Transforming Classroom Content for eLearning

Although online learning is hardly new, it's still a bit of a bandwagon issue for some organizations. Some companies feel compelled to go with online learning because it's "the thing to do." But for other organizations, it's a vital mode of learning that can supplement face-to-face-instruction or even stand in place of it.

But we're not here to debate whether or not elearning is superior to classroom learning. The fact is elearning is here to stay. The demand is growing for mobile training that's accessible anywhere, anytime. In fact, one of the most popular requests we receive is to transform classroom materials for online learning.

Before starting the process of converting materials, the big question is: what's the actual purpose of the elearning? Will it replace the classroom training, or will it supplement it? This is a very important question, because it affects the overall direction you take.

For example, the curriculum might require participants to complete a classroom portion first, with the elearning available as a refresher or as a just-in-time resource. In this case, the online course doesn't need to include every detail from the face-to-face training materials. But if the elearning is designed as a standalone experience that replaces the classroom learning, you'll need to carefully construct the course so that all the essential details are included—without overwhelming the learners.

Here some of our strategies for adapting classroom materials for a fun, engaging online learning experience:

• Organize the content in a logical manner for elearning. This doesn’t mean copying the script from the PowerPoint file onto the screen and inserting the "Next" button every now and then. Start with writing learning objectives, and organize your course so that each section maps to an objective. You don't necessarily need to reveal the objectives on screen. Consider "what's in it for me?" language to pique their interest. For example, compare these two: "At the end of this course, you should be able to create your intuitive exercise program using our four-part proprietary method." versus "How do I create a custom exercise program that's easy to follow?"

• Adapt the tone for online learning. If you're addressing a wide range of learners with various levels of experience, the elearning should be broad enough to engage them all without isolating anyone. Adjust the tone accordingly if you know your audience is primarily made up of either experts or novices.

• Create content layers. One of the great benefits of elearning is that it easily accommodates people's various learning modes. People read differently online than on paper; online, they rarely scroll down past the "fold" of the page. Unlike chapters in a book, elearning content doesn't need to be available on the same level. The essentials should be included in the main content areas of an online course. Secondary information can be discovered through rollover or clickable areas. And third-level content can be organized as PDF files in a resource library for on-demand access. Keep in mind that arranging content into layers doesn't mean you should bury it; an intuitive navigation design makes it easily accessible.

• Give learners choices for exploring content. It's fine to provide a map, but forcing learners down a one-way road with no opportunity for side trips just promotes falling asleep at the wheel. There are exceptions, however, such as when you're trying to teach a compliance process that must be followed in a particular order.

• Give learners the chance to practice what they've learned. We can't emphasize this enough. Just like with classroom training, practice doesn't just entail answering multiple-choice questions. It could be a game, a scenario, or a quest. A good online practice exercise sets up an appropriate context, gives the learners a challenge to solve, and helps connect what they've learned to real-life ways they can apply that information.

• Take advantage of the opportunity to give learners feedback on their progress. Although scripted feedback can't really replace real, live human feedback, try to make it as meaningful and relevant as possible. For example, in a branching scenario that gives learners multiple options, create custom feedback for each option they choose. In other words, don't just tell them the choice is correct or incorrect, but tell them why.

No matter what your reason is for converting classroom materials to online learning—budget, time, efficiency, or geographical constraints—working with a team that specializes in elearning development will help you create the best experience for your learners.

How Accountability Affects Teamwork and Learning

"Know your audience" is the first rule of learning. When designing a learning experience, it's not only helpful to know something about learners' skills or backgrounds, but also their frame of mind. How invested are they in learning, especially if they need to work together? Do they seek solutions to challenges, or do they tend to take a more passive "wait and hope" approach?

 Recently I facilitated a workshop with a group of preschool educators. I chose the Ladder of Accountability metaphor to help guide our discussion about peer coaching and team-building.

We started with an activity in which the participants completed a simple task together. Although on the surface the exercise seemed easy to accomplish, it was actually deceptively difficult. They attempted to do the task several times together, only to discover that the result was exactly the opposite from what they expected.

