Many training managers feel that assessments play a key role in online courses. It’s easy to understand why managers say so. Assessments help measure learning outcomes of trainings accurately. In fact, assessments actually help evaluate the knowledge gained by employees from topics discussed in the trainings. Employees can monitor their progress, assess themselves, and organizations can keep track of their employees’ performance and provide accurate information about the extent to which the training objective has been achieved. However, many organizations may have good trainings but trouble in measuring learning outcomes. For instance, when instructors go through each paper manually, the workload is increased and they find it difficult to manage the data of a large number of employees. This can be avoided using technology. It enables you evaluate with minimal effort, and you can modify the training approach based on feedback. Here is the info-graphic that shares the benefits of using technology for assessments. Hope you find this post useful. Do share your views. Related Posts4 Effective Ways of Presenting Scenarios in E-learning CoursesCreating Effective Assessments in E-learning: 5 Tips - An InfographicMaking E-learning Courses Mobile: 5 Aspects to Consider - An Infographic

One of our clients wanted to train their new medical reps. The client wanted to make several short modules for each brand that were not more than 10 minutes long, so that the new recruits get good knowledge of the products before they enter the field. As we all know, Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) provide a lot of content that makes our course informative. But sometimes, their content is either too informative or too less for our learners. In this blog, I’ll share my experience of working closely with my SME. Step 1: Involve the SME from the Design Phase The moment I get the inputs, I analyze them, prepare a rough outline and take the approval from the SME. Recently, I analyzed one of the inputs which was in the form of a PowerPoint presentation. The presentation had around 40 slides and the first 26 slides slides had only textbook references. I called my SME and asked him whether the slides were important. The SME replied that the references were ‘Nice to Know ’content. Then, I presented this‘Nice to Know ’content in the form of an interactive slide.Then, I prepared an outline by dividing the content of the presentation into two parts — ‘Need to Know’ and ‘Nice to know’ and took the SME’s approval. This went a long way in developing good online courses for the medical reps. Step 2: Work with the SME to Standardize the Learning Units As I have already shared, each brand had multiple modules which were divided into many subjective modules and a single product module. When we analyazed the inputs, we found that the subjective modules had the scenario in which the medical rep has to convince the doctor to prescribe their brand. This application part is relevant to the product module rather than the subjective module. Then, we suggested to the SME to ensure that the clinical application content should be included only in the product module as this information will help the sales representative to share the benefits of the product and subjective modules help them in strenghtening their knowledge. In this way, we standardized the learning units. Step 3: Let the SME Take Learner Feedback After completing a few brands, we asked our SME to provide us with the feedback from learners who have taken the courses. The SME shared a few points such as adding blinking effects to some buttons, images, hot spots etc. As the learners were new to e-learning, they faced difficulties in navigating through the branching slides. This feedback helped us as well as their learners. We incorporated the learner feedback in rest of the courses. The relationship with the SME is a key factor in the success of an online course. I interacted with the SME through e-mails and Skype effectively and continue to enjoy a good working relationship with him. Hope you find this post useful. Do share your views. Related Posts4 Tips to Get the Most Out of Your Subject Matter Expert4 Effective Ways of Presenting Scenarios in E-learning CoursesHow Can Instructional Designers Efficiently Leverage the Skills Of SMEs?

Articulate Storyline is a rapid authoring tool which can be used to create courses on variety of topics - from food safety to financial accounting. Storyline is simple to use, and it easy to perform complex calculations using triggers. Recently, we were asked to create a course on accounting which explained how to calculate the monthly savings of an employee. Let us see how we used Storyline to compute the savings. Here are the steps involved. Step 1: Create a new slide and insert four textboxes in it - Salary, General Expenses, Other Expenses and Savings. Step 2: Insert three Numeric Entry fields from the Insert menu. When we insert a Numeric Entry field, a Numeric Entry Variable is created automatically. Step 3: Now, we have to rename these text entry variables (Numeric Entry, Numeric Entry 1, and Numeric Entry 2) as Salary, General Expenses, and Other Expenses according to the textboxes as shown in the screenshots below. Step 4: Create a numeric variable Savings with initial value as zero. Step 5: Create a Submit button, and add the following triggers to it in the order specified below. Trigger 1: Assign the value of Salary to Savings variable. Trigger 2: Subtract the value of GeneralExpenses from Savings value. Trigger 3: Subtract the value of OtherExpenses from the remaining Savings value. Now, the Savings variable contains the value of the monthly savings of an employee.  Step 6: Display the value of Savings variable in the slide by placing Savings variable in between two "%" symbols. Now, preview or publish the course and check the output. This way, we can perform different calculations using Storyline’s triggers. Hope this blog is informative. Please share your thoughts. Related PostsHow to Combine Your Adobe Captivate Projects Into Single Course?Rapid E-learning through Storyline Tool: 5 Infographics Sharing Key FeaturesHow to Insert Slide Numbers in Articulate Storyline?

