GUIDE OF THE CUSTOM ELEARNING DEVELOPMENT PROCESS

The eLearning development process has many moving parts and pieces, and it is not unusual to feel like giving up when looking at the entire process as a whole. However, if you consider the eLearning development process to be collaborative work with various collaborators, you will be one step closer to creating that fantastic course. In this post, we'll look at how visual feedback from clients may help you enhance the pace and quality of your eLearning development process.

Stage 1: Program Objectives And Constraints

The first stage in eLearning development, like with any complicated project, is to plan where you're going. Begin with the big picture: what will the program accomplish, and how will these benefits be evaluated? Program objectives that are well written give stakeholders with simple statements of expectations to which they may respond. Their answers to the objectives should help you choose the appropriate course of action. Furthermore, starting with the appropriate goals implies you won't have to make major changes later on.

Make a list of potential project restrictions, such as budget, timing, and schedule, as you define the program goals. By developing these two lists concurrently, you'll have a thorough understanding of your training requirements and any obstacles. Related article: eLearning gamification in the workplace: benefits and examples.

Stage 2: Cultural Fit

After you've established the program's objectives and limitations, it's essential to consider your company's culture. You want this new curriculum to blend in with your organization's learning landscape. Consider your company's values and goals and how eLearning modules may reinforce these core ideas. What about other educational initiatives? Will this curriculum complement or oppose them? What segues must be made to link with later learning opportunities if they exist? This is also an excellent opportunity to conduct internal and external benchmarking. What has been tried in the past? What insights can you take from earlier attempts?

Finally, what type of opposition to the learning opportunity do you predict? Stage 2 is when you start looking for buy-in from stakeholders and leaders. Too often, learning is implemented without first consulting with coaches or managers about the learning gaps and resources required. Even the best eLearning will fail if middle management is resistant to the program. Internal communication and marketing begin with ensuring that the curriculum aligns with cultural expectations and current frameworks.

Stage 3: Learner Needs

Allow enough time to research your student population. What is their main issue or knowledge gap? How is it estimated? What prevents people from learning or applying what they have learned? Consider their demographics, technical competence, prior knowledge with the subject matter, and desire to learn. And how should the content be dispersed? Will they employ just-in-time microlearning segments or prefer a longer learning break? Departments and teams may benefit from gamification, in which they compete against other divisions or against themselves to top a scoreboard. Fitting the information to the culture and the learner are two of the most important advantages of bespoke eLearning, therefore take your time throughout these steps. Set your expectations for the learner experience and decide how you will evaluate it at the end. Related article: E-learning Websites: Types and Tips for Development.

Stage 4: Content And Strategy

You examined your business as a whole, as well as your student population. The following stage is to focus on content. What subjects and subtopics must be taught in order to close the learning gap? It is critical to ask these questions of the appropriate individuals, so work with your Subject Matter Experts to generate a list of subjects, then organize and compress the topics into brief units of study.

Then, for each of these topics, construct a learning aim with an action verb. Look for words like recollect, apply, attain, or value. Using action verbs offers a foundation for measuring outcomes later in the process.Assessments are closely related to the learning objectives: did they retain the knowledge or exhibit a certain skill?

This is also the time to start looking for existing resources or material. What was previously used? Even limited resources are preferable to beginning from scratch. Generate a folder for any source information that will be needed to create the storyboard and distribute it to SMEs and developers.

Stage 5: Storyboard And Design

All of your effort evaluating, planning, and arranging up to this point will have an impact on the storyboard's Instructional Design. The entrance point required for learners will be determined by their prior familiarity with the topic. From then, the information progresses logically through the topic and sub-topics, interspersed with examples, real-life events, or interactions to promote student engagement. Animations and video, as well as visual graphic components, improve learning. The delivery of content is important to the success of any eLearning lesson. Related article: 12 UI/UX trends in 2023 to increase conversion rates.

Consider the following critical factors while storyboarding a module:

• An audio script for narration

• Graphics, animations, video, and photos

• Onscreen text

• Sound effects and music

• Learner interactions

• Assessments, feedback, and remediation

• Scoring and next steps

Stage 6: Development

Before you begin developing your storyboard, consider how the learner will access the module: laptop, mobile device, or both? Input the display components, construct interactions and assessments, and align any animated items to the audio narration using your favorite course-writing tools.

Your LMS professional should be in contact with the developer at this stage to discuss publication options and how the course will be configured in the learning management system. Will it, for example, be released in Tin Can, SCORM, or another format? What sort of module description should be included in the LMS, as well as curriculum directions for learners? When development is finished, the module is ready for revision. 

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 The 10 best learning management systems for small businesses in 2022. 

Stage 7: Testing And Revision

Depending on your organization's goals, you might start with a soft launch of the curriculum to a focus test group. Prior to this, stakeholders should examine and provide comments on the generated modules. Make sure to give specific guidelines on the type of feedback you want. Personal opinions that appear to alter with the weather might keep a module under evaluation for months. If you anticipate this with your stakeholders, select one person to examine all input and make final change choices to keep the project moving forward.

Stage 8: Internal Marketing And Launch

Preparing for your launch is an important stage that is sometimes ignored. You've worked hard, and now it's time to share your joy! Learners and coaches must be able to create realistic expectations about the curriculum. In addition, either false or no accumulation might derail a solid program. Allow their anticipation and joy about learning new things to develop over a few days by using internal marketing. Enthusiasm is the type of attraction that will accelerate learning from the start. Treat your employees like future consumers, and entice them to be interested and ready to learn something new.

Stage 9: Revision Cycle And Return On Learning (ROL)

You must build a revision cycle even before the launch. How long do you think it will be before some of the content becomes obsolete? Will there be a cyclical rollout to future learners? By providing a route for learner input, you may make educated judgments about how to enhance your eLearning. Your following steps will be guided by the outcomes of the evaluation checks you established in the storyboard.

In addition to an ongoing revision cycle, you should assess your return on learning. ROL should incorporate both quantitative and qualitative measurements, so don't overlook the influence on the culture of your firm. For example, learner promotions and general job satisfaction may not have an immediate impact on profitability, but they will reduce turnover over term. Compile both the ROI and qualitative variables to provide a comprehensive assessment of your eLearning program. Related article: How to find app developers for your business requirements?

To Conclude

Custom eLearning creation may be a challenging process that requires thorough curriculum preparation and a strong instructional design. A comprehensive design approach is especially vital when developing a personalized eLearning course.

Let's get on the call and chat about how we can provide your employees with a great eLearning experience.