The group was permitted to talk to each other to solve the challenge. It's amazing how differently people respond! Those who have not completely bought in to the experience will often make excuses, blame and complain, or just wait for someone else to figure it out. And those who are allies in the experience tend to own the situation. They seek solutions…they find constructive ways to make it happen.

So what do you do with the information you discover about people on the Ladder of Accountability? Knowing where your learners stand on the ladder will greatly inform the approach you take to build a meaningful curriculum or modify one to better suit the audience, no matter what type of learning experience you're creating.

Posing a challenging activity is a great way to find out how accountable your learners are. It's about awareness of where people are coming from. Obviously the ladder is there to be climbed. If you find yourself hanging around on a lower rung with others who make excuses or wait and hope for a solution to materialize, think about stepping up to a higher level to make more of a team effort.

I introduced a three-part process for giving peer feedback: Describe the situation, the behavior and the outcome. I was so impressed when one of the clients demonstrated her new coaching skill when she flew a paper airplane toward me. Inside it simply read "Great job Jillian." She then used the Situation, Behavior, Outcome model to tell me specifically what she liked about the training, and how she would be applying it in her job.

After the session, other participants reported that they felt emotionally engaged, that they enjoyed the physical activity as a complement to the more academic content we discussed, as well as the opportunity to practice solving a challenge together.

To me, this feedback supports an important phase in the IdeaLearning Group's process that we use to frame our curriculum: Think, Feel, Move. We believe in supporting a variety of learning approaches, from jumping right in to reading instructions first. We believe humor is an important part of the learning experience. And we understand the strong connection between movement and learning.

The Promising Future For Mobile Learning

It's hard to believe, but once upon a time doing research required much more time and effort than it does today. Now most of us carry entire libraries of information in our bags or pockets. For many of us, LBI—life before the Internet—seems like a faraway memory.

The steady development of innovative mobile devices brings exciting opportunities for mobile learning, also known as "mlearning." Tablets, gaming consoles, smartphones, and other types of handheld units all offer mlearning opportunities. What makes mlearning especially powerful is that it enables easy access to relevant information on demand and on the go.

The concept of mobile learning has already become ingrained in the minds of the youngest generation. (Just observe the baby who can't get a magazine to "work.") Although "digital natives" are easily catching on to mobile learning, it's not gaining widespread traction in schools yet; with limited budgets, it's not always possible to implement schoolwide mobile learning programs. Still, 40% of teenagers have smartphones and the number is growing. Think of the possibilities!

For students who do have access to mlearning resources, here's how they're using them:

• Taking notes at school using mobile apps
• Reinforcing learned content through podcasts, videos, and other supporting resources
• Taking on-the-spot quizzes to measure knowledge
• Exploring interactive graphics, charts, and timelines online

Mobile learning is also very promising for businesses. In his "Five Steps to Mobile Learning" article in Learning Solutions magazine, Brian Taliesin reports that by 2013, mobile workers will account for 35% of the workforce worldwide. Naturally, mobile workers will need more mobile ways to learn as the remote workforce continues to expand.

The International University Consortium for Executive Education (UNICON) recently issued a report that outlines some of the promising benefits for business-related mobile learning:

• Just-enough learning: Provides relevant, easily understood content for time-crunched professionals.
• Just-in-time learning: Offers convenient, flexible information exactly when it is needed.
• Just-for-me learning: Allows access to content on mobile devices in flexible ways, which makes it appealing to many different types of learners.
• Collaborative learning: Facilitates working together through use of texting, as well as knowledge-sharing and question-based forums, which can strengthens interaction between participants and instructors.

Like with students in school, the possibilities for workplace learning are enormous. Imagine a forklift driver with easy mobile access to a loading plan, which was updated after his shift began. Or emergency responders who need up-to-the-minute details that helps them maximize their effectiveness on the job. Or a retail sales rep who can order products for customers on the spot. Some of these technologies are already in place, but there is much more room to grow.

Mobile learning doesn't need to be intensely interactive to be effective. Remember, the focus is to give learners the information they need when they need it an in easily accessible format. That can mean simple text-based instructions, a how-to video, a map, or a reference drawing. For content managers and instructional designers, it's important to keep in mind that mobile learning usually draws form existing resources. The strategy is to pull together the most relevant information and organize it in a way that maps to how and when the learners need it. Build in practice opportunities to help reinforce learned content.

