Why Should Instructional Designers Use Visuals in Their Training? As John Medina states in Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School; vision trumps all other senses. If you want learners to recall your message, use images any time they are appropriate. According to Dr. Medina, when information is presented orally, people remember about 10 percent when tested 72 hours after exposure. That figure goes[…]
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Connect the Dots in Training
When a mobile game has over a million downloads in the week it launches, it deserves attention. I admit to being in the multitude of people who are hooked on Dots. A recent conversation with colleagues stimulated ideas about how this addictive little game could be used in training. Estimated reading time: 3 minutes For the uninitiated, Dots is a pattern recognition game. Points are awarded for the number of dots you connect[…]
READ MORE about Connect the Dots in TrainingFirst Impressions: Books Are Judged by the Cover
Why do people say, “You can’t judge a book by its cover?” We make snap decisions all the time and those decisions are based on the first impression, which metaphorically speaking, is the book cover. Books by Chip Heath and Dan Heath got me thinking about their high impact book covers and how important first impressions are to online training. Estimated reading time: 3 minutes For the uninitiated, Chip Heath[…]
READ MORE about First Impressions: Books Are Judged by the CoverFresh from DevLearn 2012: Mobile Learning
Fresh from DevLearn 2012: Mobile Learning Is there any elearning trend bigger than mobile learning? I don’t think so and it was a hot topic at DevLearn. As a nascent delivery platform, there are many questions about how to use mobile devices effectively. The ubiquity of mobile devices, and smartphones in particular, drives our interest in harnessing the learning potential of tools our target audience has with them throughout the[…]
READ MORE about Fresh from DevLearn 2012: Mobile LearningFresh from DevLearn 2012: Games and Learning
Gamification of training has recently been a big trend in the online learning world. Sessions at DevLearn 2012 made me think deeper about the difference between game-based training and training gamification. Designers who employ gaming and/or gamification strategies claim impressive results. Estimated reading time: 2 minutes In a facilitated discussion session on game-enabled learning and gamification, a number of participants shared their training experiences. We’ll start with clarification on the[…]
READ MORE about Fresh from DevLearn 2012: Games and LearningControversy over Objectives – How to Communicate Objectives to your Learners
We all know that objectives provide the foundation for training design and performance improvement. A challenge in the training industry is how to communicate this information to our target audience without creating a mind-numbingly dull introduction. Novices in the training world frequently think the only legitimate way to start a lesson is with the list of learning or performance objectives we used as the framework to design the training. My[…]
READ MORE about Controversy over Objectives – How to Communicate Objectives to your LearnersmLearnCon 2012 – BJ Fogg A Methodology for Designing Behavior Change
Dr. BJ Fogg, director of Stanford’s Persuasive Tech Lab, presented a compelling keynote at mLearnCon 2012 centered around a fascinating question: Can computers be designed to change people’s beliefs and behaviors? The Stanford Persuasive Technology Lab creates insight into how computing products—from websites to mobile phone software—can be designed to change what people believe and what they do. Unlike a lot of pop culture behavior gurus, Dr. Fogg takes a[…]
READ MORE about mLearnCon 2012 – BJ Fogg A Methodology for Designing Behavior ChangeElearning Book Review – The New Virtual Classroom by Ruth Colvin Clark and Ann Kwinn
The New Virtual Classroom is a terrific resource for designing and delivering effective webinar training. One of the biggest differences between this book and others is that it focuses primarily on strong instructional design strategy while many other resources tend to focus on more superficial “gimmicky” interactions. The authors remind us there is no need to start from scratch when designing training for the virtual classroom. Best practices are offered[…]
READ MORE about Elearning Book Review – The New Virtual Classroom by Ruth Colvin Clark and Ann KwinnTraining ROI: Use of Return on Investment for Training Programs
Return on Investment (ROI) is a metric commonly used in business and financial circles to compare competing investments. The use of Training ROI as a way to measure the return on training investment on training initiatives is growing in the training industry. Recently, the focus on Training ROI has become controversial; industry thought leader, Jane Bozarth recently said ROI is “evaluation by autopsy.” Leading Elearning blogger David Kelly states in[…]
READ MORE about Training ROI: Use of Return on Investment for Training ProgramsIsn’t It Always about Control?
Have you ever used an educational website and been blown away by how interesting and engaging it is? I encounter these types of sites when I’m pursuing informal learning. Part of the attractiveness in the learning is that it’s what interests me. Another factor is the site gives me control. These informal learning sites/tools shed insight on how powerful learning can be when we give learners control over what they[…]
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