Instructional Design Tips

March 6, 2016

5 Ways Of Using Formative Assessment For Actionable Data

Much of the focus in assessments is on outcomes: Did students meet learning goals? In an era of Big Data, we can learn much more by quantifying the learning process through increased use of formative assessments: Are students learning – and if so, how? Here are 5 ways of using formative assessment tools to generate more data.

by Edgar Wilson

February 23, 2016

eLearning Design: Ask The Right Questions

Instructional Designers have to answer a lot questions when we design eLearning activities. But, are we asking the right questions? In my experience, some eLearning design questions are better than others to ask.

by Linda Rening, PhD

February 17, 2016

5 "Old Fashioned" Instructional Design Tools You Will Never Throw Away

There may be more gadgets, software, and technologies than ever before, but some of the most valuable Instructional Design tools have been around for decades. In this article, I will highlight 5 old fashioned tools that every Instructional Designer should still use on a regular basis.

by Christopher Pappas

February 10, 2016

Online Training For The Healthcare Sector: 4 Benefits And 5 Tips For eLearning Professionals

Online training is an effective and cost-efficient resource in any field, but in the hands of health professionals it has the power to save lives and significantly improve quality of care. In this article, I’ll explore 4 benefits that online training can bring to the healthcare sector, and I’ll share 5 tips that can help you take your training strategy online.

by Christopher Pappas

February 5, 2016

Inclusive And Accessible eLearning

To develop online courses that are more inclusive, the role of Instructional Designers must move beyond the orchestration and arrangement of course content to partnering with faculty and support staff to implement curriculums that are mindful of ADA compliance. Furthermore, professional development must move beyond faculty acquiring technical expertise to pairing technological knowledge with principles of Universal Design for Learning (UDL). This article outlines ways that I, as an Instructional Designer, implemented such practices via a professional development seminar, in which faculty and staff learn the principles of Universal Design for Learning and develop skills to create ADA compliant MS Word documents, podcasts, and lecture captures. Excerpts from faculty and staff’s learning journals illustrate how they have grown as educators.

by Sabrina Taylor

January 24, 2016

5 Tips To Create Multi-Sensory eLearning Courses

Transform your eLearning course into a visual, auditory, and tactile feast for the senses. In this article, I'll share 5 tips that can help you design multi-sensory eLearning experiences for your audience.

by Christopher Pappas

January 21, 2016

Why Does Instructional Design Matter?

Instructional Design is pedagogy; a learning and teaching endeavor; and like all learning and teaching it works best if all participants understand its aim. It works even better if all participants “buy-in” to those aims. And “buy-in” is best achieved by involving the participants in setting the aims.

by Alex Terego

January 20, 2016

2016 Instructional Design Trends Compass: Experiences, Ecosystems, Evaluations. Oh My!

Instructional designers and learning & development (L&D) professionals of all levels—this article is for you. SweetRush Senior Instructional Designer Shauna Vaughan is back with a look at three of this year’s biggest trends, and once again, specific advice and resources for you to explore each of them further. Read on for Shauna’s thoughts on how L&D will take a strategic leap forward by focusing on experiences, ecosystems, and evaluation.

by Shauna LeBlanc Vaughan

January 19, 2016

Creative Instructional Design: Featuring 3 Innovative Onboarding And Induction Examples

All of us are aware of the impact of well-designed onboarding and induction programs. Today, several organizations prefer an eLearning-based approach to deliver them. They seek learning strategies that can deliver high impact programs that can induct new team members quickly and efficiently. With changes in learner demographics that now include Millennials in significant numbers, organizations are looking at more engaging and immersive formats that appeal to this profile.

by Asha Pandey

January 8, 2016

5 Key Skills You Need For Your First Instructional Design Project

In this article I’ll tell you how to side-step the fluff that’s included in most Instructional Design courses, so you can focus on things that you really need to know in order to master an Instructional Design project.

by Huzefa Johar

January 7, 2016

Learning Design: Is Form, Fit, Function (FFF) Applicable In The eLearning Industry?

Can learning be “engineered”? What if we were to use best practices from other domains to improve our learning design? Here’s how a basic concept from the manufacturing industry can be adapted to the eLearning industry.

by Amit Sarkar

January 4, 2016

5 Tips For Using Connectivism In eLearning

Siemens’ Connectivism Learning Theory suggests that online peer networks, such as social media sites and online forums, play a vital role in eLearning experiences. They allow learners to learn from social interaction and collaboration, and by benefiting from the personal experience and diverse opinions of their peers. In this article, I’ll offer 5 tips on how to use connectivism in your next eLearning course.

by Christopher Pappas