What mobile learning resources have you used? What do you find most exciting for the future of mlearning?

The Power of Shower Thinking

Have you ever spent an hour staring at a blank piece of paper, willing some new ideas to spill onto the page, only to feel disappointed and exhausted when nothing materializes?

You might be going about brainstorming the wrong way. To generate new ideas, give your brain a break. Try starting with a clear mind, and avoid being so direct in your thinking.

When Albert Einstein said, "Why is it I get my best ideas while shaving?" I think he was on to something with this observation.

It could be the steam, the isolation from everyday distractions, or the quality time spent with the subconscious mind. Or maybe it's the white noise it generates, the ritualistic simplicity of it, or just a fresh start to the day.

Whatever the reasons, I get many of my best ideas in the shower.

According to the article "How to Produce Big Ideas On Demand" in Business Week Online, "There is a scientific theory that water hitting your head helps trigger the synapses and that's why people get great ideas in the shower. But we think it's simpler than that: The ideas occur because you are not making an effort to think. You aren't worried about anything. You are not stressed. Hence some of your best thinking occurs."

Perhaps we find a special sort of relaxation in those transitory moments of our days, which allow us to dig deeper into the incubation stations in our minds, seemingly without effort.

"Never go to sleep without a request to your subconscious." Thomas Edison had a different approach to tapping into his subconscious meanderings to mine new ideas. Although he only slept for four to five hours each night, he regularly took catnaps. He would think of something he wanted to resolve before sitting in a chair, drifting off with a ball bearing in each hand. If he fell into too deep of a sleep, the ball bearings would come crashing to the ground—a sign that he'd gone too far into slumber. He would then quickly record the ideas that were brewing when he was jolted awake.

You would think that Edison would have invented and patented a device for recording creative ideas in this manner. But it wasn't until 75 years after his death that such products were available, at least when it comes to recording creative ideas in the shower.

Although I haven't personally tried any of these products, I'm amused and impressed with the selection of idea-recording devices for use in the shower! There's Divemaster Slate, a waterproof whiteboard. AquaNotes makes a waterproof notepad ("No more great ideas down the drain!"). Rite in the Rain makes a handheld waterproof flip pad. Aquapac makes waterproof cases for digital recording electronics.

But if I were to hang up the waterproof notepad or eagerly clutch my waterproof voice recorder as I shampoo my hair, would that quiet my creative subconscious? Would the ideas become less accessible if I were to enter the shower with such lofty expectations?

When do you find yourself generating your best ideas, and how do you record them?

Curating Content Through Instructional Design

by Shannon McKenzie

Instructional design is at the heart of what we do at IdeaLearning Group, and the role is constantly growing and evolving. Gone are the days when instructional design simply meant writing some learning objectives and then putting a course together. We're most excited about the content curation possibilities for elearning design.

As Connie Malamed described in her "Learning Technology Trends to Watch in 2012" blog post, "Instructional designers are often the proponents of innovation and the persuaders who convince upper management that interaction and collaboration will make for a smarter organization." As learning and sharing become more social, curating content is an absolute necessity for instructional designers.

So what exactly does "content curation" mean in a learning context? It involves finding, organizing, and filtering content to optimize learning opportunities. In the not-too-distant past, when people needed to research something, they had to visit the actual library. Now close your eyes and think about something you'd like to research. Does an image of a paper-based card catalog pop in your mind? Be honest: it's a Google search box that you see.

The problem is that as we wade through the rising waters of the digital era, we feel swept up in a tidal wave of information. We have access to incomprehensible amounts of data, all in an instant. Shanghai Web Design created this mind-blowing graphic that attempts to describe what can happen within a single minute online. 510,000 comments are made on Facebook. 25 hours of content is uploaded to YouTube. And 168 million emails are sent, all within 60 seconds!

IDs have always focused on creating the ideal context for learning. We organize and make sense out of complex information, carving out the essentials while whittling away the unnecessary details. But the difference today is incredible accessibility of information and the potential for easy overload. We see it as a quest: Instructional designers must step up as digital cartographers and help carve out the path to clarity!

