology, evaluation, and data analytics.
Don't worry, a Learning Experience Designer doesn't need to be an expert in all of these areas.
He or she just needs to master a couple of them, have a working knowledge of the others, and tap into a team of experts for the rest when needed.

Why is it that companies are either resistant to on-the-job training (OJT, the 70% in 70:20:10) or rely only on it? How prevalent is it that L&D professionals work with the business on the 70% as well?

I've worked with companies who focus primarily on formal training and others who have had almost no formal training and rely completely on on-the-job learning. There are problems with each.

The issue with formal training is that only a small portion of it actually transfers to the job. And whether it is planned for or not, after formal training, people go back and learn on the job by trial and error and asking for help from others.

While on-the-job learning is authentic, it tends to be a very haphazard, inefficient way of learning, taking a long time with casualties along the way.

Learning Experience Designers can bridge the gap by designing a systematic set of formal, informal, and on-the-job experiences. Learning and Development folks can have a great impact by working with the business and managers to guide people to the right set of work experiences, and providing coaching, feedback, and content the learners need.

Do we need to have an in-depth knowledge about the learner before we create a course?

Two of the parent disciplines of Learning Experience Design are design thinking and user experience design. They are both centered on a deep understanding of the user (in our case, the learner). This is very important. Without understanding your audience, you may design learning that you and your internal clients think is terrific, but the learners either don't use it or grudgingly use it. Worse, they don't apply it to their work at all. To avoid this, it's worth investing some time in understanding the users, their goals and motivations, their level of experience, and their context to make sure that the learning experiences that you design are actually going to be used and will be effective.

Watch the webinar recording now to learn more about instruction design versus learning experience design:

The eLearning Brothers Custom Solutions team can help you bring more elements of learning experience design into your training. Contact us for more information!

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Webinar: Learning Experience Design versus Instructional Design

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Learning Experience Design is becoming "a thing." More and more folks are changing their titles from Instructional Designer to Learning Experience Designer. What is Learning Experience Design, anyway? Why the change? What's the difference? In this webinar, Dr. Marty Rosenheck shared what it takes to become a Learning Experience Designer and steps you can take to get there.

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When working with large amounts of data, precision is key. The same is true of the art of data visualization: size, shape, shade, hue-the tiniest details of a visualization can radically alter how information is perceived and understood. Which is why colour is an important aspect to consider when it comes to information design.

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When working with large amounts of data, precision is key. The same is true of the art of data visualization: size, shape, shade, hue-the tiniest details of a visualization can radically alter how information is perceived and understood.

Which is why color is an important aspect to consider (read: obsess over) when it comes to information design. "The overarching lesson for data design is that the color is there to help you understand the data," says Maureen Stone a color expert and research manager at the data visualization company Tableau. "It's there as a visual cue for what the data means. So I always tell designers the first thing they need to do is figure out what is the color doing? What is its function?"

Designers may think their use of color is meaningless, but it can have emotional side effects that influence how readers understand the data.

Stone's job is to work with information designers at Tableau to create and chose the best colors for data visualizations. She runs a lab within the R&D arm of the company that is dedicated to researching color specifically as it relates to data. Lately, they've been applying their color research to creating the color palette options in the latest version of the company's data viz software, Tableau 10.0.

When I ask Stone over the phone what type of function color might have in terms of data visualization, she points out a few common ones: Is it being used to discriminate between categories? Or is it assigning value along a scale, using different shades of the same color to indicate more or less of something? Perhaps its only function is to serve as an unassuming background color against which color-coded categories can "pop."

Determining the function is a first necessary step, but that decision opens up a whole world of more specific choices that can profoundly impact how the visualization is perceived. Here are the most important considerations, according to Stone.

One of the key things to keep in mind when choosing color for a data visualization is making sure the colors are "semantically resonant," as Stone puts it, with the data they are representing. Put simply, that means that designers need to pay heed to the relationship between a color and the thing that the color is being used for.

A simple example of this is a bar graph comparing the price of vegetables. Rendering the broccoli bar in green and the corn bar in yellow is consistent with our color-food associations. Switching the colors-so that broccoli is represented by yellow and corn is green-would be confusing. Another very common example hails from heat map-style graphics, like this one made by Trulia to visualize commute times, where red is associated with negative conditions and green or blue are associated with the positive. Context counts, too. If you're charting this quarter's earnings from the computer giant Apple, you'd do well to color the data gray to correspond with the brand and its shiny devices, rather than the red or green associated with the fruit.

Some concepts, of course, aren't strongly associated with a particular color. Designers might interpret that as an opportunity for free creative reign, but Stone sees it as a chance to use data to dig deeper under the surface level of our word-color associations. As part of a research project from 2015, Stone and fellow Tableau research scientist Vidya Setlur came up with an algorithm that generates "semantically meaningful colors" by measuring color name frequencies from Google n-grams, then retrieving a representative color from Google Images.

An n-gram search for the word "yellow," for example, comes back with a strong association with "taxi," among others. A Google image search for taxi, meanwhile, will bring up photos of various colored taxis (some newer cabs in New York, for example, are lime green) but with a higher percentage of yellow cabs. Stone and Setlur created an algorithm that "clusters" all of those images together and comes up with the strongest color match: in this case, a bright yellow.

Even if you don't happen to have your own linguistic color algorithm, you can usually deduce if there is a correlation from between concept and color. It's only smart to use it.

When it comes to colors used for data science, you need to discriminate: The colors should be different enough from one another so that they're easy to tell apart in a visualization. When choosing colors for data, Stone maps them out using color space, or a modeling tool that shows the full range of colors. If the colors are close together in color space-green and yellow are right beside each other, for instance-they're also perceptually close. And it's best not to use two colors that are perceptually close together in a data viz.

"What we discover is as you see colors at small sizes they become less colorful," Stone says.

One real-world example of this idea comes from a 2015 infographic showing the most comprehensive "tree of life" to date. In it, thousands of lines on a graph represent every known species on earth-from the most basic bacteria to the most complex of metazoa. To give a very detailed glance at the evolution of life in a comparatively tiny graph, the researchers behind the project seemingly chose the colors to contrast with one another. The red of bacteria is beside the blue of metazoa-two colors on the opposite ends of the color spectrum. The colors help to clarify the huge amount of data.

When choosing or creating color for data, Stone says it's important to remember what she calls the "paint chip effect." Logically, if you want to paint your wall a bright yellow, the color you choose is going to look much brighter once it's covering an entire room than it does on a little paint chip. Similarly, a color will look different as a tiny block on a map legend than it does covering an entire state on a map.

"What we discover is as you see colors at small sizes they become less colorful," Stone says. The variable here is the color's chroma, or measurement of colorfulness by dimension. An electric blue racing stripe, for example, has a high chroma, while a muted grayish-blue has a low chroma. When used at a smaller size, the chroma for the latter would need to be increased so that it's bright enough to be distinct. The electric blue, when enlarged, would need a slightly decreased chroma so it doesn't "yell at you," as Stone puts it.

It's no surprise that colors can evoke emotional connections -blues and purples are perceived as more pleasant than yellows, for example. Bright green can be seen as aggressive or playful. As Stone puts it, "everyone in the design realm knows that color has affect, and they have examples and rules" based on that knowledge. "One question is: Even on a bar chart, does that count?"

The answer, according to Stone, is yes. In conjunction with researchers at Simon Fraser University in British Columbia, Canada, she conducted a study that asked people to color bar charts so that they conveyed certain feelings, like calm, playfulness, or negativity. Their research showed certain patterns: People selected more muted colors for a calmer bar chart and brighter colors (high in chroma) for a playful chart. Meanwhile, they chose dark colors to convey negativity. Using this information to color charts in a way that is consistent with the data can emphasize the message being conveyed.

