Do you hate documentation? You have to create it, keep it up-to-date, use it, make sure that other people use it. And there’s always the risk that you spend more time maintaining it than you spend working on the actual project. And yet… I adore and (attempt to) follow the Chicago Manual of Style (16th edition—we’re a bit behind the times). I know it’s 1026 pages on topics like when
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Be Alert for Unexpected Risk Points on the Training Development Journey
What are the unexpected points of risk in the training development process? When you’re managing a training team, it seems that any point in a process can present a risk. But the risks involved in these three areas are often under-appreciated. Transition Points Our instructional designers work with subject matter experts to develop storyboards; those storyboards are then handed off to course developers, who program the courses. We find that
READ MORE about Be Alert for Unexpected Risk Points on the Training Development JourneyAccessibility Lessons from CSUN
Three Key Accessibility Lessons This was my third year at CSUN, the premier conference on assistive technology. If you’re interested in accessibility, it’s the place to be. I presented (or was part of presenting) three sessions. (You can see more at my conference resource page.) This year there wasn’t a single big theme that I took away (like I did when I was thinking about making elearning accessible in 2017 and using pattern libraries
READ MORE about Accessibility Lessons from CSUN2018: This Year in Learning– 109 Curated L&D Articles from 2018
Every month, Microassist’s Senior Learning Architect Kevin Gumienny curates 5-10 articles from various disciplines related to learning and discipline. This year’s roundup includes articles on accessible elearning, instructional, program and learning design, If 2018 flew by quickly for you and you missed some of Kevin’s articles, here’s your chance to catch up on some reading. Did you have a favorite L&D post from 2018 that you’d like to add?
READ MORE about 2018: This Year in Learning– 109 Curated L&D Articles from 2018Accessible Elearning Insights Gleaned from Dutch Municipality Website Audits
What can training program managers learn from a study of Dutch government websites? Their website audits reveal five insights (at least) to consider when building accessible elearning. Accessible Elearning Insights Gleaned from Dutch Municipality Website Audits I just finished Eric Velleman’s 2018 dissertation, “The Implementation of Web Accessibility Standards by Dutch Municipalities” (discovered through Laura Carlson’s excellent weekly newsletter, Web Design Update). How does this relate to elearning, you might
READ MORE about Accessible Elearning Insights Gleaned from Dutch Municipality Website AuditsThe Training Manager’s Introduction to Accessible Elearning [Infographic]
This “Training Manager’s Introduction to Accessible Elearning” infographic explains why accessible elearning—online training that provides a welcoming (rather than frustrating) experience for all—is an important piece of raising training quality, availability, and effectiveness for learners, and for the moving your organization forward. [Skip to infographic transcript] The Training Manager’s Introduction to Accessible Elearning [Transcript] Elearning Generally, elearning is any form of training delivered electronically. Elearning can include PDF files, web pages,
READ MORE about The Training Manager’s Introduction to Accessible Elearning [Infographic]The Year in Learning—Top Learning and Development Articles from 2018
Top Learning and Development Articles from 2018’s “This Month in Learning” Feature In each issue of our Learning Dispatch newsletter, we list learning-related articles from other authors that we find instructive, compelling, or noteworthy. With a look back at 2018, here are our favorite articles from the “This Month in Learning” segment of our monthly newsletter: TL:DR: Read this book: Mirjam Neelen at 3-Star Learning Experiences gives us a review of Patti Shank’s
READ MORE about The Year in Learning—Top Learning and Development Articles from 20183 Tips for Raising the Quality of Your Training
Quick Tips to Improve Training Quality Creating elearning can be both time-consuming and intense. To help make it a little easier, here are three tips that can have an outsized effect. Link objectives to content. If you use an objective-driven process (and you should), include a text reference to each objective when you write the content related to the objective’s topic. How does this help? It ensures that the screen
READ MORE about 3 Tips for Raising the Quality of Your TrainingCreativity within Constraints: When Cost, Resource Scarcity, or Deadlines Make Effective Elearning Seem Out of Reach
Budget limits. Deadlines. Legacy tools. They don’t have to mean sacrificing creativity, engagement, or effectiveness. An interaction catalog can help you develop effective elearning under constraints. Developing Effective Custom Training While Respecting Resource Limitations Learning development is a paradox. Study after study tells us that training matters. It changes how people do things. It affects the bottom line. Once business problems are identified, training, while not the answer to every
READ MORE about Creativity within Constraints: When Cost, Resource Scarcity, or Deadlines Make Effective Elearning Seem Out of ReachDoes Your Elearning Team *Always* Need an Interaction Catalog?
When Informal Communication Succeeds: A Tale from the Trenches An interaction catalog: one way to efficiently build great elearning How do you design successful elearning while operating within constraints like budget, time, and resources? As recently discussed on our Learning Dispatch blog, one way is to have a formal template interaction catalog, and consciously ensure that designers and developers operate only within those limits (it can be more creative than it sounds!).
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