Here are some strategies we use for content curation in our learning programs:

Bundle digital resources: While we may have abandoned the card catalog system, we still love the "learning library" metaphor. Learning libraries should be stocked with essential information that's relevant to the learner. They should be easily searched, sorted, and offer the ability to download and print content on demand. (This concept even goes beyond formal online learning. Anyone can be an online content curator—see ScoopIt and Flipboard for amazing examples!)

Build custom paths of discovery: Off-the-shelf learning solutions are quickly becoming yesterday's news. By offering a self-paced flow, custom content, and a highly interactive environment, the experience of learning is more engaging and relevant for the learner's specific needs. We discussed this in more depth on our recent post about adaptive learning.

Invite sharing and collaboration: Knock down the traditional barriers! As people are becoming more social online, look for creative ways to allow learners to share their insights in (or even outside) a learning environment. Tie in blog posts and invite comments. Compile topical information and publish it as an online "magazine." Ask learners to upload their own case studies or other content. Start a twitter hashtag for your topic.

The potential for content curation in instructional design is exploding. What strategies have your learned or used?

Creating a Productive Learning Environment

"Learning is experience, everything else is just information.” – Albert Einstein

 When we learn something new, it doesn't usually happen on purpose. In fact, learning is often a result of observation, experience, or failure. Organizations can't always plan for formal learning to take place. Employees must feel motivated and free to apply the information they're exposed to in order for true learning to occur. The best way to encourage learning is to set up an environment that actually supports it.

Brain-based research tells us that pre-exposure to information, also called "priming," makes subsequent learning proceed more quickly. At IdeaLearning Group, we recommend creating an environment at work that's conducive to formal and spontaneous learning by making sure relevant information is accessible, based in a context that makes sense, and also easy to share with peers.

Ready, Set, Learn

We call this first phase of learning "Ready, Set, Learn." When learners are immersed in a productive learning environment, they:

• Are armed with techniques and resources to maximize their efforts
• Understand the scope of their commitment
• Start with the same baseline knowledge
• Have the support and involvement of their managers
• Can draw a clear line between course objectives and their professional success

According to an article published by Training magazine, "A productive learning environment must address the physical, cognitive, and emotional elements in that environment." The article goes on to recommend, "Organizations also need to consider who is involved in employee training, as interaction and support are critical and play a direct role in learning uptake." You can give people a stack of information with instructions to learn it, but they will likely never absorb the information without the appropriate context and support.

Create A Culture of Learning

On his Brain Rules website, Dr. John Medina discusses our natural inclination to learn through exploring. "Babies are the model of how we learn—not by passive reaction to the environment but by active testing through observation, hypothesis, experiment, and conclusion," he says. "Babies methodically do experiments on objects, for example, to see what they will do." So when you're building a learning program for your organization, you can't expect to force learning, but you can create a culture that encourages learners to experiment and apply information.

Try these best practices for tapping into your organization's zest for learning:

• Engage your learners immediately. Use stories, scenarios, and examples that speak directly to your organization. Learners should understand what's in it for them right away.
• Make blended methods of learning easily accessible. (Go way beyond PowerPoint.) Create a learning library, and encourage staff to explore and experiment with the material.
• Appeal to a variety of senses. Use video, online learning, and audio along with traditional printed materials. Make it easy for learners to explore and share.

On his blog, informal learning expert Jay Cross sums it up this way: "Training is something that’s imposed on you; learning is something you choose. Knowledge workers thrive when given the freedom to decide how they will do what’s asked of them." We couldn't agree more.

Tracking Trends in Adaptive Learning

Adaptive learning is a hot topic in the field of education and training, from children's classrooms to corporate learning programs. As data becomes more abundant and easier to aggregate, the possibilities are growing for truly customized learning.

The overall purpose of adaptive learning is to allow learners to explore at their own pace, giving those with greater knowledge or skills the ability to move faster and those with fewer skills to take their time. The belief is that personalizing content according to what each learner needs empowers learners to take control of their education and to increase their efficiency and breadth of knowledge.