Coloring a chart in a palette that induces calmness may not be as functionally important to data visualization as color distinctness or semantic correlation. But considering all of these factors together will help people absorb and understand data more easily, Stone says. Designers may think that their use of color is meaningless, but it could have emotional side effects that influence how readers understand the data. Take this infographic visualizing the number of atomic weapons in the world in a given year. The designer, Reddit user drwtsn, chose the colors yellow, black, and white-colors commonly associated with negativity-instead of a pleasant palette of mint green and robin egg blue or the bright reds or intense oranges you might associate with nuclear war.

As Stone shows through her research, the fascinating science behind color theory isn't dulled by the cold mathematics of big data. Instead, it marries art and science in a way that is both functional and aesthetically pleasing.

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How To Use Color To Prove Your Point, From A Data Viz Expert

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When working with large amounts of data, precision is key. The same is true of the art of data visualization: size, shape, shade, hue-the tiniest details of a visualization can radically alter how information is perceived and understood. Which is why color is an important aspect to consider (read: obsess over) when it comes to information design.

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1. Visual cues
2. Embrace whitespace
3. Order information
4. Design by choice
5. Consider font size, type, colour
6. Consider using lines
7. Contrast
8. Scale and position

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https://huzzaz.com/collection/content-curation-what-is-it
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-harness-power-user-generated-content-ugc-learning-rk-prasad/
https://www.growthengineering.co.uk/user-generated-content/

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When adults learn, they want engaging, useful, and convenient training content. This means short, sharp, and practical materials that they get to access anytime, anywhere.

But if you've developed online training courses before, you know that creating eLearning content can be the trickiest part of the course design process. So, hands up if you're looking for some great training content development tips.

How to create eLearning content your learners will love

The list of tips and tricks that make some eLearning course content better than others is, well, long! But we have a few favorites.

These are our top picks for ways to ensure that your course content leads to more engaged learning and even a little fun.

1. Start with "why"
2. Find your "who"
3. Create an intuitive learning path
4. Cater to all learning styles
5. Try active learning
6. Keep it short and simple
7. Make quality a priority
8. Speak the right language
9. Be original

Let's look at them one by one and explore how they can help you create eLearning courses that will hook employees' attention.

1. Start with "why"

Everyone is busy. Including your learners.

This means that your target audience needs to understand what they'll learn, how they'll learn it, and why it will be useful to them before they start their course. Once they understand the "why", they'll be more emotionally invested and engaged in learning.

A useful way to demonstrate the purpose behind training is to organize eLearning content into learning outcomes (LOs). Using verbs from Bloom's Taxonomy, you can develop focused learning objectives that guide the choice of content.

If you're unfamiliar with Bloom's Taxonomy, you can learn more about the classification tool here.

But first, here's an example.

Imagine that the LO is to create an employee development plan. The word "create" tells us that a set of online notes probably won't be enough, because we're expecting learners to apply their skills.

So we might also include an online workshop or webinar, where learners get to practice their skills by tackling a case study with the help of a subject matter expert.

2. Find your "who"

Ah, the SME! The subject matter expert (SME) often plays a 'behind the scenes' role in creating eLearning courses. Many courses won't require that SMEs host live workshops, or record video lectures. But mask on or mask off, a subject matter expert is a critical tool for creating good eLearning course content.

An SME with oodles of insight, knowledge, and experience is bound to create an online course that is current, relevant, and probably downright addictive. Their own passion coats the eLearning content in a sort of glitter that makes it difficult to look away. Like that good book you just couldn't put down. But there's something else, too.

Make sure that your SME has enough of that little old thing called time! Great content takes careful thought and planning. So avoid an SME who's already operating overcapacity, and might feel the need to rush.

Build your online training courses in minutes with TalentLMS
The learning management system that's easy to set up, easy to use and easy to customize.

3. Create an intuitive learning path

Creating an online course isn't just about the content itself. It also matters how it's structured. Content that covers similar topics, and meets related LOs, should be grouped together in modules.

Start an eLearning module with simpler content, and then gradually increase the difficulty level until learners are able to practice their new skills or knowledge. This way, learners will build their knowledge at a manageable pace that makes them feel confident and rewarded for their learning efforts.

For example, the first content in a module might aim to equip learners with a basic understanding of a concept, or the ability to recall information. So, include definitions and explanations, and perhaps a few simple examples in the form of notes or an infographic.

As the module progresses, you can create eLearning content that's more focused on practice and opportunities for learners to gauge their own learning. Here you might try more practical content like quizzes with automated feedback.

4. Cater to all learning styles

To develop eLearning content that sticks, you simply have to be stylish! Because it's just about guaranteed that learners will have a variety of learning styles and preferences. Some people are visual learners, others prefer audio, and then there are those who like to get their feet wet. We call them kinesthetic learners.

A balance of visual, auditory, and kinesthetic eLearning content elements is the best way to involve everyone in the learning process and ensure all feel engaged. Present skills, knowledge, and concepts through a variety of video content, graphic content, written notes, and activities like branching scenarios and group assignments.

Most of the time, an LO is better suited to a specific content format. Like LOs that require learners to "list" information are better suited to written notes. But there can be some repetition when presenting content to cater to all three learning styles. Don't worry! Because this repetition can actually lead to better retention and improved understanding.

5. Try active learning

A lot of corporate training content is about as exciting as a rice cracker. But it doesn't have to be! By balancing the proportion of passive and active content, learners can actually become actively involved in their own learning process.

Passive content is content that simply needs to be consumed. Listening to a podcast, watching a video, or reading notes are all examples of passive learning content. On the other hand, active content is content that engages learners in thinking, problem-solving and practicing their knowledge and skills.

So, how do you create active content? Simulations are a good start. For example, in customer service training, present your team with a role-playing activity where one member is an unhappy customer and the other members need to find a solution.

You could also try making use of discussion forums and group assignments that get learners brainstorming and solving an issue together. Or, branching scenarios that allow learners to make decisions (and mistakes) so that they can learn from the outcomes.

Here are four examples of how to create an online course with interactive elements that engage learners:

When designed to encourage exploration, experimentation, and risk-taking, active eLearning course content can result in boosted motivation and performance, and a stronger community of collaboration.

6. Keep it short and simple

When it comes to online training content less is more. Based on research, learners prefer short training content over long, one-time training events. But creating less content can often be trickier than creating more of it. Because less content needs to be more focused, more concise, and more carefully selected.

So, one of the key stages of the eLearning course development process is deciding what to leave out. Only include content that is necessary for achieving learning outcomes. Nice-to-haves? Chuck 'em out! You can also leverage microlearning principles to create bite-sized chunks of content for a quick and flexible learning experience.

Remember, learners are busy, too. So, estimate the amount of time it would take to complete all content in the course (such as reading notes, watching videos, completing a quiz, etc.). If the total estimated time would send learners into a panic attack, you might want to consider cutting your content down.

7. Make quality a priority

Nobody wants to watch a poorly produced film, or read a book that's scattered with typos. So why would learners want their eLearning content to be any different? Besides, errors are distractions to the learning process and can result in an unpleasant learning experience.

So, whether it's filming a video, recording a podcast, developing an infographic, or writing notes, always add a sufficient level of quality assurance. Where there's voice (like talking head videos and podcasts), there should be no background noises that create distractions. For written content, get a fresh set of eyes to proofread. This will help to avoid those nasty spelling and grammatical errors.

8. Speak the right language

Learning content is only engaging when it speaks the language of the audience it's targeting. This means that it needs to be both understandable and relatable for the learner. Because when learners have to re-read a sentence or rewind a video until the penny drops, you risk losing their attention.

So, be sure to create content that's pitched at the right level, and uses terminology that your learners will understand. It's always a good idea to do some background research on your audience. But, if you're still not completely sure whether they'll have prior knowledge of a concept, rather take the simpler approach. If learners feel you're covering something that they already understand, they'll just skip on over to the next activity.

