As a new year approaches, I find myself reflecting on my successes and the challenges I encountered in 2019. I’m an eLearning developer, so my thoughts turned in that direction, and I began to wonder what would my thoughts be if I were an eLearning course.
Here is what I came up with:
I’m an eLearning course who feels hopeful as the New Year approaches. I have some weight I’d like to lose. Yes, I’m over an hour long and not easy to maneuver through. I’ve been in this LMS for years now, feeling a bit neglected. My programming is outdated, so I move a bit more slowly than I used to.
I see younger thinner, more modern eLearning courses getting uploaded every year while I sit here as learners heave heavy sighs of boredom as they work through me.
“What about me?” I think when I see my course creator login to the LMS. I understand I’m mandatory training, but I can be fun too if given the opportunity.
“Am I not worth modernizing, making interactive, and engaging? Am I not worth the time to review to make lighter?” I’ve been around for such a long time now; I know how it goes. “It is what it is. Not much we can do here.” Deadlines and other courses are more important, so I get passed over year after year.
But this year, yet again, I’m hopeful! When my course title comes up for annual review, perhaps the following questions will be asked:
Is this course still relevant?
My content is still relevant, but my graphics are outdated, some of my links don’t work, and my scenarios, which were once great, aren’t relevant to the audience anymore.
Does the content need to be edited?
I contain more information than necessary, and I know I'm redundant at times. Some of my content could be combined or eliminated. Maybe a restructure of my slides is all that is needed.
Could this content be delivered differently?
My content is informational, but I know I could be great as a video series or maybe even put into an authoring tool that allows learners to explore the material via video, reading, and interactive scenarios.
Does this course need to be retired?
And you know what, if the answer to this question is yes, it is time to retire this course. I’d be alright with that because I’ve delivered this content for a while now. I know I’m outdated and could use some work. It is okay to start over sometimes.
Whatever my outcome this year, I hope these questions will help guide you as you plan your eLearning projects for the year. I get it, constraints of time, budget, and limited resources will dictate your plan of action, but ponder this; with a little creativity, collaboration, and an open mind, you can create training that will engage your audience while meeting goals and driving results.