According to a recent article in the Chronicle of Higher Education, the modern-day concept of adaptive learning evolved from psychologist B.F. Skinner's 1950s-era "teaching machine," which he developed while working at Harvard University. Students were given questions from a mechanical box, and they were rewarded with "fresh academic material" after answering a question correctly. Today, new technologies make it possible to track student progress to a previously unimaginable degree. Learning management systems track development of skills, provide tailored feedback, and make customized help available depending on how well they master the content. Adaptive learning is still evolving, especially in schools. But new technologies are making it possible to develop highly interactive, game-like interfaces—certainly a step up from Dr. Skinner's mechanical box!

At ILG, we're tracking the trends and tuning in to the amazing possibilities adaptive learning offers for business professionals. In a traditional face-to-face learning environment, everyone is exposed to the same content. It's not always clear to the instructor where people are on the knowledge spectrum. We believe the most powerful application of adaptive learning is a blended approach, combining classroom instruction and a robust elearning solution that offers a self-paced flow, a robust resource library, the ability to go down a custom path of discovery, and other engaging ways to explore material on demand. Students report feeling more motivated and challenged with this blended learning.

The market is reflecting the intense interest in the potential of adaptive learning. A new company called Knewton just raised $33 million in venture funding for its personalized learning platform. (Forbes magazine likens it to Pandora for the learning world; no two people see the same content, because no two people have exactly the same background.) The non-profit Next Generation Learning Challenges recently awarded more than $10 million in grants to 29 colleges and organizations to develop programs around technology that relates to adaptive learning.

Colleges, as well as businesses, are adding highly interactive elearning to their education programs that are inspired by the evolving technology made possible by adaptive learning principles.

Tips For Using Audio in eLearning Courses

Learning is a multi-sensory experience. The more we invoke our senses, the better we absorb the content.

According to a study by the OSHA Department of Training and Education,we only retain 35% from a visual presentation and 10% from an oral one. When visuals and audio are combined, we generally retain 65% of what we learn.

Jillian Douglas recording audio for an elearning course

However, information retention isn't always the number-one priority in elearning. Sometimes elearning serves as a powerful on-demand toolbox that's there when you need it. But even if we don't expect learners to remember everything they're exposed to in an online course, the instructional design should still be engaging.

Too often, elearning is just passive presentation of information. At ILG, we follow a three-phase approach to create a more complete learning experience. Our second phase, which we call "Think, Feel, Move, ™" is designed to engage participants cognitively, emotionally, and physically.

Used appropriately, audio can help you connect with learners on an emotional level by enhancing the sensory experience. Here are some guidelines for incorporating audio into elearning:

1. Avoid repeating verbatim the words that appear on screen.
   Have you ever been part of the audience in which the presenter read everything to you from the screen? Did it make you want to scream? It's annoying. And it just creates mental overload. In her book Evidence-Based Training Methods, Ruth Colvin Clark recommends: "Use audio to explain complex visuals and avoid a combination of text and redundant narration of that text."
2. Create an authentic voice for narration.
   The course narrator should never talk down to the learner or waste anyone's time by talking too much. The voiceover artist's tone and language should reflect the learning audience's needs and expectations. After writing your script, read it out loud multiple times. Cut out unnecessary words before recording.
3. Include audio controls.
   Not all learners are in an environment where they can listen to narrated elearning, and some may be using computers without audio cards. Allow learners to pause the audio or adjust the volume as they desire.
4. Understand your learners' access limitations.
   As we mentioned above, some learners may be using computers without audio capabilities. It goes without saying that you need this information before creating the course. If you're unsure whether all learners have audio access, you may still include audio but also carefully convey the information visually so that learners will still benefit from the content.
5. Use audio effects as needed to provoke emotions or set a mood.Just as in movies, sound effects can help set the scene and tell a story in elearning courses. Don't overdo it. Use sound effects to enhance content, not as a novelty. A honking horn can signify danger in an auto safety course. In a course about training dogs, a recording of a fierce growl has, well, more bite than voiceover that says, "a growling dog makes a scary sound." And just like in life, it's also important to know when to stay silent, such as during quizzes or activities that require intense concentration.