In courses that are very specialized, using industry lingo can make content more relatable, too. For example, in a specialized software engineering course, you could use terms like "noob" and "yak shaving" to speak the language of your learners.

9. Be original

We live in a world of content curation. With an endless supply of great videos, articles and online resources, it can be tempting to simply pick the content that relates to your topics and call it a course!

Now, content curation is not all bad. It can actually be very efficient, and often gives learners a more varied perspective and interesting collection of learning activities to engage with. But if your online course is truly going to skyrocket, you'll need it to be original.

Make sure that at least 50% of your eLearning course content is uniquely crafted by your subject matter expert. Write notes, create infographics, and film videos that learners wouldn't be able to find anywhere else!

Bonus tip: Pick the right tool. Discover our own suggestions on content creation tools in our Cheatsheet!

Conclusion

Sure, content creation can often be the most challenging of the eLearning course development process steps. But, you've never shied away from a challenge! So use these easy tips on how to create an online course, mix various content types, and watch your eLearning programs launch to success.

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9 Ways To Create eLearning Content Your Learners Will Love

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When adults learn, they want engaging, useful, and convenient training content. This means short, sharp, and practical materials that they get to access anytime, anywhere. But if you've developed online training courses before, you know that creating eLearning content can be the trickiest part of the course design process.

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Creative examples of presenting content

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Table of Contents in E-Learning RECAP #182: Challenge | Recap

This week's challenge asked course designers to share creative designs for table of contents menus. Examples include notecard designs, feline navigation, comic layouts, progress meters, gauges, and more!

Nancy Woinoski

Joanna Kurpiewska

Ricky Snodgrass

View project | Learn more | Ricky Snodgrass

View project | Learn more | Ricky Snodgrass

Rebekah Clarke

View project | Rebekah Clarke | Website

Angela Conrad

Stephanie Harnett

Ashi (Neha) Tandon

View project | Learn more & download | Ashi (Neha) Tandon | Website | @ashi_tandon

Maggie Baker

View project | Maggie Baker

Pooja Bais

View project | Pooja Bais

Charles Hamper

Haluk Ünal

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Tania Vercoelen

View project | Download | Tania Vercoelen | Website | @TaniaVercoelen

Eric Quarrell

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Parama Banerjee

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Rachael Vergara

View project | Rachael Vergara

Douglas Audirsch

Aman Vohra

Omie Drawhorn

View project | Omie Drawhorn

Evangelos Neochoritis

View project | Evangelos Neochoritis

Eileen Meliksetian

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Richard Watson

View project | Learn more | Richard Watson | Website | @rwatsonID

Jeffrey Riley

Micha van den Enk

View project | Micha van den Enk

Melissa May

View project | Melissa May

New to the E-Learning Challenges?

The weekly challenges are ongoing opportunities to learn, share, and build your e-learning portfolios. You can jump into any or all of the previous challenges anytime you want. I'll update the recap posts to include your demos.

If you have a blog, please consider writing about your challenges. We'll link back to your posts so the great work you're sharing gets even more exposure. If you share your demos on Twitter, try using #ELHChallenge so your tweeps can track your e-learning coolness.

Share Your Custom Table of Contents Menus!

The table of contents challenge is still open! If you have one or more ideas you'd like to share, please jump over to the original challenge and post your links in the comments section. I'll update this recap page to include your examples.

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25 Creative Table of Contents Design Examples in E-Learning #182

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Table of Contents in E-Learning RECAP #182: Challenge | Recap This week's challenge asked course designers to share creative designs for table of contents menus. Examples include notecard designs, feline navigation, comic layouts, progress meters, gauges, and more!

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What changes would you make to your eLearning content design based on what we have explore in this level?
Not a fan of content curation becoming the learner's responsibility. Greater consideration to be given to the use of colour for impact and UX design principles.

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An eLearning authoring tool is essentially software that allows developers to build eLearning modules that can be uploaded to a Learning Management System (or similar type of platform). These tools are sometimes referred to as Rapid Authoring Tools.

An eLearning module is a learning experience that a learner engages with by working through a series of screens of information that can be presented a number of different ways using text, images, video and audio. eLearning modules are published as ZIP files and then uploaded to the Learning Management System.

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eLearning Authoring Solutions For Your Organization

Not so long ago, eLearning authoring tools were just emerging, which meant training managers were quite limited in their options when creating new material for their company. However, the industry has come a long way since then. One of the major advances is the introduction of cloud-based tools for authoring content. But some organizations still swear by traditional desktop tools. So when it's time to select your eLearning authoring solution, you're faced with two choices: either you go with a desktop software tool that is installed directly on your local machines or you can go with a cloud-based provider that makes all the tools-and your content-available from anywhere using internet browsers. Several factors come into play when choosing which one is the best for your organization. Let's dive into it.

What's The Difference Between Desktop And Cloud Authoring Tools?

eLearning authoring is not the only industry that has been hit by the innovation of cloud-based tools. POS systems, accounting software, and even design software have all had their own moments of cloud-based revolution. But what differences can you expect in terms of experience?

1. Pricing

Typically, desktop software requires a large upfront fee. Some companies require you to renew your license each year, while others allow you to keep older versions of the software and only pay when you want or need an upgrade. On the other hand, cloud-based solutions usually allow the flexibility of monthly or yearly subscriptions, although desktop tools have started to move in that direction. You are not so much buying a product as you are subscribing to a service, hence the term ''Software-as-a-Service'' (SaaS).

2. Accessibility

Because of the nature of desktop installs, desktop software is automatically accessible whether or not you have an internet connection. Of course, some features may only be available online, and in this case, the only accessibility benefit of desktop tools falls flat. Why? As soon as you are away from your machine, you no longer have access to the authoring tool. If you require access on several machines, a desktop authoring solution will require you to purchase several licenses for several machines, whereas cloud-based licenses work anywhere you have an online connection. In an age of growing remote teams, accessibility from anywhere and anytime is key.

3. Data Safety And Backup

From the moment you install an authoring solution locally on your desktop, you'll be required to perform your own backups to protect your data. In some cases, some companies may offer backup solutions, but most of the time, you're on your own. For sensitive data, this means you're also in charge of hosting and protecting your own servers. If something happens to your hardware, your data could be compromised, leaked, or destroyed completely. As the name suggests, cloud-based authoring tools store your eLearning content on the cloud. The responsibility to protect the data from cyber attacks or damage falls on the software company, not on you. And since these companies specialize in software, they often have ways to protect your data. In most cases, these cloud-based authoring solutions will back up your eLearning content 24/7.

4. Software Updates

Cloud-based authoring tools won't require you to perform updates since they are not directly installed onto your machine. However, you'll be in charge of updating your desktop tools. In many cases, this requires an IT professional, since the process is not always simple. You can also run into issues if your machine is no longer powerful enough to support the newest updates.

5. Mac Users

If your organization uses Macs instead of PC desktops, your choice of authoring tools gets dramatically reduced. Not many great eLearning authoring solutions exist at the moment for Mac. On the other hand, cloud-based tools can be accessed via a browser, which means any type of machine can support it.

6. The User Experience

To have great User Experience with a desktop authoring solution, you need to have a powerful machine. Otherwise, you will experience slow previewing and publishing that will bog down your entire workflow. In many cases, desktop eLearning tools force you to toggle between your building mode and your preview mode instead of giving you a single at-a-glance view-this further slows down your process compared to user-friendly cloud-based tools.

7. Customization

One of the best features to come out of cloud-based solutions is the ability to integrate tools with other third-party apps. This means the customization possibilities are virtually endless. The same can't be said for desktop authoring tools. The software you get is all you get. Some tools may allow you to integrate third-party apps, but these possibilities will be much more limited.

8. Users

When you have many users authoring eLearning content, each user will need a license for every single machine in the case of desktop tools. If you have many users, this can get confusing and expensive really fast.