Have you ever experienced problems while handling any of your electronic gadgets at home? I am sure you must have faced some issues while trying to solve something technical that you don’t know about. Last Sunday, I was trying to fix on my laptop, which was unsuccessful. I then called one of my friends for help, and then, I had a Skype talk on how to fix the problem step-by-step. I saw what my friend did on Skype Video and followed the same procedure and was finally successful. To my surprise, the same week I had a meeting with a client who wanted to educate his employees on using a tool. We received the inputs and found that it’s a training which needs to be done with care, because one small difference in the step and everything goes in vain. Connecting to my problem solved by Skype Video, we thought a "Watch and Try" strategy would be perfect for the content. Here, in this blog, I will discuss how to use the "Watch and Try" strategy to educate the employees on the tool. Starting with the very first step that is to analyze the content. At first, it was like rocket science but as were going into the content, things were getting more clear and clear. Our client had also given us access to the tool which helped us understand the content to a great extent. It was like reading the theory part first, and then doing a practical analysis of the tool. We followed three steps in the "Watch and Try" strategy. They were: Theoretical Knowledge As we noted our queries, we had calls with the SME and got our doubts cleared. We then started with the storyboarding phase and designed the theory part of content. In the theory part, you can include brief introduction about the tool like: Why should the tool be used? How does the tool help improve the productivity? What does the tool do? What is the process to be followed while using the tool? ….and so on. Visual Knowledge After the storyboarding phase, comes the "watch" phase. In this level: Record the video by doing the steps yourselves Check the video with the inputs, so as to match Take approval from the client to avoid re-work on the videos Embed the video, once it is approved by the SME Practical Experience  Once the video is embedded in course, the next phase is the "Try" phase, where the learner has to try the steps observed in the video. You need to create the trial screen by: Taking the images of the tool to match with the video Setting up the functionality in image as in the tool for selected locations only Giving instructions to the learner, on where to click, with the help of an arrow Connecting to the screens once the learner clicks the required area We followed these steps and ended with the "Watch", and the "Try" with same look and feel as of tool. By the end of the project, I gained considerable knowledge of the tool, and the course was as if the learner is really using the tool. I enjoyed the development of this online course. Hope you find this blog useful. Please share your views Related PostsBenefits of Using Simulations in Software Applications TrainingSoftware Product Simulation - Captivate or Flash?SAP Implementation - Are Software Simulations Enough to Train your Employees?

How do you know whether the learning objectives of your e-learning course are achieved or not? Well, you need to assess your learners on the knowledgegained from the course. You can do this by providing assessments in the e-learningcourse. There are two types of assessments - formative and summative. Formative assessments are provided at the end of each chapter and used to reinforce the concepts taught. Whereas, a summative assessment is provided at the end of the course and used to test the mastery of learners over the subject matter. Formative assessments are conducted using different types of questions likepuzzles, fill in the blanketc., whereas summative assessments are conducted using Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs). In this info-graphic, I would like to share a few tips to create questions of the fill in the blank type. Please do share your views. Related Posts5 Tips to Create Drop Down Interactivities in E-learning Assessments - An InfographicAssessment Strategy for M-learning4 Effective Ways of Presenting Scenarios in E-learning Courses

