Digital Learning Design
Resources
5 tips for designing effective learning experiences
You want to create a learning design that engages your learner and supports her in learning the content and putting the learning to use in her context. The video below takes you through 5 important elements to remember when you get started with your learning design.
This video is made on an Android phone with the KineMaster app, which is available for free in Google Play and App Store.
To recap, here are the 5 tips:
- Put your learning design in context
- Begin with the end in mind
- Use variation
- Engage your learners in active learning
- Let your learner be your guide
Metaphors for Learning Design
A learning experience design is a description of the process of learning that you envision for your learner. You can think of your learning design as a journey - a path that takes your learner trough different learning activities. You can also think of it as a map of different activities that your learner can use to guide them in their learning process.
tools
design process
Learning design is a process of making deliberate choices about content and pedagogical strategies for timing, learning activities, assessment/certification, media, and delivery style. It is a way of planning a learning experience that is based on both an understanding of how humans learn and on design principles and methods from human centered design.
Human centered design and design thinking are methods to design solutions (products, processes or services) that solves problems for people and will be adopted and used.
The first diamond shape is where you make sure that you solve the right problem, by being curious about the learners, the context and the theme. The second diamond shape is where you set yourself up to solve the problem right, by developing prototypes and testing them in an iterative process.
Design methods
The non-profit design studio IDEO.org have created a design kit that describes design methods for human centered design. Here you can get inspiration on how to gather information, ideate, and prototype your learning design.
Learning Experience Canvas
When designing learning experiences, a very common mistake is to put too much focus on the WHAT, i.e. the content that you want to teach, too early in the process. Doing so, we risk forgetting the learner's perspective, his or her prior knowledge, motivation, and learning conditions, and the purpose or objectives of the learning for the learner and his or her organisation.
A Learning Experience Design (LXD) canvas is a great tool to frame your thoughts and make sure you don't leave out important considerations in the design process. The canvas you see below is the one that is currently being used by DCA Learning Lab.
Inspired by experience design, the canvas describes:
1) Entry: How the learner enters into the designed context of the learning experience.
2) Engagement: The learning activities that immerse the participant in the experience.
3) Exit: The clear end of the designed experience.
4) Extension (spaced learning): A physical or digital object that the participant can take with them - or that you can provide later - to 'extend' the experience.
Developed by Jan Foelsing, LDframe.com
Reflection
Ask yourself these questions:
- Is the learner front and center of my learning design?
- Do the learning activities engage the learners in active learning?
- Are the learning objectives aligned with the learning activities and assessment?
- Am I involving the right people in the learning design process?
