E-Learning modules are no longer just for the big international companies. Today, there are already viable and budget-friendly options to develop high-quality E-Learnings. Including with the software of “Articulate” (Rise/Storyline).
Trixolutions can help you learn to make your E-Learnings yourself through our Articulate training OR can convert your training into an E-Learning for you.
Curious about the possibilities? Request a free demo!
The benefits of E-Learning have gained more attention, partly due to the corona crisis.
- Scalability: once the module has been created, it can be used for an unlimited number of participants.
- Adjustment: the module can easily be adjusted with changes to content.
- Repetition: participants can easily go through it a second or third time to achieve the learning goals even better.
- Pace: participants can go through the E-Learning Module when it suits them best.
- Control: the knowledge can be tested as well as the progress in the module.
To help you get started, our 10 tips will help you set up your E-Learning!
Tip 1. What do you want to achieve?
When creating your e-learning, it is wise to think about what you want to achieve with your e-learning. So think about what the participants need to know at the end of the training.
Think about the learning objectives of your e-learning
You can do this on the basis of a structure:
- Step #1: Write down everything that a participant should be able to do after following your online training. Make this as concrete as possible, such as “being able to write a cover letter” or “understanding the basics of SEO”. You can see this as learning objectives.
- Step #2: Write down all of the steps someone must take to achieve the learning objectives. Try to describe the path as logically as possible. These are your sub goals.
- Step #3: Divide the steps into sections. Sections make it easier for students to follow your course material, because you bundle related topics together. A section is, for example, ‘the motivation letter’. Divide these sections into lessons, which contain the actual content of your training.
- Step #4: Fill the sections with lessons. In the example, this is ‘letter layout’ and ‘have your motivation letter checked’, both of which belong to the section ‘the motivation letter’.
- Step #5: Arrange the sections in a logical order.
Tip 2. Choose a suitable e-learning tool
This may sound a bit like ‘we at Sony recommend Sony’. Yet, it is essential to choose the right tool for your e-learning.
This should be a tool that matches your online training. User-friendliness is also a consideration. Of course you don’t want to spend hours inventing a tool: you want to be able to start assembling your training right away
Tip 3. Better readability
Distraction can easily be lurking during an online training. Facebook and LinkedIn are opened in no time. So you want your participants to keep their attention on your training. What helps is improving the readability of your training. There are tricks for this.
- Short sentences
Use short sentences. That is a lot easier to read. This way, your students will keep their attention better during your training. - Jargon
Also pay attention to jargon. Words that you use every day in your work may be unknown to your students. If you really want to use this, you can explain these words the first time. - Headings
Break your training into short paragraphs to make it easier to finish a paragraph. Make sure you have clear headings above the paragraphs.
Tip 4. Microlearning = awesome
Microlearning means that you divide your training into small, bite-sized chunks. This is easier to learn than one long online course. Think about Duolingo, for example. Here you can learn new words and grammar, divided into small ‘parts’. Microlearning also stimulates your student to complete your training.
When your student has passed part of the course, he/she often feels motivated to continue. This is in contrast to a long course where you no longer feel like reading further halfway through the material. Microlearning helps you make e-learning successful.
Tip 5. Be a content king/queen
Vary the types of content in your e-learning. This way you keep your e-learning interesting. For example, record a video, or add one from Youtube. Link to an interesting infographic or news article. Add photos. Or a quiz. The possibilities are endless.
Podcasts are now also completely hip and are increasingly used within e-learning.
Tip 6. A learning path for everyone
One of the advantages of giving online training is that you can offer each participant their own learning path. This makes it very easy to respond to the needs of your students. If your student does not understand something, you can offer him/her extra content.
Of course, this also works the other way round: if your student finds part of your online course very easy, you can give him/her in-depth material. This way you increase the results of your participants!
Tip 7. Repeat, repeat, repeat…
Teachers who used to say that repetition was necessary to learn things were actually right.
It has been scientifically proven that not repeating the material leads to forgetting. If your student reads something today, and you don’t repeat this, 80% to 90% will be forgotten within a week
Therefore, ensure sufficient repetition in your e-learning. Think of summaries, quizzes and tests.
Tip 8. Encourage the sense of belonging to a group
Most people are social animals, but e-learning mainly focuses on the individual. Still you can stimulate the sense of belonging to a group. For example, have your students do an assignment together. In addition to a nice variety, this also motivates your participants to complete your course.
Tip 9. Testing
The great thing about making an online course is that you can immediately test your knowledge. This also helps your students to remember your learning material (remember, repeat, repeat, repeat!). Repeat the lessons learned at the end of a chapter with a practice test and conclude a module with a final test. That way they will never forget your content again.
Tip 10. Not too serious
Every now and then you can just joke in your training. Laughter relaxes the body and a relaxed body is more receptive to new ideas. This way your students will ultimately stay focused longer!