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I know. I know. I skipped a week, but I promise that I have something special in store for all of you Terminology Tuesday fans, so pipe down!

This week I sifted through my archives and was surprised that I had yet to discuss Subject Matter Experts (SMEs), so it seemed like no better time than the present to table that term for explanation and discussion.

Subject Matter Experts (SMEs)

SMEs are just that – ‘experts’ within a given subject matter. These individuals are often the authority for content accuracy within your e-learning projects. SMEs come from all walks of life, but generally have a wealth of academic and/or on-the-job experience to be considered proficient in their domain.

Typically, Instructional Designers will work closely with SMEs to determine learning objectives, define training plans and outlines, and ensure accuracy of content within the storyboarding and/or prototyping phases. Occasionally, SMEs may write assessment items, or the Instructional Designer may work in liaison with the SME to determine appropriate assessment items and distractors.

The relationship between the Instructional Designer and the SME can be an intricate one…The Instructional Designer often needs to navigate how to effectively communicate with the SME in order to acquire necessary information for the project. SMEs sometimes have a hard time separating the nice to know from the need to know, and this is really where the Instructional Designer needs to learn how to effectively question the SME to ensure they are developing instructionally sound content, and not overloading learners with extraneous information.

In further considering the relationship between Instructional Designer and SME, it is very important to define roles and responsibilities at the beginning of each project. Without doing so, or without being able to assert dominance within a given area (e.g. design versus content accuracy), a SME can easily run away with the project, negatively impacting the overall design. It has been my experience (not always), that some SMEs believe they could better design the e-learning, which is why it’s important for both individuals to understand their roles and to respect one another’s role in the project.

Above all else, communication is the magic ingredient when it comes to working with a SME. If you can nail down an effective communication strategy, you should be golden!

1. What have been your experiences working with SMEs? 
2. How do you navigate your working relationship with SMEs to ensure utmost respectability and fair treatment?

Resources

• SMEs are from Mars, Instructional Designers are from Venus – Tara D. Holwegner, Life Cycle Engineering
• 3 Tips You Must Know When Working With SMEs – Sister Mandi, Elearning Brothers
• Working With SMEs: An Instructional Designer’s Guide to Collecting and Organizing Content From Subject Matter Experts – Peggy Salvatore and Jonena Relth

I know – this isn’t really an Instructional Design term, but it’s a term that likely affects many folks between the months of October – April…at least if you’re lucky enough to live on the east coast of North America. In these parts, we were lucky to see a flake of snow between October and December. However, once mid-January hit, we were saddled with an onslaught of snow and ice and cold. And sunshine is a very rare sighting…almost like a unicorn sighting.

What is Seasonal Affective Disorder?

Seasonal Affective Disorder, or SAD, is a seasonal mood pattern that occurs most often in individuals with major depressive disorder. However, it also occurs in a variety of other individuals. For example, I suffer from Generalized Anxiety Disorder, and I am affected by SAD, so if SAD impacts you, it doesn’t necessarily mean you suffer from depression.

SAD often illicit feelings of helplessness, hopelessness, pessimism, and sluggishness. You may find that all you want to do is lay in bed and sleep until July. You may find that you prefer to binge eat all of the carbs. You may find that you retreat to all of your introverted tendencies…even if you’re traditionally an extrovert. However SAD affects you, it’s important to realize that it is a disorder and it is brought on by certain times of the year, and once you recognize that it’s not ‘just you’, you can take steps to create a more positive life environment. This is extremely important if you live on the east coast and frequently throw your Christmas tree to the curb in December only to find it still on your lawn when the snow melts in April.

The winter months can be desperate times, but there are some measures you can take to reduce the impact of SAD on you and your loved ones.

Suggestions for combatting SAD

• Light therapy. There are SAD lamps, and I’ve heard very good things about them! Alternatively, you can get some fake sun in a tanning bed…which I know is not the best recommendation from a health perspective, but desperate times call for desperate measures.
• Vitamin D supplements – When sunshine is an infrequent visitor, we all start becoming deficient in vitamin D. My general practitioner has even suggested taking vitamin D supplements year round, because in our climate, we don’t receive nearly enough of it.
• Exercise! As hard as it is to motivate yourself to do anything when SAD is weighing you down, you need to just get off your butt and exercise! You’ll get your endorphins flowing, and eventually you’ll begin to feel more energized and less sluggish.