DIYEL #13 How to avoid impersonal programs and encourage conversations.

Introduction
Table of Posts

When was the last time you had a face-to-face conversation with someone and that person was not really present with you? He or she was “not really there”? How did you feel? You were probably annoyed or insulted. If this person was a friend or family member, you may have pointed it out: “Hey, what’s wrong with you today?”

If this frequently happens during face-to-face meetings, it is bound to be a bigger problem with eLearning design. Most design has the common navigations, such as “click here,” “forward,” “back” and “continue.” Although they help learners know what to do, these navigations are impersonal.

Do-It-Yourselfers communicate a lot of presence and warmth to learners by adding conversations to their pages. For example, you may add: “Click here to see an exciting slideshow,” “The link presents a summary of the benefits,” or “This will be a quick two-minute exercise.”

Think about how to be more conversational. Conversations with learners keep the lessons alive. Remember, there is a human being on the other side of the screen.

(This is a series of post from my book "Do-It-Yourself eLearning 2009).

Related Blog Entries:

Do You Tell Stories, Rumors or Controversies?
How to instantly grab e-learners attention!
“I’ve Been Robbed!” “I’ve Been Sexually Abused.” Emotional Events in Scenario-Based e-Learning

Ray Jimenez, PhD
http://www.vignettestraining.com/
http://www.simplifyelearning.com/

"Helping Learners Learn Their Way"

DIYEL #12 Why we love Slumdog Millionaire, Borat, the Gladiator and Casablanca.

Introduction
Table of Posts

They are inspiring, absurd, ridiculous, insulting, heroic and romantic. But most of all, these movies work.

Training programs have become too sanitized and sterile, devoid of life and fun. They bore learners to death. Learners are often reluctant to attend training because it is like going to the dentist. No matter how much the dentist promises, “It will not hurt!” it will always involve pain, and it’s never fun! The kill-fun training approach stems from our history of sanitized technical writing practices.

Do-It-Yourselfers know that eLearning programs should not be as antiseptic as heaven or the dentist’s clinic. Add a dose of reality. Make them accessible for the everyday learner.

Make them inspiring, absurd, ridiculous, insulting, heroic and romantic.

(This is a series of post from my book "Do-It-Yourself eLearning 2009).

Related Blog Entries:

Do You Tell Stories, Rumors or Controversies?
How to instantly grab e-learners attention!
“I’ve Been Robbed!” “I’ve Been Sexually Abused.” Emotional Events in Scenario-Based e-Learning



Ray Jimenez, PhD
http://www.vignettestraining.com/
http://www.simplifyelearning.com/

"Helping Learners Learn Their Way"

DIYEL #11 Ask learners to tell their stories and also to listen to others’ stories.

Introduction
Table of Posts

We are used to people telling us stories. My grandmother used to scare my sister and me with her stories of vampires and gremlins. As I grew older, I learned there is another side of storytelling, and that is listeners telling their own stories. As the listeners tell their stories, they are embedding the ideas in their minds and in their lives. In turn, the storyteller has learned from the listener. This is the crux of informal learning, which accounts for a lot of the way people learn. And this is an opportunity for the Do-It-Yourselfers.

Do-It-Yourselfers extend the formal learning in eLearning design to open-ended informational learning on line through discussion rooms, wikis, blogs, Twitters and social book marking (otherwise known as Web 2.0 tools). These are tools that allow Do-It-Yourselfers to seek help by asking learners to share stories through ongoing conversations. At the heart of Web 2.0 tools are stories and conversations, not the Web 2.0 technologies. Many technologies will come and go. Instead, learn how to provoke storytelling. The content is what gives the technologies their power.

(This is a series of post from my book "Do-It-Yourself eLearning 2009).

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Do You Tell Stories, Rumors or Controversies?
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Ray Jimenez, PhD
http://www.vignettestraining.com/
http://www.simplifyelearning.com/

"Helping Learners Learn Their Way"

DIYEL #10 Learners recall stories, not facts.

Introduction
Table of Posts

People learn best when they can relate information to real-life situations. They do not remember facts easily. The good classroom trainer (i.e., not boring) knows that stories – anecdotes, illustrations, demos, applications, metaphors, examples, etc. – help learners learn. Unfortunately, when we move the lesson content to eLearning, we only convert the facts or the mechanical information. The stories, context, and real-life applications are lost in translation.

Do-It-Yourselfers know that the gold nuggets of content are precious and valuable because they carry with them the seeds of stories that help learners understand and recall the concepts behind the learning. Do-It-Yourselfers design eLearning around stories at the heart of the lesson, not around the facts. Always start lessons with a story . . . and end with one, too.

(This is a series of post from my book "Do-It-Yourself eLearning 2009).

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How to instantly grab e-learners attention!
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Do You Tell Stories, Rumors or Controversies?

Ray Jimenez, PhD
http://www.vignettestraining.com/
http://www.simplifyelearning.com/

"Helping Learners Learn Their Way"

DIYEL #9 Be a gold prospector. Separate nuggets from the tons of dirt. This will serve your learners well.