9. Sharing And Publishing

Sharing and publishing your eLearning content is definitely a tough and lengthy process on desktop. Every time you want to update the content, you'll have to go through the exporting process all over again. There's no easy way to share the eLearning content with your organization either. This is where cloud-based eLearning really shines. In most cases, you can update-and share-your content with the click of a button. Employees who need to take the training can access it from anywhere you would like.

What To Think About Before Choosing Your Authoring Solution

Still not sure whether or not to take the plunge into cloud-based authoring tools? Here are 4 signs you could benefit from creating your eLearning content on the cloud:

1. You have a team of authors developing the content and you need team authoring features.

2. The authors in your organization are either completely or partially remote and need to access the tool from several locations and devices.

3. You don't have (or want) an IT department to manage the tool for you.

4. Your authoring team changes often, which means licenses need to be switched out on a regular basis.

Overall, cloud-based eLearning authoring solutions, like Koantic, are more flexible than desktop software and can easily scale up and down with your team.

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eLearning Authoring Solutions For Your Organization - eLearning Industry

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Not so long ago, eLearning authoring tools were just emerging, which meant training managers were quite limited in their options when creating new material for their company. However, the industry has come a long way since then. One of the major advances is the introduction of cloud-based tools for authoring content.

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Can't purchase modules separately. Storyline more complex with more features.

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Our creator tools make it simple to build online learning quickly and effectively. Start from templates on hundreds of topics that range from new hire onboarding to security compliance to create courses in minutes. Easily add interactive activities, quizzes, and other lean-forward moments that keep your learners engaged.

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Articulate 360 - One Subscription That Simplifies Every Aspect of Course Development

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Articulate 360 supports e-learning developers in every step of the course authoring process. One subscription includes all of Articulate's award-winning authoring apps plus much more.

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Nowadays, eLearning is considered one of the most cost-effective and efficient methods to teach people. This doesn't go only for millennials, but for people of all ages.

eLearning companies are well aware of this, so they produce myriads of new eLearning tools each year. However, we believe that some of the best eLearning products are those created by Articulate Inc.

There are numerous people who use these software applications. In addition, people often ask us to explain Articulate Storyline vs Articulate Rise vs Articulate Studio.

To assist in answering this question we decided to write an article that will cover the applications found in the Articulate 360 suite and the differences between them.

Articulate 360 suite includes Storyline, Rise, and Studio, so when you subscribe to it, you will have the option to create both simple and complex content.

But what exactly are the differences between Storyline, Rise, and Studio?

To answer this question, we need to consider three factors which influence and depend on each other. They make an equilateral triangle, so it is necessary to take a closer look at each of them.

These factors are:

Course Creator

Content

Learners

The first aspect is the course creator. In order to opt for any of these applications, you should consider your experience level, preferences, and creative skills.

Next, it is important to know what kind of content you want to create, how complex and interactive you want it to be, and how you would like to design it.

Finally, and most importantly, you need to know what your learners want, how they learn and what their needs are.

Only when you are familiar with all of these aspects will you be able to make the best choice for your particular situation.

What is Articulate Storyline?

Articulate Storyline is an all-around eLearning software application. It can help you create full-scale courses using amazing features that it offers.

In Storyline, you can basically create everything you can think of, in contrast to Rise and Studio, which are somewhat limited in that respect.

Storyline 360 Features

Storyline contains more than 2 million royalty-free assets (videos, icons, photos, and illustrations). It also has beautiful slide templates, characters, and animations.

This fantastic eLearning tool gives you the facilities to record the screen, edit videos, insert web apps, games and video content. You can do all this on your own or with your colleagues, thanks to the team slides option.

Interactive content is the staple of Storyline. You can use triggers to integrate different states into objects and modify them, as well as insert variables, dials, and sliders.

Storyline enables you to use creative quizzes to assess your learners whenever you want.

It is very important to note that Storyline supports right-to-left languages. Accessibility is also covered with Section 508/WCAG compliance, which is equivalent to WCAG (Level A, AA) accessibility used in Australia.

Finally, thanks to its responsive player, content created using Storyline is compatible with devices such as tablets and mobile phones as well as computers. So, if any of your learners would like to see the content in an Articulate Storyline mobile view, this the right choice for you and them.

This is just a short review of Articulate Storyline. If you would like to read about it extensively, go to our Articulate Storyline Ultimate Guide.

Articulate Storyline Pros and Cons
Pros

Create complex interactive content

All-round application

Rapid Development Tools

Numerous fantastic features

Vast media library

Compatible with all devices

Import presentations from PowerPoint

Right-to-left language support

Section 508/WCAG support

Cons

Only available with Articulate 360 subscription, although there is Storyline 3 which is a standalone version purchased under a perpetual licence

Can take time to learn advanced features

What Is Articulate Rise?

Articulate Rise 360 is one of the applications included in the Articulate 360 suite. Similar to Storyline, you can create courses that can be viewed on any device.

It is a web-based application that is accessed through a web browser (preferably Google Chrome, but other browsers work as well).

This means that you cannot create a course in Articulate Rise when you are offline. However, once you have created the course online, you can download it and use it offline.

Articulate Rise Features

Definitely, the best thing about Rise is that you can quickly create fully responsive courses by using templates. This will save you a lot of time if you need to create a course on a tight deadline.

The application will automatically adapt the course to every device ‒ a desktop computer, tablet or mobile phone. Therefore, Rise will adapt image and video size to each of your learners' devices.

In addition, it allows you to easily structure and build your courses online and see all publishing options and what they look like before you actually publish the course.

Another fantastic feature of this authoring tool is Articulate Rise blocks.

These learning components can be combined in different ways to create custom, unique and engaging lessons. From text to images and videos, these interactive elements will help to make your course engaging and interesting.

Also, adding a Storyline 360 module to Rise enables you to combine the best aspects of both tools. This way, learners can complete Storyline content in Rise courses based on the elements of the Storyline block.

There are many Articulate Rise interactions that you can use, such as timeline, sorting activity, process or labeled graphic.

Articulate Rise also allows you to create quizzes with different question types, add screencasts and engaging media content.

Collaboration with your colleagues is another useful possibility that Rise offers since two heads are better (and faster) than one.

Finally, you can export Rise content to SCORM or xAPI and import it to your LMS.

One important disadvantage of Rise is that it supports neither WCAG/Section 508 nor right-to-left languages. Therefore, if accessibility is important for your content, you should choose Storyline instead.

To see what a course created in Rise looks like, take a look at this Articulate Rise course example.

Articulate Rise Pros and Cons

It is obvious that Rise is different from Storyline in some aspects.
Pros

Easy to use

Saves you time

Great for beginner-level course creators

Vast media library

Prebuilt templates

Compatible with all devices

No installation required

Cons

Only available with Articulate 360 subscription

Limited possibilities

You must be online to create a course

No variables or triggers

No right-to-left language support

No Section 508/WCAG support

What Is Articulate Studio?

Articulate Studio 360 is another eLearning software application included in Articulate 360.

It is a tool that will help you create presentation-based courses. Just as with Rise, you can use it to deliver courses on every device your learners are using.

Articulate Studio Features

Studio 360 is the latest Studio application by Articulate. It was preceded by Articulate Studio '09 and Studio '13. However, the newest version has all the features of the two previous ones and many more.

It readily adapts to all devices and provides the ideal view on all of them. Also, its mobile-friendly player will hide sidebar menus and browser to deliver playback optimised for every mobile device.

Touchscreen gesture support enables your learners to easily drag, swipe and pinch-to-zoom on their devices.

Like with Storyline and Rise, you will have access to Articulate 360 library and be able to choose high-quality media content.

In general, Studio is great for importing content from other software. Presenter 360, an app within Studio 360, allows you to import content from PowerPoint, Flash movies, web objects, and other interactive content.

The timeline will enable you to simply synchronise audio, animations, and annotations.

