The gomo team are delighted to announce our partnership with Micropole Institut, launching at next week’s E-Learning Expo.  Micropole Institut has become the latest business to join the gomo reseller programme, joining Learning Technologies Group’s LEO (EMEA, North America and South America), ITC Learning (Australia) and Vestergaard & Co (Denmark) to become our official reseller in France. The Paris-based agency will provide all things gomo to the French market, further spreading our passion for multi-device learning across Europe. Whilst Micropole Institut have already been welcomed into the gomo network; the official launch of this exciting new partnership will take place at next week’s E-Learning Expo event in Paris (24th-26th March). Our new resellers will be spreading the power of gomo, providing gomo licences and associated services such as local support, custom theme development, training and content creation services. With territorial growth high on the agenda for 2016, gomo’s Managing Director Mike Alcock is pleased to have the agency onboard: "Micropole Institut is one of Europe’s leading e-learning providers, and we’re excited to be working together. Through this reseller agreement, we look forward to working closely with Micropole Institut to assist their customers and partners to implement gomo as a key component of their e-learning strategies." Jean-David Amaoua, Managing Director at Micropole Institut has also been keen to express the importance of the partnership: "Micropole Institut’s commitment to providing the best e-learning solutions to our customers makes gomo a logical choice. With gomo’s unique authoring, hosting, analytics and app capabilities, we expect that our customers will be able to reap the benefits of multi-device e-learning to improve business performance." If you’re unable to see gomo in action at E-Learning Expo, why not join a webinar to find out more? The post gomo learning to launch partnership with Micropole Institut at E-Learning expo 2016 appeared first on gomo Learning.

Before the Easter break I accompanied gomo’s new re-sellers, Micropole Institut, at the E-learning Expo event in Paris. In true gomo style it was a busy day on the exhibition floor with lots of conversations and, of course, constant demos. After weeks of communication with Micropole Institut, it was great to finally meet the team in person. As the official re-seller of gomo in France, I’m looking forward to seeing how far we can grow the gomo message in this territory. Even my Mancunian accent didn’t get in the way and people were able to understand and experience the power of gomo first hand. The E-Learning Expo was gomo’s first outing in France and the reception to the authoring suite was as incredibly positive. It was great to unveil our new app capability to a unique demographic. The new gomo central native app is an extension of gomo central, our learner portal, which allows learners to download and run courses and content offline on a tablet or smartphone.  When running a course offline (e.g. on a plane or train), tracking (via xAPI) is stored within the app and then synchronises back with gomo hosting upon reconnection. This was the first time we have shared the app with an audience since February’s Learning Technologies exhibition and it was great to see such enthusiasm around the power of offline learning. The gomo central app builds on our strategy to reach the intended audience in as effective a way as possible. The feedback from visitors to the stand was brilliant, and it’s really exciting to have so many conversations around the power of offline learning to improve distribution. The new gomo multilingual features were especially of interest to the French audience. The ability to have a single course with multiple languages was really appreciated by many of the multinational corporations who looked at gomo. The multilingual editor and localisation options also went down well. It was a great opportunity to join Micropole Institut at E-learning Expo and to showcase gomo in France. I have taken away some great feedback which we will be looking to channel into our road-map over the next 12 months. Next on the gomo exhibition tour is ATD ICE in Denver, closely followed by FocusOn Mobile in Texas. Myself, Gavin and Huw are (as always) really excited to head over to the US and greet our gomo-enthusiasts across the pond. Learning Technologies and E-learning Expo have been great conferences to kick off 2016 with and I can’t wait to unveil the gomo central app to our US audience. The post E-Learning Expo: gomo launches in France appeared first on gomo Learning.