Introduction
Table of Posts

Most trainers and eLearning designers would go bankrupt if they were gold prospectors. Prospectors spend their efforts screening the few gold nuggets from the tons of dirt, pebbles and rock. On the other hand, typical trainers and eLearning designers “dump dirt” on the learners. They bury them in piles of irrelevant learning materials and loads of unnecessary information. Then they expect learners to find the gold nuggets for themselves.

Because of this “dumping dirt” practice, the training profession is losing ground to other ways to learn on the Internet. The learner is saying, “If I have to look for the answer in a pile of dirt, I might as well be in control and use other tools. Forget about the training program.” This is already happening today.

The problem of “dirt dumping” will soon be 10,000 times worse because of the swift and massive growth of knowledge and skills for training people directly.

Do-It-Yourselfers understand that to retain their worth (and their jobs), they must be skilled at filtering gold nuggets for the learners and sharing them.

(This is a series of post from my book "Do-It-Yourself eLearning 2009).

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Does your e-Learning Program carry junk?

Ray Jimenez, PhD
http://www.vignettestraining.com/
http://www.simplifyelearning.com/

"Helping Learners Learn Their Way"

DIYEL #8 Idea applied, idea learned = results.

Introduction
Table of Posts

Somewhere in the history of the training profession we forgot that training and learning are about results. We got fuzzy from thinking too much about tracking and ROI, multimedia, games, interactivity, and other stuff that does not produce results. We became invested in the means and lost sight of the end. We used our energy propagating the stuff that essentially does not matter.

Do-It-Yourselfers don’t have the time, the resources or the energy. They must focus on results. They persistently, consistently and often stubbornly ask, “What are the results we want learners to learn and apply on the job?” They ask that same question every step of the way.

Do-It-Yourselfers know that learning is not about learning . . . learning is about results.

(This is a series of post from my book "Do-It-Yourself eLearning 2009).

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Culture of Training Impact Evaluation

Ray Jimenez, PhD
http://www.vignettestraining.com/
http://www.simplifyelearning.com/

"Helping Learners Learn Their Way"

DIYEL #7 Use a straight-line micro-incision on content to instantly apply ideas. All else wastes precious time.

Introduction
Table of Posts

Picture this: a surgeon uses a scalpel to create a straight-line incision to begin an operation: sharp, quick and instant. This is how our training and learning designs should be. Instead, most of them are dull, prolonged and time-wasters.

Ironically, in eLearning the act of learning is often a barrier to the actual application of an idea or the knowledge to convey. Do-It-Yourselfers know that in eLearning, instant application is important, not mere memorization. They design content that is sharp and focused on instant application on the job. New rule: create content that is micro-formatted for immediate incisive understanding and application on the job. Anything that violates this rule is a waste of time.

(This is a series of post from my book "Do-It-Yourself eLearning 2009).

Related Blog Entries:
Does your e-Learning Program carry junk?
Information Overload, Interruptions in Flow - Reduce Productivity

Ray Jimenez, PhD
http://www.vignettestraining.com/
http://www.simplifyelearning.com/

"Helping Learners Learn Their Way"

DIYEL #6 eLearning design is like peeling the artichoke before you eat it.

Introduction
Table of Posts

Do-It-Yourselfers know the difference between bananas, oranges, apples and artichokes. Back when we changed from using transparencies (which many of you don’t remember at all) to PowerPoint slides, the transition was as simple as peeling a banana, apple or orange. The changeover was superficial. On the other hand, changing learning design from classroom-style learning to eLearning is like searching for the heart of an artichoke. We need to boil it and peel the leaves back one by one before we can taste the heart – the really delicious part.

Similarly, in applying eLearning methods, Do-It-Yourselfers understand that old practices, assumptions and methods of learning are like the thick and hardened leaves of an artichoke. They must be peeled away. It takes time to unlearn. Do-It-Yourselfers are patient while searching for the new “truths” (not snake-oil) about the new learning opportunities in eLearning.
(This is a series of post from my book "Do-It-Yourself eLearning 2009).

Related Blog Entry:
Think Artichoke eLearning, Understand Learner’s Instincts

Ray Jimenez, PhD
http://www.vignettestraining.com/
http://www.simplifyelearning.com/

"Helping Learners Learn Their Way"

DIYEL #5 Avoid the temptation to buy software before you understand your needs.

Introduction
Table of Posts

Guilty! We all are. The seduction of buying software instantly is a disease we acquired as part of the technology era. Resist the temptation, especially if you have not done some thinking about your content and your business situation. This is perhaps the most devastating knee-jerk reaction that eLearning designers fall into. I agree that sooner or later you need to buy software, but something else must happen first.

The Do-It-Yourselfers study the needs of their clients and learners. Ask: how do I design my content to meet the needs of the business and the learners? When you have already purchased the software, there is a strong temptation to solve a problem with the software you purchased. This is even more true when you pledge your life to support this software, and your job security depends on the software. Avoid this trap. (This is a series of post from my book "Do-It-Yourself eLearning 2009).

Related Blog Entry:
Boiling It Down to Valuable and Useful Knowledge to work with it?

Ray Jimenez, PhD
http://www.vignettestraining.com/
http://www.simplifyelearning.com/

"Helping Learners Learn Their Way"