Ashley Chiasson, M.Ed

E-Learning Challenge #65: E-Learning Makeovers – Designing a Unified Template

January 14, 2015

After a couple of weeks of relaxation (thanks, David!), this week’s challenge was to develop a unified template, and I really enjoyed developing this interaction. It gave me a break from my regular workload, and now I’m feeling a bit more inspired.

The Concept

Use three different templates to develop a unified template. The templates could either come from something existing you had kicking around on your hard drive, from somewhere online, or from the Articulate Downloads site.

The Method

The three templates I chose to use were:

Using the Clean Resume Template as a jumping off point, I changed the colour scheme, deleted most of the navigation elements, replaced them with accordion blocks from the Accordion Template, and added some headers, using the ball icons from Storyline 2 Icon-Based Template.

It was pretty easy to put together, and definitely practical.

The Result

To view the full interaction, Click Here.

To download this Free Resume Template, Click Here.

Terminology Tuesday: Gesture-Based Learning

January 13, 2015

This week I wanted to chat a bit about gesture-based learning. The topic recently came up in discussion, and whenever I explain it in contextual examples (of projects I previously worked on), people always seem really wow’ed, so I figured it would be a great time to chat about it!

Gesture-Based Learning

Gesture-based learning allows users to learn practical movements through human interactions interfacing with digital technologies. This type of learning became increasingly popular with the emergence of readily available and affordable technologies such as the Xbox Kinect and the Nintendo Wii. The novelty is engaging enough for most users, and with the appropriate programming, you can develop incredible scenarios.

In gesture-based learning, courses are developed around key gestures and body movements. Activities are often simulating real-life events, and the practical component of gesture-based learning activities is paramount (in my opinion) when it comes to mastering movements to be used in real-life events.

An example of a gesture-based course I contributed to was an aircraft marshalling program, wherein the users were tasked with properly learning marshalling signals, and throughout the activities they were assessed. Incorrect movements would prompt sample scenarios of what might happen in the real-world field. It was one of the cooler programs I worked on, but I have to suppose that it was incredibly expensive and laborious for all resources involved.

Resources

Terminology Tuesday: Job Aids

January 6, 2015

I don’t use as many job aids now, but back in my time with the military sector I was very well-acquainted with them. The military LOVES their job aids. I was inspired to write this post as I work through E-Learning Challenge #17 – Using Job Aids in E-Learning.

Job Aids

Job aids are just what they sound like – materials developed in order to aid you in doing your job! These often appear in the form of checklists (think back to the time you may have spent in retail – did you have a dreaded bathroom cleaning checklist? You know, the one you had to sign off on every 30 minutes?), worksheets, or FAQs. These job aids can serve to make doing certain tasks easier, especially if you have a lot to remember. They also serve to generate procedural habits.

In e-learning, job aids might even be more effective than formal training. In a Training Needs Analysis, the Instructional Designer might determine that developing full-blown training really won’t address the need, but a simple Job Aid will do just the trick. Here, you can see how job aids can be efficient and cost-effective.

I spent many moons working in retail, and one of my favourite job aids was the Starbucks drink recipe cards (click here for an example, found on a quick search of The Google). Each store had a couple sets of these, and they were easy index-sized cards that had an illustration of the drink and the steps to make the drink. I say this was one of my favourite job aids because, as a manager of an incredibly busy store, you sometimes had to toss a new trainee into the trenches, and these recipe cards really helped new baristas (and sometimes old ones who encountered an obscure drink order) get up-to-speed with the plethora of drink recipes there were. Each time a new drink came out, the recipe index received another magical card. What a perfect job aid!

Within the military, there were always checklists for every little task; these checklists are critical in that while some might seem silly, others were the difference between life and death. Just think about what might happen if someone didn’t use the proper torquing value when tightening bolts on aircraft parts? The part might fail during a mission and the plane might crash. No one wants to have that hanging over their head, so checklists are necessary!

Enough Examples! Here are some Resources:

Use Job Aids to Improve Your Business Results by Leslie Allan

Designing a Job Aid by ATD

How to Build Effective Job Aids by Kari Loeffler

Designing Effective Job Aids with Microsoft Word by Raul Esparza

E-Learning Challenge #63 – What Can You Do with Pantone’s Color of the Year?

January 4, 2015

Unlike last year’s colour of the year (you can see the blog write-up and challenge entry for Radiant Orchid by clicking here), I was actually excited about the new colour of the year, Marsala. I even fawned over the Sephora + Pantone Universe’s collection, but passed it up because I have very fair skin and cannot pull off the very beautiful (and highly pigmented) Marsala. Sigh.