Collaboration has always been a key destination on the gomo roadmap. We know the importance of a collaborative team in the creation of engaging content, and pride ourselves on building a tool to bring creative minds together. We’ve shortlisted the many reasons we love collaborative e-learning authoring down to just three: Collaborative e-learning authoring to create effective content Teams are built on a foundation of common interest, usually to fulfil a business goal or function. An effective team is not only efficient in the generation of results, but contributes a range of unique perspectives, minds and strengths. Some of the best ideas we have had here at LTG come from team workshops and we love getting people from different departments together to share ideas. gomo encourages collaboration through shared ideas with a team-based development approach. Representative of our style within the gomo team itself, collaborative content development ensures all voices across the team are heard. In our experience, the best ideas come from a team that thrives on collaboration and shared discussion. Collaborative e-learning authoring to save time The introduction of Google Drive saw an increase in collaborative working and we were keen to emulate this streamlined approach when creating the gomo learning suite. Working towards a collaborative model, we decided to forgo spreadsheets and email trails, instead encouraging our customers to review their courses live on our server. Including additional team members can cause problems during the review phase. gomo wanted to make including your subject matter experts in the review process as easy as possible, so we awarded contributors the power to add review notes directly into the course preview with full workflow and task assignment available. Collaborative e-learning authoring for review on the road gomo understands how tough it can be to create, refine and review content when away from the office. Providing direct link and QR code sharing is our way of making things easier for those working away from the office. The gomo learning suite allows users to deliver courses for review and testing to colleagues via direct link or via QR code. By using a QR code reader, colleagues can transfer the course straight to their smartphone or tablet. Reviewing on the road has never been easier. If you’re keen to experience the power of collaborative authoring, gomo offers a free 21 day trial to try with your team. The post Collaborative e-learning authoring for results appeared first on gomo Learning.

Here at gomo, we know the importance of brand. Whilst external branding is key to success, we never underestimate the power of internal messaging. Brand is unique to your company - tone of voice, graphical assets, company culture and training and development all contribute to a reputable brand of commercial success. Customization is important to gomo, and we want to make sure you can use the gomo learning suite to create customizable themes that match your branding seamlessly, for e-learning that really feels like yours. A library of themes for customization gomo provides users with a range of themes for ultimate creative control when building courses. New themes are added regularly so your content will always look fresh and can be updated with ease. Powerful theme configuration gomo themes are highly configurable so you can adjust them to match your brand or project requirements. You can also save your theme customizations as bespoke themes so you can reuse and edit your content whenever a refresh is in order. The configuration facilitates easy changes regardless of whether your courses need a small tweak or a design overhaul. Customization of your library in an instant gomo’s themes are separate from your content, enabling a rebrand of all your projects in an instant. A simple update of the theme enables you to change one, or hundreds of courses, instantaneously. The speed of content customization means that you’re spending minimal time on admin, with more to spend on creating great learning. Customization for content that really looks like yours Change the colours, fonts, backgrounds, opacity and size of your assets within gomo to create a truly unique and onbrand solution. gomo offers a tailored learning experience for a fraction of the cost of a bespoke solution, and remains editable for the lifetime of your content. We’ve developed gomo to keep your learning as ‘on-brand’ as possible without opting for a bespoke solution. If you’re looking for an even more personal approach, we also offer custom gomo themes designed to your exact brand specifications. Trial gomo for 21 days to see our customization features free of charge. Examples of gomo custom themes can be found here. The post The importance of customization in the creation of e-learning content appeared first on gomo Learning.

I often think about the ways in which people are using technology, and how the emergence of the Internet has impacted things such as bullying, where when I was young, you used to be able to escape bullying by going home after school. For these reasons (and more), I wanted to chat a bit about the concept of Digital Citizenship. What is digital citizenship? Digital citizenship is relates to societal norms and responsible use of digital technology and the Internet. Who is a digital citizen? A digital citizen can be considered any individual who is using technology and the Internet to participate socially (e.g. reading and writing blogs/wikis, participating in social media, etc.). What constitutes responsible use? Responsible use as it relates to digital citizenship would involve using digital technologies in a manner that will not negatively impact other individuals or which are illegal. For example, cyber bullying negatively impacts those individuals on the receiving end of the bullying, plagiarizing someone’s work is unethical, and downloading pirated films/tv shows/software is illegal. But there’s so much more! Digital citizenship isn’t just about being a responsible user of digital technology, it also involves being responsible when it comes to how you use digital technology. For example, using ergonomic principles and best practices, you can set up your workstation so that it does not negatively impact your muscles and body. Resources Nine Themes of Digital Citizenship from digitalcitizenship.net Digital Citizenship: Developing a Culture of Trust and Transparency by A. Marcinek 5-Minute Film Festival: Teaching Digital Citizenship by A. E. Borovoy  