Engage 360, another app within this tool, allows you to build interactions by adding media and text. You can change the size, colour themes, and fonts of the interactions.

With Quizmaker 360, one more app included in Studio, you can create quizzes when the time comes for assessment. Thanks to this app, it is very easy to create decision-making scenarios, surveys, quizzes, and drag-and-drop activities.

Finally, like Storyline but unlike Rise, Studio supports right-to-left languages, as well as Section 508/WCAG.

Articulate Studio Pros and Cons

Similar to Rise, Studio is limited in some aspects. However, it is also easy to use and doesn't require a high level of expertise.
Pros

Simple to use

Import presentations from PowerPoint

Great for beginner-level course creators and those familiar with PowerPoint

Vast media library

Add media, interactions, and quizzes easily

Compatible with all devices

Right-to-left language support

Section 508/WCAG support

Cons

Only available with Articulate 360 subscription

Limited possibilities

Storyline 360 vs Rise 360 vs Studio 360

Obviously, there are a lot of similarities between these three applications.

It is important to note that one feature common to all three tools is the facility to upload content to Articulate Review. This way, you can get feedback about your course and useful suggestions as to how to improve it.

However, there are many differences between the three tools that are worth mentioning. Knowing them will help you make a better choice when deciding on the tool you want to use.

Once again, we will observe these differences from three perspectives: course creator, content, and learners.

One on One Comparisons

Articulate Storyline 360 vs Articulate Rise 360

Course creators: If you are an experienced eLearning author, we recommend you use Storyline. It can be a little more complicated to use, but it gives amazing possibilities in return.

Also, if you want to create courses while offline, then you should choose Storyline.

On the other hand, if you are new to the world of eLearning authoring, you might like to begin with Rise. Using Rise, you can create simple courses quickly and easily.

Content: Storyline is great for creating engaging and interactive content. Interactions, triggers, motion paths, characters ‒ all these are included in Storyline and will allow you to create highly complex content.

However, if you need a simple course with prebuilt templates, then Rise is the right choice. Also, there is no better tool than Rise if you need content that will be fully responsive on all devices.

Learners: If your learners prefer interactive and complex content, go with Storyline. Also, if your learners include speakers of right-to-left languages or visually impaired people who use screen readers, then Storyline is your best pick.

Articulate Storyline 360 vs Articulate Studio 360

When it comes to these two, the differences are less noticeable. Both applications allow for interactivity and the option to publish to SCORM and HTML5.

However, there are some differences that need to be mentioned.

Course creators: Regarding this aspect, everything is the same as between Storyline and Studio.

If you are an experienced eLearning author with knowledge of PowerPoint-based or slide-based courses, choose Storyline.

If you are inexperienced but know how to work in PowerPoint, go with Studio.

Content: Content created in Storyline is highly customisable. It also contains more interactions and is more independent than content created in Studio.

On the other hand, in Studio, you can easily integrate content with audio. It is simpler to use, partly because of the linear presentation method.

Learners: Again, the difference is the same as between Storyline and Rise. If your learners like advanced content and interaction, go with Storyline.

However, if they prefer simpler courses, then you can't go wrong with Studio 360.

Articulate Studio 360 vs Rise

Now, when it comes to these two, things are not as clear. In fact, they are very similar and it is not so easy to recommend which one to use.

However, here are the most notable differences between them.

Course creators: Both tools are simple to use and thus perfect for people with less experience in eLearning authoring.

Still, if you prefer to use prebuilt templates, then Rise may be a better option for you.

On the other hand, if you prefer creating content in PowerPoint and then importing it along with other content, go with Studio.

Content: When it comes to content, these two are very similar. Still, if you want to create slightly more complex content with more interactions, pick Studio.

If, on the other hand, you need to create a course very quickly, you should opt for Rise.

Learners: Again, the difference in content complexity should not be your main concern when choosing between these two.

However, if you teach speakers of right-to-left languages or visually impaired people, then your clear choice is Studio 360.

Conclusion

All of the three eLearning authoring tools have something that sets them apart. Which one you will use will depend on your needs and those of your learners.

The storyline is for more experienced authors, allowing you to create highly complex content, full of interactions and variables.

If you would like to master Storyline, take a look at our Articulate Storyline Training Courses.

The rise is great for rookies since you can create a fully responsive course quickly and easily using prebuilt templates.

The studio is the best choice for those who want something in between. It offers some possibilities that Rise does not, but it is also a little more complicated to use.

On the other hand, it is easier to use than Storyline, but it also offers fewer possibilities.

Again, your choice will depend on your eLearning creative skills, the content you want to create and your learners' needs.

Ultimately, no matter which application you choose from the Articulate 360 Suite, you can be certain of creating fantastic content that will fully engage your learners.

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Articulate Storyline vs Articulate Rise vs Articulate Studio

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Nowadays, eLearning is considered one of the most cost-effective and efficient methods to teach people. This doesn't go only for millennials, but for people of all ages.

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Our creator tools make it simple to build online learning quickly and effectively. Start from templates on hundreds of topics that range from new hire onboarding to security compliance to create courses in minutes. Easily add interactive activities, quizzes, and other lean-forward moments that keep your learners engaged.

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Articulate 360 - One Subscription That Simplifies Every Aspect of Course Development

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Articulate 360 supports e-learning developers in every step of the course authoring process. One subscription includes all of Articulate's award-winning authoring apps plus much more.

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1. Decide on behaviours/ skills/attitudes you want people to do 2. Criteria within the badge that would promote those skills e.g. community activity 3. Break down into granular skills - consider interrelationship e.g. hierarchy 4. Consider hexagon, pie - consider relationship between them e.g. do they need to get all badges 5. Design a graphic for the badge (PNG file) & look at which platform this will be issued.

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Games vs game based learning vs gamification

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Games vs game based learning vs gamification

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games vs game-based learning vs gamification infographic

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games vs game-based learning vs gamification

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Games vs Game-based Learning vs Gamification | Infographic

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Games vs Game-based Learning vs Gamification, an infographic, is a simplified explanation to how these similar sounding terms differ.

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Make learning more personable, tell a story, include emotional engagement and empathy

Provide a narrative that users can identify with

Create simple, visually engaging interfaces with a human touch

Make the interface a pleasure to use so users want to come back

Design for ‘Flow’

Show visibility of progress, competition through achievements, levels and unlocking, add in rewards like badges

Design so the user feels they have a choice of pathway rather than just a linear one

Provide elements to be revealed, discovered or searched for

Good instructional design ‘chunks’ learning appropriately, and goes progressively deeper.

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Gamification is one of the hottest trends in Learning and Development this year, with over 30% of companies saying they are currently using it, 12% running trials and 53% hoping to make use of it in the next two years. But what's all the hype about and isn't it an expensive fad to implement?

There is confusion about what Gamification actually is as it gets mixed up with concepts like Serious Games, Gameful Design and just plain, ordinary games.

Gamification- using game mechanics to help motivate users to learn

Gameful Design- using design principles from games to make user interfaces more appealing and easy to use

Serious Games- simulations and immersive experiences that play through like a game whilst delivering learning experiences

Games- designed for fun and entertainment only.

Gamification

"The use of game mechanics and experience design to digitally engage and motivate people to achieve their goals" - Gartner

Why do people keep playing games, what makes them go back and try again? Gamification is not about creating games for people within your organisation to play, but capturing the essential elements of games to make learning more engaging and memorable.

If there is an emotional attachment to learning it makes it more powerful. You may not remember much about your journey to work today, but you will remember a day when the journey didn't go to plan. This is the power of affective learning. Emotion enhances memory.

Many games unfold as they progress thus creating a desire to know what's round the corner. With learning, don't reveal all at the start, include levels that need to be unlocked to reveal the next part. Where possible include 'discovery' with hotspots that the user has to search for.

Let people feel like they have a degree of control in the path they chose. Older eLearning developments tends linear - click next - progression. By allowing users to alter the path, or jump past things they've mastered it gives a more accomplished sense of control, which positively impacts motivation.