The Concept

This challenge was to design an e-learning template or interaction using Marsala as the primary colour. I may have gone a little overboard with the Marsala-usage, but when in Rome…

The Method

Initially I was going to create some kind of makeup application tool, inspired by my visit to Sephora, but I had some fantastic icons kicking around from a recent Creative Market purchase, so I wanted to make use of those. After perusing the icons, I settled on the fitness set because it is a New Year after all, and what resolution is one of the most popular of resolutions? To get fit/join a gym/exercise more/eat better, etc. Using the icons as inspiration, I set out to create a simple interaction to highlight some solid fitness tips.

I first formatted my background to Marsala, added a directional header (using a Marsala tint), and then added and formatted the icons. Originally the icon background were a really nice taupey-beige, so I made them a bit more Marsala-y and then added layers with tips for each icon. I set each icon trigger to display the relevant layer when clicked.

As for the player, I removed customized the colours to be more Marsala-esque and added a slew of resources from some of my favourite fitness gurus and sites.

The Result

I think the interaction turned out well, and it offers practical tips and resources for maintaining those fitness goals you resolved to maintain in 2015.

To view the complete interaction, Click Here.

2014 Recap and 2015 Goals

January 1, 2015

Happy New Year everyone! I hope you all had a very safe and happy holiday season…now GET BACK TO WORK!

2014 was a very interesting year for me. Here’s a quick synopsis:

I broke into the post-secondary education scene at a local university (part-time);
I quit my full-time job and took my side business full-time;
I presented at my first ever speaking engagement: E-Learning Heroes Community Roadshow: Toronto;
I wrote my very first every blog post for ATD;
I was propositioned to author not one, but two books;
My part-time post-secondary education gig went full-time;
I presented at my second speaking engagement: E-Learning Heroes Community Roadshow: Denver;
I met a lot of my e-learning idols, engaged in some beta-testing for Articulate, had some exciting learning experiences with Articulate, and networked like I meant it;
My proposal was accepted to speak at Learning Solutions 2015; and
I worked with a ton of really incredible clients and was able to become more strategic with whom I worked with.

Now before I get on with my goals for 2015, here’s some real talk. I struggle with anxiety – mainly social anxiety. While you might think I made leaps and bounds challenging my anxiety in 2014, I really didn’t do so on a personal level. I still have a lot of fear and anxiety interacting with people I know (and whom I have known for 10+ years) on a social level (e.g. at parties, etc.), so New Years Eve 2014 was spent as a designated driver, human thunder shirt for our dog who is terrified by fireworks, and watching the non-HBO broadcast premiere of The Wire. Not a bad way to spend the evening, but still not optimal.

With that being said, my goals for 2015 are mostly personal goals:

Begin therapy to conquer my social anxiety (or at least learn how to cope with it);
Maintain a consistent exercise schedule and run a half marathon in May (and possibly another in September);
Take positive steps toward becoming the best version of myself I can be;
Spend more time with my husband and our family; and
Travel to Europe with my husband, taking a proper vacation.

As for business goals:

Complete both books and have them published;
Present and KILL IT at Learning Solutions 2015;
Continue networking with colleagues I respect;
Continue working with clients I respect;
Conduct various workshops at the university and encourage growth within our distance offerings;
Overhaul my portfolio;
Participate more actively in the ELH Challenges;
Continue blogging regularly; and
Begin authoring my third book.

Terminology Tuesday: Infographics

December 30, 2014

I took an unexplained two-week hiatus from Terminology Tuesday (and most other blogging) to enjoy a bit of a holiday vacation. Sorry, folks! Don’t sweat though – this week I’m back!

I recently took a mini-course on Infographics and vowed to get a lot friendlier with Adobe Illustrator in 2015; we’ll see how that goes…check in with me in about 6-12 months. In any event, infographics are taking the world by storm it seems, so I thought it fitting to have a little chat about them.

Infographics

Infographics consist of two pieces: information and graphics. When those two concepts are sandwiched together, you get infographics, which are designed to display information (e.g. data/trends/ideas) in a visually appealing way that also facilitates information synthesis. They are especially beneficial for people who are more visual learners. Just think back to all of the textbooks you read in school…how much of that information did you really retain? Likely quite a bit if you studied it, but you might learn more seeing certain information displayed meaningfully in a graphic. Even if you’re not a visual learner, an infographic might be handy supplementary material to accompany text-based materials. Additionally, infographics allow the user to experience the concept versus interpreting the concept, and passively retaining the information.

I developed an interactive infographic awhile back, and while it’s not the prettiest (hence my goal of learning illustrator in 2015), it effectively shows information when you hover over the visual elements. You can check it out by clicking the image below:

Resources

Maybe you’re well-versed at creating your own graphics or manipulating existing graphics. Great! Get your infographic on! But if you’re like me, you might need some help. Luckily, there are tons of free resources to help build your own infographics – all you need is the data!

You can also download many fantastic infographic icons and images for reasonable prices (and supporting local designers) from Creative Market, which is where I obtained the infographic elements used in the above sample.

Grab the free Course Development Plan