Recently, we met an interesting requirement from one of our clients. The client wanted to develop a course having 3 modules. The learner needed to answer a quiz at the end of each module. The client wanted to display the score for each of the modules as well as the average of the 3 scores. We can meet this requirement easily using variables and triggers. But, the client wanted to display them in a separate window, ‘outside’ the Articulate Storyline environment (without the tool’s GUI) and print them. To meet this requirement, we have to call an external HTML page. First, we need to send all the variables to the HTML page and open it in a separate window. Thereafter, we need to follow the steps given below. Step1: Create three tests with the required number of questions and a result page for each test. In the below example, I have created three quizzes, with each quiz having 5 questions and a result page. When we insert a result page, the default result variables are generated. "(%Results.ScorePercent%%, %Results.ScorePoints% points)" is the user’s score, "(%Results.PassPercent%%, %Results.PassPoints% points)" is the passing score. Here we have three tests and three result pages. So, the variables should be as follows. First quiz: "(%Results.ScorePercent%%, %Results.ScorePoints% points)" "(%Results.PassPercent%%, %Results.PassPoints% points)" Second quiz: "(%Results1.ScorePercent%%, %Results1.ScorePoints% points)" "(%Results1.PassPercent%%, %Results1.PassPoints% points)" Third quiz: "(%Results2.ScorePercent%%, %Results2.ScorePoints% points)" "(%Results2.PassPercent%%, %Results2.PassPoints% points)" Step2: Now, create four numeric variables (per1, per2, per3 and avg) with 0 as default value. Step3: Insert a text entry field (where the user can enter his name) in a new slide and add a print button in this slide. When we insert a text entry field, by default, a text variable called "TextEntry" is created. Step4: Add the following triggers to this slide in the same order. Trigger1: Assign the value of the "Results.ScorePercent" to "per1" when slide timeline starts. Trigger2: Assign the value of the "Results1.ScorePercent" to "per2" when slide timeline starts. Trigger3: Assign the value of the "Results2.ScorePercent" to "per3" when slide timeline starts. Trigger4: Add the value of the "per1" to "avg" when slide timeline starts. Trigger5: Add the value of the "per2" to "avg" when slide timeline starts. Trigger6: Add the value of the "per3" to "avg" when slide timeline starts. Trigger7: Divide the value of the "avg" with 3(number of tests) when slide timeline starts. Step5: Now execute the JavaScript when the user clicks "Print" button. Step6: Write the following code in JavaScript. var newWin=window.open("result.html", "status=0,scrollbars=0″); Here, "result.html" is an external page. We can send the result variables (per1, per2, per3 & avg) and name (TextEntry) into this page. Step7: Now, open a notepad and add the following code in it. <!doctype html> <!-[if lt IE 7 ]> <html class="ie6″> <![endif]-> <!-[if IE 7 ]> <html class="ie7″> <![endif]-> <!-[if IE 8 ]> <html class="ie8″> <![endif]-> <!-[if IE 9 ]> <html class="ie9″> <![endif]-> <!-[if (gt IE 9)|!(IE)]><!-> <html class=""> <!-<![endif]-> <head> <TITLE>Results</TITLE> <STYLE> div { margin:0px; padding:0px;} #res_text { text-align: left; position: absolute; left: 100px; top: 50px; z-index: 2; width: 460px; color: #000000; } #res_percent { text-align: left; position: absolute; left: 100px; top: 100px; z-index: 2; width: 550px; color: #000000; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Myriad Pro", "Lucida Grande", "Lucida Sans Unicode", Arial, sans-serif; } </STYLE> </HEAD> <BODY onload="window.print();"> <div id="res_text"><div align="left" style="width:100%;"> <SCRIPT> var player=top.window.opener.GetPlayer(); var learnerName=player.GetVar("TextEntry").replace(/(\r\n|\r|\n)/g, ‘<br />’); document.write("<P><H2> Hi " + learnerName + ",</P>"); </SCRIPT> </div> </div> <div id="res_percent"><div align="left" style="width:100%;"> <SCRIPT> var player=top.window.opener.GetPlayer(); var name=player.GetVar("TextEntry"); //Extracting name from storyline var percen1=player.GetVar("per1″); //Extracting first test result from storyline var percen2=player.GetVar("per2″); //Extracting second test result from storyline var percen3=player.GetVar("per3″); //Extracting third test result from storyline var aver=player.GetVar("avg"); //Extracting average result of the 3 tests from storyline document.write("<P><H2>Your score in module1: " + percen1 + "%" + "<br/><br/>Your score in module2: " + percen2 + "%" + "<br/><br/>Your score in module3: " + percen3 + "%" + "<br/><br/>Your average percentage is: " + aver + "%" +"</P>"); </SCRIPT> </div> </BODY> </HTML> Now save it as result.html. Step8: Now, publish the file and paste the "result.html" file in the output folder.  Now, check your output. Hope you find this post useful. Do share your views. Related PostsHow to Combine Your Adobe Captivate Projects Into Single Course?Rapid E-learning through Storyline Tool: 5 Infographics Sharing Key FeaturesHow to Enable Retake Quiz Option in Articulate Storyline?

