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Have you ever thought to create an online course ? Perhaps, you have already started and you realize that it is more complicated than you first imagined. Here are some tips to get you started:
- Where to start?
- How to design e-learning modules that really work?
- How to build an attractive and interesting course?
- How to make the content accessible?
Follow the steps below for complete instructions on designing an online course.
Step 1. preliminary work
The process of developing your course depends on your advance planning. By taking the time to do the prep work, you respond to problems before they happen. Here’s what you need to do first:
Training goals and objectives
This does not necessarily mean that you have to make a list of goals. It is about defining the main objectives to be achieved for your learners. Define the objective of the course by answering this question: “What should a trainee be able to do after completing the training?”
Target audience
Trying to create online training for everyone is a waste of time. You need to target your audience. Before embarking on the development of a training course, analyze the profile of future participants.
- How many trainees will follow the training?
- What is their position? (Are they sales reps, developers, HR, educators etc.)
- What are their professional profiles and demographics? (Average age, level of education, geographic location, computer skills, devices used, etc.)
- Have the learners received prior training in this skill area? Are they familiar with the subject?
- Are there learners with disabilities?
Learning platform
The next point you need to think about is how you are going to deliver your online course. The easiest and most comfortable way to manage the training process is to publish the course in BitDegree or to use a Learning Management System (LMS) that will allow you to automate many functions such as invitations, course assignment and results tracking.
Logiciel e-learning
This is the main tool that you will use throughout the development process. If you are new to creating online courses, you need to choose a handy tool that will allow you to create online learning modules as quickly as possible, while meeting all of your authoring needs. For example, if you want to create interactive lessons with quizzes, videos, and dialogue simulations, you need e-learning authoring software that is a single, all-in-one set of tools that can cover a whole range of people. range of tasks.
Step 2. Organize work
Subject matter experts and Stakeholders
When developing an online course, you need to deal with both subject matter experts and stakeholders. Here’s how their roles differ:
| Subject matter experts (SME) | Stakeholders |
|---|---|
|
A subject matter expert is both the primary source of information and the primary generator of ideas for the e-learning course developer. Its main tasks are:
Without subject matter expertise, the course may be unnecessary. |
A stakeholder is any independent party who has an interest in the successful completion of a course. There may be several actors involved such as:
The task of course designers and stakeholders is to ensure that the project stays on track throughout its execution. |
For example, if you are developing training courses for the sales team, you might need to collaborate with the sales manager, CEO, HR managers, and administrators. You will need to decide on the content in collaboration with the subject matter experts and meet the demands of the stakeholders. However, regardless of your stakeholder feedback or your content, your real mission is to do what’s best for your learner:
Designing lessons with learners in mind can improve the chances of the project being successful. This will not only make the training more effective for learners, but will also help your subject matter experts and stakeholders to stay in sync throughout the content development phase.
Step 3. Create a storyboard
Once you’ve gathered all the information you need for your online course, it’s time to plan or “create a storyboard”. A storyboard is a document, set of slides, or prototype in which the course designer sets the framework for the course. In addition to the written content, it also includes all the information in terms of photos, icons, graphics, infographic content, animations or videos that will be used in the course. Besides, at this stage, it is important not only to think about the media you will be using, but also to prepare all the elements to include.
An example of what can be included in an e-learning storyboard:
- Title / name of the slide
- Text and screen elements (see next step)
- Graphics and animations
- Navigation
- Chains
- Audio narration scenario
Note : If you need to include a large amount of information in your online course, divide it into several short modules. This is called “micro learning”. A micro-learning course can be a 5-8 minute lesson or a series of short, stand-alone lessons that cover a topic or target a specific learning objective. Follow this rule: one lesson – one skill.
Step 4. Write a scenario
Now that you know the structure of your online course, you need to write a script. When done right, the script serves as the basis for your lesson design and turns the material into something interesting.
Quite often an e-learning developer has to deal with two types of scripts: an on-screen text and a storytelling script. There are different writing practices:
On-screen text
This includes all the text that a trainee will read on the slides. In order for this to be really useful, you need to consider the following:
- Add only the basic concepts to the slides. If you want to provide additional information, you can record a voiceover or back up the text with images, infographics, and videos.
- Minimize text on a slide. Learners drop out when they see large blocks of text, so it’s important to be as concise as possible. Delete unnecessary words and break down long sentences; a line must contain a maximum of 40 characters.
The rule of thumb is a screen – an idea.
- Make sure the content looks good on small screens . Text and other content should be visible whether the course is viewed on a tablet or smartphone. Keep this in mind when creating a course and check how it looks on a smartphone at the end of the development process.
Storytelling script
Creating a storyboard involves writing a text that learners should hear, not read. You can skip this step if you are not going to include a voiceover in your online training.
If you are going to include narration, your main task is to create a script that is friendly to the listener. To do this, you need to turn it into a conversation. Your learners should feel like they are dealing with a real person. So write a script in a conversational tone, avoiding complex sentences, acronyms and jargon. You can use contractions, transitional phrases like “now that we…”, “let’s examine…”, or “let’s take it up a notch…”, etc.
Once your text is ready, read it aloud. You may find that you need to replace or delete some phrases to make it run smoother and clearer. If so, make the necessary touch-ups.
Step 5. Assemble the contents
After you’ve structured your lesson, prepared all the materials you need, except possibly a voiceover or video (we’ll also cover how to record them in this guide), and finished the script, it’s time to put all of the content together in one lesson. The following example was produced with the e-learning authoring software “ iSpring Suite ”.
If you already know how to use PowerPoint, it will be very easy for you to create online training courses there. You just need to fill the slides with text, images and videos following your storyboard.