What are your experiences with using or listening to audio in online learning?

Starting a New Business in a Bad Economy

by Shannon McKenzie

Starting a new business is kind of like having a baby. Is it ever the perfect time?

Like with starting a family, timing is only one of the many considerations when opening a company. After all, well over half of the companies on the Fortune 500 list in 2009 began during a recession or a bear market, according to a study by the nonprofit Kauffman Foundation.

But even if the economy is booming and all the stars are in alignment, new businesses might be doomed to fail without a plan, motivation, and follow-through.

When Jillian and I decided to launch IdeaLearning Group, we decided early on to carefully construct our business from the ground up. Here's our list of essentials from our experience in starting a thriving business:

Create a strong business partnership

Jillian and I are like two sides of the same entrepreneurial brain. Jillian wanted to start a company since childhood. She even wrote a business plan as a high school student. Both of us have worked at several start-ups, most of which didn't survive beyond the dot-com boom (and subsequent bust). We bring everything to the table that we learned from the failures of our past experiences, along with our complementary strengths and weaknesses. We regularly brainstorm together and ultimately improve upon our ideas as a result. Although we sometimes split our duties, we're both versatile enough so that we know everything about our business from the inside out. We know our success is mutually dependent, and it really works for us.

Write a real business plan

This is where a lot of companies skimp, unfortunately. We wanted to be very deliberate and up front about our goals and plans, and the best way to articulate these was to write them down. We formally hashed out our plan, which included plenty of back-and-forth about wording and concepts. Our business plan is a living document. Twice a year we return to it, which includes our marketing strategy, and revise it as needed. Scheduling time to refine our plan allows us to stay relevant and to provide what the market needs at the right time.

Know what you believe in

We both came from organizations that had strong brands, and so we already understood the importance of articulating your beliefs and creating a strong brand statement. We knew early on what we believed in: learning is experience, and everything else is just information. Employee development is most effective through custom learning solutions. (We also knew what we didn't believe in: creating generic, off-the-shelf courses.)

Market your brand according to your beliefs

Our marketing consists of doing great work, doing what we promise to do, and providing real value. Our logo exemplifies our belief in growth and learning through igniting new ideas. The colors reflect energy and excitement, which we agreed were important key concepts early on. The stick in the middle could be interpreted as a matchstick igniting or even a brainstorm bubble.

Know what you want to provide

The elearning/blended learning space is enormous, and the industry growth is expected to continue. A strong brand allows us to compete against small and large companies that create custom learning experiences. We decided to offer our local, national, and international clients a sophisticated "small business" style of service. That means creative, hands-on problem-solving, strong attention to detail, and personalized solutions.

Leverage contacts

Jillian and I both formed a big network of learning professionals at our previous jobs. When layoffs occur and companies close, people tend to scatter in many directions. We've kept in touch with our network throughout the transitions. In fact, many of our client relationships are with people we already know, as well as from our network referrals.

If you're searching for more ideas on how to improve a business you've already started, check out Fast Company's "7 Steps to Scoring New Business in a Bad Economy."

Make eLearning More Engaging Through Gamification

There's a lot of talk about "gamification" in elearning. We know it's on the rise. But is it here to stay or just a trend of the day?

Gamification is the integration of gaming principles and interactions into non-game platforms in effort to increase engagement, solve problems, and ultimately offer rewards. According to Rick Raymer's article Gamification: Using Game Mechanics to Enhance eLearning, gaming mechanics are "rules that encourage users to explore and learn the properties of their possibility space through the use of feedback." Think achievements. Status. Levels and progression. (More on gaming mechanics here.)

A recent NPR story describes a gamified experiment in Sweden involving electronic speeding tickets. Instead of structuring the program around punishment and negativity, the so-called "speed-camera lottery" focuses on positive reinforcement. If you're recorded driving at or below the speed limit, you may win some cash. Gamification can be a powerful way to influence behavioral change.

Gamification is also gaining traction in how we stay connected and obtain our goals in our day-to-day lives. If you've ever participated in Groupon, FourSquare, 43things, or any other number of social apps or platforms, you already know something about gamification:

• Play: What's more natural than playing? It's something we seem born knowing how to do, but often lose sight of as we grow older (and more serious). Playing is a healthy way to socialize and share connections with each other.