Being an instructional designer, I can understand how it feels when your project does not meet the client expectations at the final stage. This leads to complete rework of your project, which in turn causes substantial wastage of your time and effort. All this rework and failure to meet stipulated project schedules are the results of the lack of proper communication with your client. The solution to the above problem is simple - take small and simple steps instead of giant leaps to reach each milestone and include the concepts of rapid prototyping and savvy start in your projects. This avoids sudden surprises and shocks at the final stage of your project. In this blog, I would like to share with you how rapid prototyping and savvy start helped us deliver the project on time providing exceptional services as per the client’s requirement. Rapid prototyping recommends the involvement of the client and the subject matter expert in every phase of the project development. This minimizes the cost and time by ‘identifying’ the problem in the early phases of the course development. Here, the work done will be sent to the client on a regular basis, and simultaneously, we receive feedback on a continual basis. This enables us to design an effective and meaningful e-learning course that meets the customer’s expectations with exceptional service. A savvy start is a kickoff meeting in which all the team members of the e-learning project participate in a meeting with the client to gather comprehensive background information and choose the project design. For every project, we follow 3 phases: Preparation phase - This is the preliminary phase which begins as soon as we receive a project from the client, and all the team members such as instructional designers, visual designers, developers, project managers etc., will have a kick off meeting in order to collect information about the learning outcomes. Iterative design phase - Once we gather basic information about the project, we proceed with project planning and designing. We develop the prototype and send it for the client’s approval. Depending on the client’s feedback, we either proceed with the storyboarding or develop an alternate approach. This iteration continues until we get the final approval of the prototype from the client. Iterative development phase - After the prototype is approved, we develop the design proof (storyboard) of the complete course and send it for approval. Once the design proof is approved, we proceed with the course development. Then, we have implementation loops. In this phase, additional design issues may arise. Following this agile process helped us maintain constant communication with our clients, thereby developing alternatives depending on their feedback. It also helped us avoid rework and enabled quick delivery of projects within the estimated time and budget with assured quality. Therefore at the end, we were able to rollout our projects in two iterations i.e., alpha and gold. Thank you for reading my blog. Please feel free to share your thoughts and opinions on the same. Related PostsTips on Controlling Scope in E-learning Project ManagementUnderstanding Project Risk ManagementProject Management - Handling Projects Effectively

Ask Compliance managers what they expect from a good online compliance course, and all of them will say, "It should make our employees adhere to rules and policies." Most of the companies provide compliance training through e-learning, and often, these courses have high dropout rates. Poor instructional strategies are one of the main reasons for this problem. Usually, compliance courses contain a lot of legal terms which learners find hard to understand. This results in the learners losing interest in the course. As a result, employees are unable to follow the rules, policies and work ethics at the workplace. So, how can you make these courses more effective and engaging? Well, here is an info-graphic that shares a few tips. Hope you find this post interesting. Do share your views. Related Posts5 Tips to Impart Excellent Compliance Training - An InfographicRelevance of Corporate Compliance Training in OrganizationsLearner-Centric Compliance E-learning Courses with Articulate Storyline