I know I’m going to regret doing this, but I’ve added a new weekly feature to the site: Screencast Monday. I’ll regret doing this only because I am in a constant state of feeling like there are never enough hours in the day…but my hope is that it will be a very helpful feature for all of your lovely folks!  Sharing is caring! Inspired by the E-Learning Heroes Community screencast challenges, where I’ll be cross-posting videos, when relevance allows. The first instalment of Screencast Monday has been cross-posted to the E-Learning Heroes Community post Share Your Tips for Getting Started with Storyline’s Variables. Using Variables to Add Values in Storyline I write about this and many other neat Storyline concepts in my new book, being published in the next couple of months, Mastering Articulate Storyline, so if I peak your interest, stay tuned and grab the book when it comes out! This week, I’m showing you just how easy it is to perform basic calculations using the Number variable in Articulate Storyline. This is a great function to use when it comes to mathematical quizzes, or scenario-based learning. Check out the video below to find out how you too can add values using number variables, and let me know in the comments whether you’re excited about this new weekly feature and whether you want me to continue it!

This week I wanted to chat a bit about something I aspire to participate in locally. Something I’ve wanted to create for some time now, but just haven’t found more hours in the day…User Groups! User Groups? A user group is a group of users of a particular software who meet regularly to share information related to the software, such as: How the software is being used Neat tips and tricks for using the software To talk troubleshooting Getting advice User groups can help enhance your product knowledge and potentially streamline your development within the software. If you’re working in a silo, how can you reap the benefits of user tips and tricks when you aren’t interacting with these users? Sharing truly is caring, and the main goal of a user group is to share information! Each individual user has a different perspective, and everyone can bring great ideas to the table! Not to mention, user groups give you a huge opportunity to network with like-minded professionals, which could benefit from an entrepreneurial perspective (e.g. if User 1 has too much work and needs to offload to another individual - the user group provides the opportunity to locate qualified sub-contractors). I’ve been lusting over all of the Articulate User Groups, but have not found enough interest in an Articulate User Group within my demographic (Eastern Canada). I have the means of securing a location, but just need warm bodies…particularly warm bodies interested in participating in a regular Articulate User Group. If you’re one of those individuals, let me know!

This week I wanted to show you how easily you can create an automatic scrolling effect in Articulate Storyline 2. Hopefully you can find some good uses for this effect in your e-learning projects and add a bit of flare to your Storyline interactions!

Everyone has their methods for project or workflow management, and each method undoubtedly has their merits. Finding the best workflow for you can take a lot of trial or error, or you can stumble upon it within an existing corporate culture. This week I’m going to talk about one method for project management and how it can apply to learning design. Agile? Yes, I am. Why thank you! Wakka wakka! The general logic behind the concept of ‘agile’ is that your workflow or project is managed in such a way that it is organic and adaptive. But most importantly (from my perspective) is that the project management is efficient. While this approach may not work for all clients or projects (I’m shouting out those clients who like to change their minds 32489234932 times and scope creep like a boss…unintentionally of course), it can be a very effective approach for many industries. I was first introduced to agile project management from a software development and programming standpoint. At the time, it seemed like a very chaotic way of running a project, but if decisions are properly documented (or documented at all), it can prove incredibly efficient. What elements are considered agile? Speed - with an agile workflow, projects tend to move more quickly and efficiently as milestones are not as bogged down by lengthy approval processes as other workflow approaches. Reduce, reuse, recycle - This concept works extremely well at making large projects more efficient. Especially those projects where materials are often reused. For example, a 3D model of an aircraft can be repurposed for almost any component being discussed during aircraft (the specific aircraft of course) training as opposed to having to create a new 3D model for each component. Rapid prototyping - Developing as the project goes instead of waiting on storyboard approval.