• Progress: People love to track their own progress and compete with others. You can fancify your avatar, collect bling, become "mayor" of this or that, or move up to different levels to reach your goals through gamification.

• Motivation: Gaming mechanics are inherently effective at motivating people to achieve their goals. For example, the Nike+ GPS iPhone app gives you feedback while you're running ("You're almost there! Keep at it!") along with the option to post your progress to your facebook account.

• Achievement: Learners gain rewards such as badges, points, or titles that carry meaning for them. You might collect points to trade in for virtual or actual goods, or earn badges to display your status and gain peer recognition.

Most elearning experiences are designed to align to specific behavior modification objectives. We often incorporate characters, activities, and the opportunity to explore to make the experience fun and engaging. Therefore, it seems only natural that gamification is taking off in the elearning world.

Here are some ideas for adapting gamification principles into elearning:

• Design a clean, thoughtful UI: Learners should easily know what to do without prompts like "click next to continue" or having to figure out convoluted nav schemes.

• Ensure clear rules of play: Learners should know expected of them, including the overarching purpose of the learning experience.

• Tell a compelling story: Give learners a real reason to explore the course. Structure the experience with an intriguing challenge, climax and resolution. Include multiple characters if it makes sense for your story; they can help the narrative unfold.

• Include realistic, achievable tasks: Make sure the tasks are based in a context that makes sense for the learners.

• Provide incremental rewards: Keep learners engaged by providing rewards along the way, not just at the end of the course. Let learners customize their avatars, compare their progress against peers (if appropriate), and see how far they still need to go to complete the goals of the course.

What are your experiences with gamification in elearning? We'd love to hear your stories.

The Difference Between Training and Learning and Why It Matters

When we started IdeaLearning Group, we asked ourselves this question: Do we want to facilitate training or learning?  We decided early on that we're in the business of learning.

Although organizations often use the words interchangeably, we view "training" as the process of shaping into a desired form (like "training a plant") and "learning" as the inspired process of acquiring knowledge and skills through experience.  It's also sometimes used to imply a sort of mindless learning, training isn't a bad word or concept. The problem is that it's too restrictive. When we think of training, we think of adherence, testing, drills, exercises, and standards. When we're being formally trained, we're being groomed to perform according to a set of expectations.

"Learning" is a generous canopy. When we think of learning, the following comes to mind: thinking, exploration, absorption, creativity, purpose, education, curiosity, and growth. When we're learning--formally or informally--we're not only acquiring new knowledge and skills, we're also blazing a new path by cultivating our own understanding.

There is a time and place for training. We view training as one component of the learning plan. For example, a company's employees might need to learn about compliance requirements or processes. But to make the learning a comprehensive experience, we also must provide opportunities to modify behavior and on-the-job performance. There's definitely an opportunity for skills training here, but learners also need to practice what they've learned and demonstrate their knowledge in meaningful ways in order to round out the learning experience.

Sometimes our new clients approach us with a solution already in mind. When one of our clients requested a one-day classroom training session about their confusing interview process, we helped them step back to discover the bigger picture. Our learning solution was a blended approach that included an online overview piece that prepared learners for a shift in thinking about how they interview and hire employees. It also included face-to-face learning, elearning modules and a robust learning library hosted on their intranet. Our solution offered so much more than "training"—it was a context-based, exploratory program that addressed not only processes, but also company culture, values and adaptability.

According to an article from the non-profit Computer Education Management Association, "Training is a core step in the process of learning, but it is not learning itself. Even training that leads to a proof of mastery or certification cannot be labeled as learning. To learn is to do, to apply, to morph and adapt to the knowledge or skill acquired in training to the circumstance." So training is part of the solution, but it's not the whole solution. Learning simply goes beyond training.

So what would happen if more training departments changed their names to "learning centers"? What if they renamed the "training toolbox" the "learning library"? For one, the focus would shift more toward the learners' needs and perspectives.

"Training versus learning" is not just about semantics. Training is event-driven, and learning is about experience. We'd love to find out how you differentiate between learning and training in your organization.