Providing a character to follow, empathise and identify with, brings a story to life and gives it meaning. Factual and dry narrative becomes more personable.

Most of us have a competitive side, even if we don't always admit to it. Competition can drive us to work harder and try again if we fail. There is a 'sweet spot' known as 'FLOW', that point when you are in the zone, between boredom and anxiety. Lots of games make use of this sweet spot, too hard and we give up, to easy and we get bored and forget it.

Games frequently demand that you redo something until you master it. Learning is like that, you start by scratching the surface, then revisit to find out more, and more, until you have mastery. If you try to give a big, in-depth chunk of learning all at once, very little will stick. However, if you 'chunk' the learning and revisit it, the potential for recall is much higher.

Levels and progress bars can help to visualise progress. By including these in a personalised dashboard the user has an overview of their progress and an understanding of what they still need to complete. Open Badges can be used as a mark of a level achievement, and these can be aggregated to show mastery.

Gameful Design

Gameful Design can also be referred to as playful design. It uses the principles of good games design interfaces to help inform interface design for other uses.

In games the interface needs to be simple so it doesn't impede game play. Most app games have a very low learning curve for the control interface. How to use the app is frequently built into the game mechanics so you get introduced to it a bit at a time.

Gameful design can add pleasure to using an interface, without altering the functionality. Big software developers are including more friendliness in their interfaces, which adds a fun element whilst removing none of the communication value.

Serious Games

"These games have an explicit and carefully thought-out educational purpose and are not intended to be played primarily for amusement" - Clark Abt (originator of the term serious games)

These type of games tell a story as they progress. They get the user to immerse themselves in another world (now sometimes quite literally through the use of Virtual Reality). These games have high motivation, short play duration and are designed to modify the user's behaviour rapidly with frequent feedback on performance. A good example is a game to get you to blood type patients effectively developed by the Nobel Foundation. These are presentations that we would recognise alongside traditional games, the difference being the incorporation of learning.

It is quite often these types of games that people think of when they say that the cost of gamification is too high to implement. The cost may be high, but this needs to be considered against the number of users, and the alternative costs of delivery and its effectiveness.

9 ways to include gamification in Learning Design

Make learning more personable, tell a story, include emotional engagement and empathy

Provide a narrative that users can identify with

Create simple, visually engaging interfaces with a human touch

Make the interface a pleasure to use so users want to come back

Design for 'Flow'

Show visibility of progress, competition through achievements, levels and unlocking, add in rewards like badges

Design so the user feels they have a choice of pathway rather than just a linear one

Provide elements to be revealed, discovered or searched for

Good instructional design 'chunks' learning appropriately, and goes progressively deeper.

eCom's learning specialists can help you incorporate gamification and gameful design into your projects. Our work for NetRegs included the use of hotspots and our collaboration with Howden adopted avatars and illustration in eLearning.

Our projects have used Open Badges to stimulate reward and competition. eNetAuthor, our new content authoring tool, is designed to help you easily create engaging content through the use of simple tools.

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9 Ways to Include Gamification in Learning Design

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There is confusion about what Gamification actually is as it gets mixed up with concepts like Serious Games, Gameful Design and just plain, ordinary games. Gamification- using game mechanics to help motivate users to learn Gameful Design- using design principles from games to make user interfaces more appealing and easy to use Serious Games- simulations and immersive experiences that play through like a game whilst delivering learning experiences Games- designed for fun and entertainment only.

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API is the acronym for Application Programming Interface, which is a software intermediary that allows two applications to talk to each other. Each time you use an app like Facebook, send an instant message, or check the weather on your phone, you're using an API.

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1. Objectives
2. Level of interactivity
3. Visual impact
4. Language
5. Technical functions
6. Time
7. Cost

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You have spent a great deal of time and money while developing your eLearning course. But how can you know if it is effective? eLearning course evaluation allows you to assess the effectiveness of your eLearning deliverable and to keep improving it in order to offer your learners a powerful and memorable eLearning experience. In this article I will share why eLearning course evaluation is important, when to do it and, most importantly, how.

Why and When You Need eLearning Course Evaluation

As an eLearning professional, you need to know if your eLearning course is effective; that is, if it achieves its goals and meets its objectives. In order to determine if your eLearning deliverable works, evaluating it is essential. The evaluation of your eLearning course enables you to assess its quality and effectiveness and, most importantly, understand what did or didn't work in order to keep it or change it. To grasp the idea of how eLearning course evaluation works, have in mind the following formula:

Evaluation formula: Data Collection + Editing = eLearning Course Improvement

Given that continuous improvement of your eLearning deliverable should be one of your priorities, you may be wondering when is the right time to evaluate your eLearning course. You need feedback, of course; but when? Before you launch your eLearning course or after its completion? The answer is simple: throughout. Whether you are still in the development process or your learners have just completed your eLearning course, you need feedback in order to move forward or in order to know what needs to be changed, so you can have better results next time. Evaluation should be an ongoing process; you need to constantly evaluate your eLearning course in order to keep improving it and making regular changes and updates. This way, your learners will appreciate your efforts by experiencing the eLearning course you are offering them to the fullest. But how can you conduct your eLearning course evaluation?

7 Factors You need To Check For Your eLearning Course Evaluation

In order to effectively evaluate your eLearning course at all stages, you need to check 7 elements:

1. eLearning objectives.
First of all, you need to identify youreLearning objectives. What does your eLearning course claim to do for your learners? You have to be clear and specific about your eLearning goals. After identifying your objectives, you need to determine if your eLearning content and the learning material you have chosen serve these objectives; if you are happy with the answer ("Yes!" Vs "Oh..."), you can proceed to the next step.

2. Visual impact.
It may sound superficial, but it's not; a poor visual impact disengages your learners. Examine the look and feel of your eLearning course and determine whether the images and graphics you have chosen are aesthetically appealing and, of course, suitable; you don't want unnecessary elements that will distract your audience from your content.

3. Language is a key element of your eLearning course. You will want to determine if your learners are able to completely comprehend what they are reading or listening. Is your content well written? If you are planning to appeal to a wider audience, is the jargon you are using clear for all of your learners? Are the examples you give in your stories or scenarios relevant to your learners or they exclude some of them? If you have localized the content of your eLearning course, is the translation effective? Finally, if you are using humor to make a point, is it appropriate or are there some groups in your audience that might find it offensive? You will want to check all these things in order to ensure that the language you use in your eLearning course is comprehensible, respectful, and to the point.

eLearning Course Evaluation At All Stages

At this point you know which factors to consider when evaluating your eLearning course. Now, given that evaluation should be designed as an integral part of the eLearning course and is an ongoing process, let's have a look at how you will be able to evaluate your product at all of its stages, in order for you to keep improving it and make the eLearning experience you are offering your audience more and more effective.

1. eLearning Course Development Stage
As discussed above, eLearning course evaluation needs to be planned before the eLearning course starts, that is during thedevelopment stage. To do this, you need feedback from everyone who has a role in creating and participating in your eLearning course.

Ask your eLearning team.
To gain insight for how well your eLearning course functions, organize regular online or face to face meetings with youreLearning team. These meetings will have to cover all key issues, so define their agendas carefully. You will need to check the quality of your eLearning content, its usefulness and effectiveness, the technical support provided, timing, instructions, interactive activities etc. Consider documenting these meetings and take meticulous notes in order to effectively analyze the evaluation data.

Ask your audience.
You can collect feedback from your learners by runningfocus groups from a sample audience, in order to evaluate the eLearning experience that your eLearning course offers. Evaluation from a sample audience in the early stages of your eLearning course's development could lead to great improvements. A very effective way to create the questions for your evaluation is to align them with your eLearning course's objectives. Furthermore, ask your potential learners if your online content is easy to understand, if the scenarios you are using are relevant to them, if the games you have probably included are motivational, if the language is appropriate, if the images and graphics are appealing, if the instructions are clear and if the interactive activities are engaging. Ask them everything you may have in mind, record their responses, analyze the data, and then revise and modify your eLearning course accordingly. By doing this, you will have the chance to prevent errors and resolve several issues before your eLearning course goes live.