It is no secret that I’ve been having a love affair with Articulate Storyline 2 for the past couple of years, so I thought I would share my top 5 reasons why I love this product! The only way I could love it any more than I already do is if it were to come to my house and make me coffee each morning. #1 - The Efficiency Storyline 2 allows me to enhance my overall workflow efficiency by making life easy. I can streamline my development using scenes and with all of the built-in functionality, I seldom need to go outside of Storyline to create additional assets (e.g. screen recordings, audio narration, etc.). #2 - The Customizable Interface Storyline 2 allows me to customize my development interface by providing the ability to dock/undock panel, save and use templates, and add commonly used functions to the quick access bar. Such functionality goes a long way in helping me streamline my development. #3 - The Options There are SO MANY options in Storyline 2, and these options really take away the need for using multiple products. With features such as motion path animations, scroll panels, and slider interactions, you can truly create almost anything you dream. Diving deeper into the advanced functionality of Storyline 2, you can leverage variables and conditions to help bend stories to your will, and sprinkling JavaScript throughout your stories can really help your stories stand out from the crowd! #4 - The Support Nothing, in my experience, has compared to the customer service and outstanding support of the Articulate team. Everyone I’ve interacted with has gone above and beyond to ensure that responses are dealt with expediently, support issues are resolved quickly, and that my overall product experience is beyond pleasant. The added support of the E-Learning Heroes Community, with Articulate staff and community members is amazing, and makes a huge difference when it comes to product support, sharing ideas, receiving/giving constructive criticism, and promotion (seriously - if you’re not part of the community, get on it!). #5 - The Learning Experience There is always something new to learn! With all of the functions built-in to Storyline 2, it seems as though there are endless possibilities when it comes to combining elements to create new types of interactions. This allows me to learn and share new information with community members and my blog audience! Storyline makes for a wonderful muse - I loved writing Articulate Storyline Essentials, and I’m just about finished with Mastering Articulate Storyline, so please stay tuned for that - I pull some amazing examples shared by community members and provide many pages of my own Storyline antidotes to help you harness the power of Storyline 2 and truly take your e-learning development to the next level!

This week’s Screencast Monday is a throwback from last year. It illustrates one way - some may say an unconventional way, but one that is still functional - of creating custom feedback layers in Articulate Storyline. This approach does not involve using Feedback Masters, and may be effective in situations where you want to use multiple styles for multiple questions without having to create multiple feedback masters.

There’s been a rumbling around the university for the past couple of years, but more so in recent months, about Open Educational Resources (OERs) and the place they may or may not have in our course offerings. With all of the buzz, it seemed like a good time to chat a bit about what OERs are. OERs OERs are not a new concept; in fact, UNESCO founded the term way back in 2002. However, they do seem to be more prominent in modern digital learning. The concept behind OERs is to have educational resources in the public domain, accessible to all, and OERs would remove limitations (typically in place via copyright) when it comes to use and redistribution of materials. The main benefits of OERs are: increased access and free, the latter of which is incredibly beneficial when it comes to required texts used in post-secondary education, which traditionally have been quite costly. Considering the financial obligations the students of the world are already taking on in order to receive high-quality educations, textbook costs are one element that OERs may provide financial relief. Resources OER Commons Open Educational Resources - UNESCO Find OER

The Concept The idea behind this challenge was to use a custom background, coupled with a visual design tip from Tom Kuhlmann, that illustrates how to use a visual echo technique in e-learning design. The Method Smashing Magazine recently posted a freebie download for some super cute barista and coffee lover icons. I downloaded them, but hadn’t found the opportunity to use them, so they were my muse. I selected one of the icons from the set (the coffee sign), applied some transparency, made it into a background image for the main slide, and then set about creating a tabbed-style interaction on the left-hand side, with the same coffee image (with no transparency) as a logo of sorts. Using several of the other barista icons, I created appropriately labeled tabs, and added layers for each of these items. Within the layers, I added a larger image of the tab icon and an explanation for how to make that type of beverage. Finally, I customized the player by removing the navigational elements and adjusting some of the base colours. The Result Click here to view the full interaction.

A reader recently emailed to ask me how I upload and share my Storyline interactions on my website, and then David Anderson came out with this week’s screencast challenge, so it seemed like a timely screencast to record. In this video, I explain how I upload and share Storyline output on my website, using FTP.

One of my favourite ways of uploading and sharing projects for Subject Matter Expert (SME) review is to use Articulate Tempshare. Once again, the lovely folks over at Articulate have come up with a fantastic (and generous) solution to temporarily storing our Articulate outputs, and it has come in handy for me on more than one occasion. What is Tempshare? Articulate Tempshare is a temporary store for your Articulate project outputs; it allows you to upload web-based project outputs and stores them for 10-days, providing you with a link to view your project. It is SO HELPFUL! Another great use for Tempshare would be to share files with other developers (or Articulate) for troubleshooting purposes.

