March is a month wealthy with mythology: it’s named for the Roman god of warfare, comprises the ill-fated Ides of March, and the final three days are stated to be further stormy as a result of they had been borrowed from April in a deal gone flawed.
We love myths as a result of, like making an attempt to catch a leprechaun and discover his pot of gold, they’re enjoyable. However there are some myths you shouldn’t tolerate. This month, Litmos is doing a little myth-busting. First up: myths about creation — content material creation.
What’s content material creation?
Content material creation refers to any studying supplies you construct in-house. In case you’re constructing a course, placing collectively a video, and even making handouts for an in-person lecture, that’s content material creation, and it’s invaluable to your crew.
Creating customized studying on your group helps construct and retain the abilities you need your particular workforce to have. Sadly, there are lots of misconceptions about content material authoring. Under are 5 of the commonest:
Fantasy 1: On-line studying is only a collection of quizzes
We’ve all sat although dull-as-dishwater on-line modules which can be simply slides and quizzes. They’re not terribly partaking, however that doesn’t imply your course needs to be something like that content material.
It’s necessary to make use of the content material and the medium to create studying that works effectively for the abilities you’re making an attempt to show. Suppose exterior the field and look at the parts obtainable to you in your course authoring software. Sure, typically slides and quizzes could be one of the best match for the module you’re constructing, however look at your choices to seek out essentially the most partaking instruments on your content material.
Fantasy 2: On-line programs can’t be used to show real-world expertise
On-line programs can’t be used to show hands-on expertise, like altering a tire or getting ready meals, can they? Curiously, they’ll. There’s an inclination to think about on-line and in-person as two fully totally different realms, however that ignores the truth that individuals study real-world expertise on-line on a regular basis. Anybody who has ever watched a cooking present or used YouTube to study yoga has discovered a hands-on ability on-line. You are able to do the identical together with your eLearning content material through the use of the interactive parts in your course authoring software to digitally simulate a ability or course of.
Take the instance of a pizza chain. The chain wanted to show new workers precisely easy methods to make a pizza utilizing on-line studying. Litmos’ crew used particular tutorial instruments to show pizza-making:
- The sequence element was used so learners may apply the order during which pizza components are added.
- The matching element was used so learners may apply recalling what ingredient measurements had been required for every pizza measurement.
Fantasy 3: There is no such thing as a teacher in an internet course
A typical false impression is that each one on-line programs are lonely digital wastelands: it’s simply the learner and their machine. There’s no interplay with an teacher or classmates. That’s not true. On-line content material could be interactive. Digital Teacher-Led Coaching (VILT), for instance, is an internet, synchronous type of studying during which learners are in a position to work together with one another and the trainer.
Asynchronous studying could be interactive as effectively. Let’s return to the instance of the pizza chain. After studying about components and recipes, the worker needed to show their skill to really make pizza.
Litmos’ crew used the video evaluation software for this module. The worker recorded themselves making a medium pizza. The group’s studying crew then reviewed the video and supplied efficiency suggestions. This allowed the learner to apply in a low-risk setting, quite than making their first pizza on the job.
To study extra in regards to the pizza chain use case, try the course LitmosLabs Educational Design for Non-Designers Half 2.
Fantasy 4: You may simply switch all of your ILT supplies to an internet format
That is an previous fantasy, one which harkens again to the early days of on-line and digital studying. To start with, L&D professionals felt they might merely switch in-person course supplies and lectures to an internet format. Though most L&D professionals know that doesn’t work, there are nonetheless some managers and firm leaders who should be satisfied that what works in individual doesn’t all the time work in a digital setting.
The reverse can also be true. Some classes are higher on-line than in individual. Play to the power of the coaching modality you’re utilizing if you’re designing studying supplies. You wish to use interactive instruments to extend engagement and learner retention.
Fantasy 5: On-line studying replaces all different varieties of studying
Look, we love an organization that goes all in on on-line studying, nevertheless it’s necessary to understand that if you implement an internet studying technique, you don’t have to exchange all your coaching with on-line modules. On-line studying is supposed to enhance your present coaching, and it’s not all the time suited to the kind of coaching you’re delivering.
What works greatest is a blended studying expertise. Tie eLearning to ILT classes and real-life experiences. Usually, it’s greatest to make use of eLearning content material as a prerequisite or primer, adopted by hands-on coaching and utility alternatives. Blended studying experiences interact learners in some ways, serving to them to retain the data you’re educating them.
Subsequent up in our March myth-busting? The myths of content material curation. Keep tuned…