2. eLearning Course Actualization Stage.
The most effective mid-course evaluation is basically done by tracking your learners' activity. Tracking and recording your audience's activity will help you gain a better understanding of the effectiveness of your eLearning course. The easiest way to do this is by using an LMS either hosted or cloud-based. The right LMS will give you the opportunity to collect important evaluation data, usually on a daily basis. In order to decide if the LMS solution you have chosen is ideal for you, you will need to evaluate it. This procedure might take some time, but it's definitely worth it. In addition, another way to evaluate your eLearning course while running is to observe learners' behavior while they are participating in it by conducting focus groups and arranging online discussions. By challenging your learners to perform activities that reflect their knowledge and skills while taking your eLearning course, you can implicitly solicit feedback and make all the necessary changes accordingly.

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3. eLearning Course Completion Stage.
Now that your eLearning course is completed, you need to know if your audience is satisfied. The most popular way to evaluate your eLearning course after it has been created is by conducting surveys. You can include a survey at the end of your eLearning course and directly question your eLearning course design, relevance, and timing. Ask your audience if their skills/ knowledge/ work performance has been improved by using what they were taught in the eLearning course, if the instructional approach was effective, or if any part of the learning material was unclear. By doing a post-course evaluation you can collect valuable feedback and see what improvements you need to make in order to deliver an even better eLearning course next time. Finally, do not forget to evaluate your eLearning course's financial aspects. Was there a positive return of investment for you? It is essential to know whether there was a financial benefit that outweighed the cost of your eLearning course after its completion, in order to revise your financial strategy or keep on following the same.

All in all, evaluating your eLearning course is a key you should never neglect. In order to evaluate your eLearning course in the most efficient way, consider integrating evaluation procedures into your eLearning process and you will find that the benefits are invaluable.

If you want to know how you can be fully prepared before you launch your next eLearning course, read the article Launching Your eLearning Course: 15 Things To Double Check and find out how you can give your next eLearning deliverable a thorough look before you roll it out for your audience.

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eLearning Course Evaluation: The Ultimate Guide For eLearning Professionals - eLearning Industry

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You have spent a great deal of time and money while developing your eLearning course. But how can you know if it is effective? eLearning course evaluation allows you to assess the effectiveness of your eLearning deliverable and to keep improving it in order to offer your learners a powerful and memorable eLearning experience.

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Look at one of your learning courses (or a learning initiative you need to implement) and consider how:
1. Gamification could be used to engage and motivate participants
2. Badges could be used to reward and recognise achievements
3. Evaluation will be conducted to measure the success and ROI of the program
I have focused on the training of ethics in the financial planning industry over recent times, due to changing legislation for financial advisers.  Gamification could be used by presenting scenarios and the actions taken by the learner could result in different outcomes (ie. game). Whilst ethics is grey, this would more offer 'black and white' options between right & wrong outcomes. Badges could be introduced as the ethics training is to occur at multiple points over time. Evaluation on the learning itself has taken place, however ROI could consider such things as breaches of the Code of Ethics, however, the challenge is tracking/ monitoring of this in a large organisation and that there are many grey elements.

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Cara's discrimination, harassments & bullying course

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Cara's discrimination, harassments & bullying course

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GATE

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The concept of adaptive learning is the delivery of education or training that utilises technology and data to provide individually customised content to students. It intelligently adapts to a learner's unique needs and preferences.

In the last few years, the idea of adaptive learning has gained more and more interest due to new product developments, the creation of partnerships between elearning software providers and content publishers, and significant investment by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in this area of education and training.

This is likely the future of corporate training and academic education, but we may not all be living in the future quite yet.

Adaptive Learning Definition

You may have heard of adaptive learning, or any of its many synonyms and related concepts - such as adaptive instruction, personalised learning or intelligent tutoring systems. What the term exactly means however is still unclear to many.

The basic premise of adaptive learning is to use technology to improve education and training by providing individualised programmes to students based on data that is gathered both before and throughout the learning process.

The best adaptive learning platforms use some form of data mining to put together education or training content for students that's optimised for their unique needs. The platform uses data that it continually gathers when a student interacts with any learning content.

Such a platform can determine which learning activities, delivered through what medium and in what sequence, will help improve the student's learning.

Each student goes through a highly individualised education or training experience, which should provide much better learning results.

Does it Work?

Research on the benefits of adaptive learning is extremely promising. One study by Education Growth Advisors (EGA) showed that since forming a partnership with Knewton (a personalised learning platform provider), pass rates at Arizona State University have gone up by 18 percent and withdrawals from maths courses have reduced by 47 percent.

Merck found that adaptive simulations for mandatory training was 15X faster than instructor-led training, while bringing a 21% improvement in performance scores.

After Smart Sparrow tutorials were used in an engineering course at the University of New South Wales, drop outs decreased by 55 percent.

A number of interesting elearning companies, such as Area9 Lyceum, ETU and Filtered are using tech to create impactful, date-driven learning experiences.

What's the Catch?

Careful preparation and execution is vital to the success of an adaptive and personalised learning implementation. Learning institutions have to work closely together with platform providers in order to set up a learning environment that achieves the envisioned results.

This mode of learning also only provides limited benefit for entry-level courses, which makes it more difficult to scale.

With new digital learning providers entering the market, AI powering ever faster data processing, and partnerships between platform providers and learning organisations being set up all the time, it looks like adaptive and personalised learning experiences are here to stay and develop.

This addition to the L&D toolkit is well on its way to revolutionising the entire education and training sector, even though there is still a long way to go until it becomes the standard for corporate and academic learning.

If you are working in the education or training industry, now is the time to get involved in adaptive and personalised learning if you want to be ahead of the curve.

Further Reading:

Adaptive learning tech and education - insights from the Google blog on how this technology can save teachers time and provide data around how students learn.

Adaptive Learning advice and resources on the ETU website.

If you would like to find out more about the latest and best in learning technology, please Contact Us here at Learning Light.

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What is Adaptive Learning? - Learning Light

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Adaptive learning is likely the future of education and training, but are we living in the future yet? And what are the current solutions?

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I'm sure you've heard by now that storytelling can make learning more effective. Stories help us process and remember information. Perhaps they even touch a part of our consciousness associated with the magic and creativity of childhood.

In my desire to become a better storyteller, I attended a session on the subject while at the Presentation Summit, a conference where the topics overlap surprisingly well with the interests of training professionals and learning specialists.

Here are the key points I gathered from a session titled, The Art of Storytelling, presented by Jon Thomas. I modified them for learning experience designers as needed.

1. Stories are the emotional glue that connects the audience to the message

Much of what people remember from a learning experience are the feelings of the underlying message rather than a multitude of small facts (which are better reserved for job aids). Stories are an important way to tap into the heart of the audience, providing a channel for conveying a deeper message based on emotion.

2. Information presentation should be constructed around a story

Any kind of presentation-whether it be online training or a live presentation-will benefit from a story construction. Organizing information into a format with a beginning (setting the stage), middle (the challenge) and ending (new reality) can work for many topics.

3. People want to know about origins

When we watch or read about a superhero, we always remember the person's origins. We know where they came from and the circumstances that created their super powers. People are defined by their origins and people are curious about where people (or fictional characters) come from, how they change and how they evolve. Include this type of information in your next story.

4. Stories reshape knowledge into something meaningful

For centuries, people have used stories to pass on knowledge. When information is embedded in the context of a story, it is transferred to a listener or reader in a unique way.