(Complete discretion: Part of me has wanted to use this image in a post for many moons…so I loosely related it to PLAR, implying that the aliens previously filled that individual’s brain with knowledge…#sorrynotsorry.) Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition (PLAR) PLAR involves acknowledging relevant life experiences as credit against a pre-determined set of standards. Think of PLAR as a way of becoming exempt from an exam in high school. You demonstrate your competencies, and if the demonstration is strong enough (usually graded), you are fast tracked to the next course. We often see PLAR in on-the-job roles, where someone may not have the perceived necessary academic qualifications for a certain position, but their previous work experience has been considered acceptable to warrant a career position for that individual.  Why is PLAR important? As an individual, it can help you identify skills and knowledge that may be relevant for application to future positions. It allows institutions and workplaces to set a benchmark for your knowledge and skills as they relate to their organization. Is efficient when it comes to identify training gaps and filling those gaps instead of delivering unnecessary training - this identification is often paired with training needs analysis.

I figured it was time to jump back on the E-Learning Challenge bandwagon, so I used some of the free time (or time I procrastinated with) I had this week and came up with a few slides to get folks started when it comes to e-learning development. The Concept The idea behind this week’s e-learning challenge was to share a course starter template that consists of at least six slides…so I had to go back to my project and add another slide (whoops!). The Method I first went to Unsplash, which is my goto resource when it comes to finding inspiration and/or background images for use in my projects. Once I found the image I was going to use, I applied it as a background to all of my slides, with a transparency. From this image, I pulled three main colours for use as a palette and went to work! Note: If you look at the source file, you’ll see the colour palette I chose off to the left-hand side of the slide. For the cover slide, I used a trapezoid rotated 90 degrees as the base for my course title. I also added some custom navigation, disabling the Prev and Next buttons on the course player. The objectives slide was reused from a demo I tossed together awhile back. I modified the slide to reflect the background and colour palette I chose. The full-text slide was easy - I added a rectangle, filled with a colour from my palette, and then a text box for the heading and one for the main paragraph. The container for popups slide was pulled from another project and repurposed with my colour palette, and some shapes and buttons were removed. The bulleted list slide was a more modern take on a bulleted list, built out using rectangles. The question slide was a modified convert to freeform pick one that was created for an exercise in the book I’m currently finishing up, Mastering Articulate Storyline. Finally, I went to the course player and disabled pretty well everything, and adjusted the colour scheme to match my palette. The Result Click here to view the full demo. | Click here to download the source file.

This week I wanted to discuss how I modified the Storyline course player for my recent course starter template, which you can download for free by clicking here. To do this, I made some very simple modifications to the player tabs and controls, and then to the player colours. Check out the demo below to find out what I did!

Back when I was working through my undergraduate degree, I managed a busy Starbucks. It was an incredible experience because it allowed me to foster some of my longest standing friendships, and I had a pretty friggin’ amazing staff. With management comes training. This was one of my first tastes of training and professional development (of others), and I take some of the principles used in this corporate training experience with me as I move throughout my current role and even my life. One such training principle that Starbucks introduced me to is: Tell, Show, Do. Tell, Show, Do? The idea behind tell, show, do is exactly how it sounds. You begin your training experience by telling the trainee what they will learn. You then show them what they will learn. Finally, you let the trainee try their hand at whatever it is you’re training them to do. As a kinaesthetic learner, especially when it comes to procedural training, I found this training method extremely effective. Great. Now I know what you’re talking about, but how would this type of training look? You know how Starbucks comes out with new drinks every now and again, or even re-introduces old favourites (hey, Pumpkin Spice Latte, amiright?)? Well, every time there’s a new product launch, an old drink is reintroduced, or a recipe changes, a whole training requirement comes down the pipeline. Each employee needs to complete the training, regardless of time spent at the company or proficiency. Scenario: A new employee is learning to make a latte. Step 1 - Explain to the trainee that they will be learning to make a latte, that the recipe card is located in x location, and explain the procedure for making the latte. Step 2 - You, as the trainer, make a latte, explaining each of the steps as you make the latte. Steps will align with the recipe card. Step 3 - Finally, you let the trainee make a latte, in accordance with the recipe card specifications. Once the training session is completed, the trainer will assess the training and will provide constructive feedback to the trainee. Such feedback will allow the trainee to improve their performance on the next attempt. Ahead of the next attempt, the trainer should use Tell, Show, Do as they emphasize elements of the training where the trainee missed the mark. This feedback should also help the trainee improve performance in their next attempt. Stay tuned next week for another training tip I learned at Starbucks and continue to bring with me!

