Once the hard parts of needs assessment and alignment have been completed, and a consensus in design reached, the fun of development can begin! Here, I start with Mayer’s design principles for multi-media learning as most end products – whether their final delivery mode is a slide-based lecture, a job aid, an informative video, or an asynchronous elearning course – feature both an audio and visual mode. Following these principles help prevent cognitive overload. Proper tools for accessibility during this phase of design are also utilized to meet compliance requirements and develop alternatives to ensure no learners are excluded. Testing of the learning product is performed from both andragogical and technical perspectives to ensure the product works as intended prior to roll-out.
TOOLS
I use a variety of tools for development. I have created and edited vector graphics and design layouts using Adobe Illustrator and customized existing images using Adobe Photoshop. My audio and video creation and editing has primarily been on macOS, thus my programs of choice are Logic Pro X and Final Cut Pro X, respectively. I use Vyond for animations. Slide decks for both in-person and online learning are primarily created in MS PowerPoint using its various design tools such as color palettes, SmartArt, and animations, with self-paced learning including the narration feature. MS Excel is what I primarily use to create charts and pivot tables from complex data sets. MS Visio and LucidChart are for graphic representations of data such as flow charts, timelines, infographics, and similar conveyances of information. Finally, MS Word and Adobe InDesign are the programs with which I create deliverables such as facilitator and learner guides, job aids, and learning activity materials prior to publishing them as PDFs, then using Adobe Acrobat to further refine those items. For elearning, I use Adobe Captivate as the authoring software and test for SCORM compliance. I have developed courses directly in the Canvas and Elentra learning management systems (LMS) platforms as well as uploaded and maintained elearning components in the SAP LMS.
Development in Action
IMAGE: These are some slides from an in-person course I created using MS PowerPoint for an introduction to contracts in architecture.
LINK: This is an eLearning course I developed using Adobe Captivate on how to measure for ready-made and custom curtains (click here to view course).
