Search for:

7 Technical Pitfalls to Avoid when Creating eLearning Content

Creating high end eLearning content is a time consuming process. Therefore, it’s important not to undermine the final results by making mistakes during the design and development phase. Some of the more easily avoidable mistakes are:

1. Omitting interactive eLearning elements

2. Under-utilising tables when organising information and text

3. Not designing a logical or intuitive navigational flow

4. Not providing learners with control over auditory elements

5. Overdoing the graphical content!

6. Not having a responsive design

7. Including obsolete resource links

Read the full article exploring each of technical mistakes listed above at http://elearningindustry.com/7-technical-pitfalls-can-ruin-elearning-experience.

Ten fun eLearning Facts this Friday!

As it’s Friday, we are sharing our favourite eLearning facts from the list compiled by Talent LMS:

 

  1. The term ‘eLearning’ has only been in existence since 1999, when the word was first utilised at a CBT system seminar.
  2. eLearning is one of the fastest growing industries in the world today and it will continue to grow quickly.
  3. 25% of all employees leave their jobs mainly due to lack of training and learning opportunities. While companies who do provide eLearning opportunities, generate about 26% more revenue per employee.
  4. The Internet is widely and increasingly used for self-directed learning. In 2010 32% of the total population in the EU has consulted Internet for the purpose of self-directed learning. This is an increase by 9% compared to 2007.
  5. By 2020, the global mobile learning market is projected to be $37.8 billion.
  6. eLearning is good for the environment. Britain’s Open University’s study found that producing and providing eLearning courses consumes an average of 90% less energy and produces 85% fewer CO2 emissions per student than conventional face-to-face.
  7. 77% of U.S. corporations report using online learning to enhance their employees training and educational programs.
  8. 52% of people using mobile learning do so in bed after waking up and 46% do so in bed before they go to sleep.
  9. The eLearning market has grown an incredible 900% since the year 2000.
  10. Networked devices will grow from 15B to 21B by 2018. Of these, 57% will be mobile devices. eLearning will benefit from faster Internet access everywhere and availability on any device.

 

View these fun facts and more in infographic form at https://www.talentlms.com/blog/20-facts-elearning-infographic/

 

Creating eLearning Content for the Online Reader

documentsThere’s a wealth of information on the Web providing advice about how to create eLearning content for the online reader. One of the best articles we’ve read recently, comes from SHIFT’s eLearning Blog.

Some of the practical tips to remember when creating content are listed below.

  • Some users can spend up to 69% of the time on the left side of the screen.
  • Less than 20% of content on an average web page is read!
  • It takes on average 2.6 seconds for web page visitors to form their first impressions of your content.
  • Dominant headlines capture attention faster.
  • Use graphics to reinforce text. We process visual information faster than text.
  • Use whitespace on a page generously.
  • Use a readable size and type of font.

And remember that we read online content more slowly than when reading articles or content on paper!

When you are next creating articles or content for online users, consider the points above. Rather than simply uploading paper based articles as online documents, why not edit the documents down, add graphics and make points of information succinct. Readers will remember more!

New Online Maths Resource for Leaving Certificate Students

mathsGreat to see Galway Education Centre and Athenry Maths Academy linking up with online learning company ALISON, to launch a free interactive maths resource. Targeted at students of the Leaving Certificate (L.C.) maths curriculum, it covers ‘strand one’ of the L.C. Project Maths Syllabus – probability and statistics.

The online course offering is free to access and includes video lectures with interactive lessons from tutors and teachers. It is anticipated that if students find the resource valuable, then the remaining four strands of the syllabus will be available later in 2013.

Congratulations to all concerned! To access the maths resource, visit http://alison.com/maths/.

 

Interactive Design – What’s in Store for 2013

Instructional DesignIf you get a few minutes to spare, check out the Prophets Agency presentation on Slideshare.net titled “ID13: the 2013 trends in Interactive Design”. It presents some interesting facts, such as that 40 billion apps have been downloaded since 2008 (Apple Press Center.) But for those, like CramdenTECH, who are on the lookout for trends that are likely to impact on instructional design, it makes for very welcome reading! This quote from Richard Cracroft is a new favourite of ours:

“I have learned an important principle: simple things work, often to our dumbfounded surprise, for we tend to distrust the simple and strive for the complex.”

In CramdenTECH we’ve learned that in eLearning, the focus should be on delivering quality content with consistent service delivery, not on the technology that is used to provide the experience. Hence, we prefer the term “technology-enabled learning”. Or, to quote Jeff Bezos:

“People don’t want gadgets, they want services“

Digital Pedagogy

The annual summit of the Irish Technology Leadership Group is taking place in Cork this year. At the panel discussion on how best to close the gap between education and skills for Ireland’s Tech industry, Sean Cottrell (director of IPPN) suggested that the answer lies in investing in digital pedagogy. Basically, he is suggesting that subjects at primary level and up to junior certificate at second level could be delivered by means of technology. This concept is not new; one of its star practitioners is The Khan Academy.

But as with all new or emerging ideas, timing is everything. And it would seem that it is time to start having this kind of discussion in Ireland. This Christmas past, how many young people under the age of 15 received smartphones, iPads and other tablets as gifts. Rather than simply using them to play games apps, why not turn these devices into a conduit to engage young learners? As The Khan Academy has proven in the field of mathematics, you can deliver the “standard” lecture or lesson via the medium of video, leaving the teacher to engage fully with each student during class time. Students learn at their own pace and from each other, as well as from their teachers. This approach to teaching is referred to as the “flipped classroom”, that is, children follow lessons delivered via video at home, whilst completing homework and assignments in class!

The typical classroom is home to a group of children whose learning capabilities and aptitudes vary along a spectrum of ability. The flipped classroom concept could offer a solution to managing classes containing widely divergent student abilities. Teachers get to spend time working with struggling students, whilst star performers can move ahead and learn at a pace that also suits their particular needs.

Sean Cottrell may very well be right. The future of Ireland’s Tech industry may depend on how we educate and engage learners at primary level and through second level!