This week I wanted to show you some quick and easy ways to come up with colour schemes for your e-learning. Within this screencast, I discuss three websites for hunting down your finest e-learning colour palettes: Colourlovers Coolors Color.adobe.com

Following on the coat tails of last week’s discussion of Tell, Show, Do, I figured I would share another training tip I learned during my tenure at Starbucks: Sandwiching. And no - I’m not talking about the process of making a killer Peanut Butter and Jelly. Sandwiching? Sandwiching is a fun training term that is related to professional development and training. The premise is that when providing feedback to someone, you sandwich the constructive criticism between two positives. This method is effective with regard to providing feedback because it gives the recipient relevant compliments on a task, with a small constructive criticism of the task - something for them to improve on in the future. It lessens the blow of the critique, which can be critical, especially if you work with some very sensitive souls. The important thing with this method is that all points must be relevant. Below, I’ll illustrate a bad sandwiching conversation and a good sandwiching conversation. Bad Sandwiching Supervisor: Hey, Becky! I just thought I would tell you that your new polo shirt fits you really well, but you suck at making lattes. Great hairstyle - did you just get it cut?! This is an example of bad sandwiching because all points are not relevant to the constructive criticism. The positives are superfluous. Nice compliments, but a terrible training strategy. Good Sandwiching Supervisor: Hey, Becky! Your milk aeration is on point! Although, when you make your lattes, could you please hold the foam back with a spoon or give the milk time to separate from the foam? Otherwise your lattes will be too light and will be closer to a cappuccino - more foam than milk. You did also do really well keeping steaming your milk to the appropriate temperature. This is an example of good sandwiching because all points are relevant to the constructive criticism. Good sandwiching conversations may take a bit longer to have, but that’s because they aren’t superfluous. They have the goal of hitting three relevant points, all providing feedback related to the task at hand, in this case, making a latte.

My apologies for the late post; I was going to do a first impression type of screencast with a new technology that has me pretty excited, but there was a bit of a glitch during the demo, and I’m still waiting for technical support to get back to me. Maybe you’ll see the demo next week…maybe not at all - who knows?! This week we’ll look at how you can easily extend slide content using layers in Articulate Storyline. Understanding all of the ways in which you can extend slide content is essential as it may allow you to reduce overall slide count in your projects, leading to a more streamlined and efficient project structure.

Moving forward with the topic of extending slide content in Articulate Storyline, I wanted to show you two very easy and functional ways that you can use Lightbox Slides to extend display content - this works particularly well with navigation instructions and media carousels (which I’ll discuss on another day).

This week I thought it might be useful to talk about development plans, as I work within them nearly everyday within my current role. What is a Development Plan? A development plan is a document that outlines an entire course. Typically, it will consist of the following information: Course Developer, including contact information General Course Information, such as: Course Name Course Title Calendar Description Required Text Credit Weight Overall Course Goals When the course will be offered or revised Prerequisites Enrolment information High-Level Leaning Objectives Module Information, including: Module Names Module-Specific Learning Objectives Topics Learning Activities, which may or may not be assessed References or Resources (e.g. module readings/videos/etc.) Assignment Information Assessment and Evaluation Strategy Wow. That’s a lot of information. Why is a Development Plan important? That’s exactly why development plans are important - because that IS a lot of information! Development plans serve as a course outline, and streamline things once the course developer gets to the development phase. A well written development plan will have a lot of elements that have been fleshed out and are ready to be copied from the development plan into the course site. Development plans are also important because they allow key reviewers (e.g. department chairs, subject matter experts, etc.) to review the plan and make necessary changes or recommendations prior to entering the development phase…and it’s a lot easier to modify a Word document than it is to modify content in an authoring tool. In online learning, development plans may also come in handy when it comes to fleshing out your activities and assessment strategies with an instructional designer, especially if you’re used to teaching in more traditional mediums (e.g. in a classroom).