Salute! It’s a new year with untold new opportunities! 2015 was wonderful in terms of eLearning with new tools and developments taking the industry by storm. It may be the case that we sometimes didn’t quite use these tools in the correct way. Let’s make the effort to leave behind those bad eLearning design habits. Here are 5 New Year’s resolutions that every eLearning Designer should have to create better eLearning courses in 2016…
1. I will use bite-sized information in courses.
Don’t overload your learners with too much information which is irrelevant to what they need to know. Drip feed your information at frequent intervals and with just the right amount of content. Infographics are a great way to do this.
2. I will design for mLearning.
Mobile learning (mLearning) is a huge trend and is growing at a rapid rate. More and more people have access to smart devices and want the flexibility to learn at a place and time that is convenient for them. Start designing for the M.
3. I will gamify my eLearning.
Gamification is quickly gaining traction. If you haven’t as yet started gamifying your courses, then at least begin by adding a few game mechanics to your next course such as levels, badges or even a score board.
4. I will include great design in my eLearning course
- Use complimentary colours – Colours should be used to influence the learner’s mood and retention of information. Use bright colours to keep the learner engaged, although it shouldn’t be hurtful on the eye.
- Choose your font carefully – Try to use fonts that are easy to read on a screen. Use different sizes of text to emphasize key learning points.
- Use images that are relevant to the learning material and which are clear and of good quality.
- Don’t clutter your slide. White space is important for a clean, fresh look.
5. I will design with my learner in mind. Many of us design to fill the checkboxes or to meet the needs of our SME. It is important to make the learner experience as pleasant and easy as possible for the learner. The learning we create needs to give our learners control and make them feel well-orientated.
Here’s to an awesome 2016!