5. Stories make people care

When you know your audience-their pains, frustrations and joys-your stories can reflect their emotions and experiences. As learners begin to see themselves in the story and begin to identify with it, they start to care. Nancy Duarte, author of Resonate, states that a story serves as a moment of emotional appeal.

6. Stories transcend one's current environment

Good storytelling can transport learners out of their stuffy meeting rooms and offices into an adventurous world away from the workplace. In this altered reality, the mind becomes more open to perceiving and thinking in new ways. This is an ideal position from which to learn.

7. Stories are motivating

Stories can motivate an audience toward a learning goal. They are ideal for attitudinal training because when an audience is motivated, they no longer need to be persuaded. An encouraging story will inspire someone to take action.

8. People take time for stories

Have you ever noticed that even the busiest of people will stop to listen to someone's story or to tell one of their own? Stories are why people are drawn to novels and movies and gossip magazines. If you want to maintain an audience's attention, you're more likely to do it through storytelling.

9. Stories are more likely to be shared

Because we are so attuned to stories, people love to share them. They are like hooks that draw people in as they are passed from one person to the next. If you have any doubts, check out the thousands of Facebook Stories. This is where people share how they use Facebook and the meaning it has in their life. Do you need to spread the word about something? Put it in a story and see if it gets shared.

10. Stories give meaning to data

Many people perceive data as meaningless numbers. This happens when the data is disconnected to anything important in their experience. But when the data is placed in the context of a story, it comes alive. One of the most well-known examples of this is Hans Roling's presentation below. If you haven't seen it yet, take the four minutes to watch.

Get the latest articles, resources and freebies once a month plus my free eBook, Writing for Instructional Design.

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Why You Need To Use Storytelling For Learning

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I'm sure you've heard by now that storytelling can make learning more effective. Stories help us process and remember information. Perhaps they even touch a part of our consciousness associated with the magic and creativity of childhood.

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What Is Microlearning, What It Isn't, And Why You Need It

Microlearning packs a big punch.

It's the more engaging, less time-consuming, and cheaper-to-produce sibling of regular eLearning. While it's not the best solution for every training need, it's a surprisingly effective one for corporate and commercial training.

By the end of this article, you'll know what microlearning is, what its characteristics are, and how to use it in your training. Let's start at the beginning.

Back To Basics: What Is Microlearning?

While there's no official microlearning definition, all microlearning-based training shares one key characteristic: brevity. This could either be small learning units or short-term learning activities.

Microtraining delivers short bursts of content for learners to study at their convenience. Content can take many forms, from text to full-blown interactive multimedia, but should always be short.

Here are some microlearning content examples:

Text (phrases, short paragraphs)

Images (photos, illustrations)

Videos (of the short variety)

Audio (short snippets of speech or music)

Tests and Quizzes

Games (e.g. simple single-screen challenges)

At this point, it is important to mention that not all microlearning apps support every one of these content types. Check with your microlearning vendor to make sure your favorite formats are supported.

Even though bite-sized training has become more and more popular over the last two years, it has a long history, even before computers were a thing. But it really took off when it met the modern smartphone. So much so, that leading microlearning platforms feel like a mix of Twitter and Instagram, but educational.

In this era of busy schedules and short attention spans, microlearning is a near-perfect training model. And it can be used for all kinds of training. A few microlearning examples include employee onboarding, compliance training, and skills training.

What Are The Benefits Of Microlearning?

1. It's Faster To Deliver

Fewer things to write means shorter course delivery times. With microlearning, you can build a course with dozens of units in an hour. This lets you respond faster to changing business goals and new training demands.

2. It's More Affordable

A microlearning course is also much cheaper to produce. It requires fewer resources and needs fewer instructors. You don't even need any special "microlearning tools" to create your content; a regular LMS content editor will do - though, of course, a specialized microlearning-based platform like TalentLMS will make the process much easier.

3. It's Flexible

Microlearning courses can cover any subject that regular eLearning courses can; just in a bite-sized way. You can create courses that give a broad overview of a subject or even create ones for complex topics.

4. Learners Find It More Engaging

Microtraining is the most engaging training delivery method available. The microlearning experience is similar to checking your favorite social app on your smartphone, compared to the "serious study" feel of regular training.

5. It Boosts Knowledge Retention

According to microlearning research, when you study something repeatedly and revisit it when you are close to forgetting it, you retain it much better. Such repeated study fits nicely with microlearning units since they are small, self-contained, and easy to return to.

6. It Gives Learners More Freedom

Regular online training that uses text-heavy courses is not ideal for studying in short stints. Microlearning, on the other hand, lets your learners enjoy casual learning whenever they have some spare time. Plus, since microtraining courses are small, they're also easy to download and take with you when offline.

What Are The Limitations Of Microlearning?

We can't simply call microlearning better or worse than conventional eLearning. It all depends on the subject matter. But in general:

1. It's Not Ideal For Complex Concepts

Microlearning units are great for delivering simple information but are not necessarily the best fit for complex concepts. It's still possible but will require more effort. For example, you'll need to break down the concept into simple parts. That said, a bite-sized course is a great way to give a high-level view of a subject.

2. It's Not Suited For In-Depth Training

If you have a subject that requires in-depth study, microlearning might not be the best approach to take. For example, you can use it to learn conversational German, but not to study German literature. Still, in many cases, and especially in business training, a short self-contained course is exactly what's needed.

Microlearning Best Practices

Compared to traditional courses, a microlearning course is easier to start creating and faster to complete. Of course, you still have to follow a few best practices to get it right:

1. Check Whether It's Right For Your Use Case

If your subject matter is complex, requires in-depth study, or calls for in-person training, microlearning is probably not for you. That said, it might still be a good fit as a supplementary training method.

2. Skim The Fat

Don't just paste chunks of your regular eLearning material into a microlearning unit and call it a day. Write short and focused content that captures the essence of what you're trying to teach.

3. Use Multimedia To Spice Things Up

Text alone will bore your learners. Add relevant multimedia assets such as videos, photos, illustrations, and animations to keep their interest. Choose the multimedia carefully. It should add to your subject, not just make it look "pretty".

4. Turn On Gamification To Boost Engagement

If your microlearning platform supports gamification, add a few elements to your courses. Gamification, the not-so-secret engagement weapon of regular eLearning, is even more engaging if you combine it with a mobile-based microlearning experience.

5. Use Micro-Assessments To Assess Progress

Microlearning goes well with, you got it, micro-assessments. Use mini tests and short quizzes to make sure your learners are progressing with training goals.

Ready To Microlearn?

There you go! Now you know what microlearning is. But what better way to fully understand it than to test it yourself? Experience it, and get a feel of the big possibilities that training in the small offers.

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What Is Microlearning: A Complete Guide For Beginners

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What Is Microlearning? Go beyond the definition and discover its benefits, limitations and the best practices that compose what microlearning really is.

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Look at one of your learning courses (or a learning initiative you need to implement) and consider how you can redesign and extend the learning experience using a campaign of spaced events.
Explain how you will use at least 2 of the other factors discussed (microlearning, story-based learning or adaptive learning) in this campaign.
RESPONSE: As part of a myriad of eLearning courses that I must complete upon joining a large financial services institution there should be a customised pathway for part of the learning (adaptive learning). This could be based on the division of the company the employee is working in, job role, or simply, just specific interests. Many of the larger institutions now have learning databases such as LinkedIn Learning, allowing a plethora of customised learning options. Microlearning could be used as part of the induction process by having specific learning interactions rather than the new employee logging in to do a specific elearning course, a targeted email, teams series of engagements could be used.

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Look at one of your learning courses (or a learning initiative you need to implement) and consider how you could use the MOOC concept and/or Social Learning in the design of the course. How would the concepts of accessibility and UDL be included in the design?
RESPONSE In my role working for large financial services institutions, many of these large organisations are now making available open source online learning platforms, some of which would be classed as a MOOC. This is an excellent way of offering choice and content to a large number of employees.

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