Articulate Storyline is a wonderful authoring tool to develop interactive and engaging e-learning courses. According to a survey conducted by the E-learning Guild in 2013, Storyline is the preferred choice of most e-learning developers. However, this powerful tool has some limitations. In my previous post, I have shared some limitations of Articulate Storyline and solutions to overcome them. In this post, I would like to share some more limitations and how to overcome them. 1. Using Scroll panel:  Scrolling panels are used when we use heavy content on the screen with less space. Limitation: Articulate Storyline doesn’t provide an option to format the scroll panel either by default or through customization. For example, changing color or style of the scroll panel is not possible. How to overcome: The only option is to develop a HTML Scrolling panel and insert it as a Web Object into your Storyline file. Go through this blog for more information. 2. Adding Password fields Many e-learning courses have login screens, and learners should type username/password in the spaces provided. Limitation: Articulate Storyline, by default, has no option to add password fields. How to overcome: We can overcome this limitation by creating a HTML input field (text field) and inserting it as a Web Object into your course. Go through this blog to know more about adding password fields to your e-learning courses. 3. Fill in the Blank Assessments These assessments enable the learner to type a response in the text entry field(s) provided. Limitations: Learners cannot navigate to next slide after typing the response in the blanks (text entry fields here), without clicking on the slide or Submit button. How to overcome: Using Storyline’s default text entries doesn’t provide much control for e-learning developers. However, we can have good control on fill in the blank assessments using HTML Input fields. Here is a post which explains how to navigate to the next slide automatically when the learner types the correct answer in a text entry field. 4. Tracking only some slides of the e-learning course  An e-learning course’s status will be set as ‘Completed’, on the LMS, only when all the slides of the course are visited or the final quiz is attempted (through the Result slide). Limitation: There is no default option to track some slides (or specific slides) of the course in Articulate Storyline.  How to overcome: We can achieve this using a Result slide (used only for tracking). Click here to know how to track an e-learning course though only some slides of the course are visited. In this way, we can overcome the limitations of Articulate Storyline and use the tool efficiently. Would you like to add to the above list? Please do so. Related Posts4 Tips for Developing E-learning Course Using Rapid Authoring ToolsRapid E-learning through Storyline Tool: 5 Infographics Sharing Key FeaturesHow to Customize a Scrolling Panel in Articulate Storyline

Curriculum-based courses are very much in demand today. Organizations prefer curriculum-based courses to stand-alone courses. Curriculum courses cater to a long running training program that usually runs for a period of two to three months. It is a course that has several modules which instruct on a particular subject in-depth. From the learner’s perspective, these modules would be easy to grasp and understand. They can be bite-sized modules that are easily accessible by the learners, anywhere, anytime, as per their convenience. Since all the modules of a curriculum are inter-related to each other, it is a tough task to develop such modules effectively. Here are three tips that can help you develop e-learning curriculums effectively. 1. Use a Global Strategy for Common Slides There are a certain slides that are used in all modules. Such modules could be taught in the same way. For example, every module starts with the introduction of that module, then explains the learning objectives, and ends up with a summary. When analyzing the inputs, it is essential to make out all slides that are used in all modules. We can also create scenarios or case studies for each module, according to the content of that module. Then, it is time to think of a global strategy of how these slides look in the course. Each time you develop a new module, you can simply reuse the same slide and replace its content with the text of your module. 2. Maintain Consistency throughout the Modules More than one person is involved in developing the modules. So, it is essential to maintain consistency in terms of design, duration and assessments throughout the modules as they belong to a single course. Right from the colors you are using to the images placed in the modules, you need to ensure consistency. For example, if you are planning to use vector images in the modules, you need to use vector images throughout the course. This helps retain the look and feel of the course till the end. 3. Follow an Agile Process  Since a set of modules are being developed in the same way, it is advisable to follow an agile process for a successful outcome. Send a prototype for a set of slides that are common to all modules and get them approved by the client. This helps us understand whether we are in ‘sync’ with the client’s requirement or not. Once the prototype is approved, the modules can be developed quickly. These three tips help you develop effective curriculum-based courses. I hope you find this blog informative. Please do share your ideas on this. Related Posts4 Effective Ways of Presenting Scenarios in E-learning Courses5 Steps of a Highly Effective Instructional Design Process3 Things which Make Conversion of ILT Materials into E-learning Courses Easy - An Infographic