Step 6. Record or add audio and video
As mentioned, audio and video can be a big help in reinforcing slide text. Plus, they can help make your online course even more interesting. However, if you don’t plan to record a voiceover or video, feel free to skip this section and move on to the next step.
Audio
Now that you have a narration script ready, you can record a voiceover. The question is whether you are giving the task to a professional or whether you are doing it yourself. Whichever you choose, here are some tips for getting the most out of recording a voiceover:
- Find the quietest place possible . If you don’t have a recording studio, you can try using different places, like a tiny room, a walk-in closet, or even a vehicle in a garage.
- Try to get as much recording time as possible with your voiceover artist on the same day , as a voice can change from day to day, and even within the same day.
- Use a good quality external microphone . Before recording, check if your microphone is set correctly and adjust the settings, if necessary.
- Prepare your voice for recording . Drink lemon tea before recording to make your voice deeper and “cleaner”. Moisturize your lips so that they are not sticky and words are formed correctly when you speak.
- Be sure to create your storyline early in the development process to allow time for any changes.
Once your prep work is done, it’s time to record your voice. The software has a built-in audio recorder that allows you to record your audio narration and easily sync it with the animations and slide transitions. The tool also offers editing options like trimming audio, adjusting volume, removing noise, and even silencing an entire section.
If you are used to recording voiceovers with another tool or just need to add sound, you can import an audio file.
Video
You can also import or save a video. The software includes a professional video studio that allows you to record your screen with webcam and audio. This tool has all the features you need to make professional looking videos. For example, you can remove unwanted fragments, add titles and captions, insert images and infographic elements, or create transition effects.
The software is ideally suited for making full video lessons and for adding video snippets at specific locations throughout the lesson. For example, you can add a video to show your new employees how to use specific software, guide them through a work process, or explain a wrong answer to them in a quiz.
Step 7. Add assessments and knowledge checks
Quizzes and tests are the main tools for checking online learning knowledge. They allow you to track the progress of your trainees and see what has been learned and what needs to be deepened. In addition, they increase the involvement of learners and help them retain new information for longer. However, not all quizzes are effective. Good assessments are those that are properly integrated into the course or the whole training process, they must be relevant and well written.
There are many expert instructional designers who first develop the questions and then build the content to answer those questions.
You can create assessments with the iQuizMaker quiz app.
It offers 14 types of questions:
- Multiple Choice
- Multiple Response
- True or False
- Short Answer
- Fill in the Blanks
- Matching
- Sequence
- Hotspot
- Drag and Drop
- Drag the Words
- Select from Lists
- Numeric
- Likert Scale
- Essay
Here are some tips to make your quizzes even more engaging and effective.
Chaining
The flow creates a non-linear storyline in your quiz; depending on their answer, the learner is taken to a specific slide. For example, when a learner answers a question incorrectly, you send it to a slide providing additional information, while those who answer correctly move on to the next question.
Video and audio
It is possible to enrich a quiz with audio and video, add video / audio to questions or answers, or integrate the whole into a flow scenario with informational slides like the one shown below.
Quiz design
To make the quiz engaging and match the overall look of your course, you can customize the design of your slides. Set the font, change the layout, and choose a color chart for the question.
When the quiz is ready, you can easily share it with your peers, colleagues, or other stakeholders to get their feedback.
Step 8. Create a dialogue simulation
If you want your interns to improve their communication skills, one of the best ways is to create a dialogue simulation. This is an interactive exercise that mimics a real conversation with a person and helps people master their communication skills in a safe environment.
The TalkMaster tool allows you to make realistic simulations easily.
The main characteristic of a conversation simulation is its branching scenario, where every decision has consequences. It works like real communication between two people: say something inappropriate and you will anger your opponent; be friendly and polite and it will reflect your sentiment.
The tool allows you to build a dialogue tree – a well-organized structure that you can manipulate with one click.
Step 9. Apply best practices for a friendly user interface / experience
Even though the content is useful and interesting, the online course will not be of interest to learners if the presentation is not up to standard. To create beautiful e-learning modules, you need to be familiar with the concepts of user interface and universal language. Fortunately, if you want to create e-learning courses with today’s software, you don’t have to be a professional designer – you just need to know the main user interface / experience (UI) / UX). But first, let’s dig deeper into the meaning of these abbreviations and compare these two concepts.
Simply put, the design of the UI (user interface) is what makes an online course visually appealing. It uses the principles of graphic and typographic design to bring the UX (user experience) to life. UX refers to how an e-learning module is experienced by a person – it focuses on the learner experience, satisfaction and ease of use. So, using the restaurant analogy, “the UI is the table, the chair, the plate, the glass and the utensils. UX is everything, from food to service, parking, lighting and music ”. (Ken Norton, Google Ventures partner).
You don’t have to be an expert in UX / UI. You can use the ready-made templates from the content library, organize different blocks such as title slides, chapters and information slides in any order you want, and just fill them with your text and your own. images.
Step 10: Make sure your content is mobile ready
Be mobile ready
However, before you publish the content, make sure that it displays perfectly on every type of device: PC, Mac, tablets and smartphones. You can do it with a few clicks using a preview mode.
When you complete a course, you may also need to think about the importance of the content you provide and whether it can be compressed to a level acceptable to the device of the learners. You can choose presets that set files for different levels of image, audio, and video compression. This will help you find a balance between the size and the quality of the files.
Step 11. Publish your course
Now that you’ve planned, designed and developed your online training, it’s time to bring it all together by publishing your course.
Choose HTML5 if you want to make the course accessible for viewing in a browser and on any device (computer, laptop, smartphone or tablet). Save your content as video if you want to get video conference in MP4 format. Or publish your course in SCORM or another e-learning format supported by your LMS platform to track how your learners view content.
And There you go. We hope these few instructional design processes and guidelines will help you create better, more engaging and effective online courses!
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