Whether you\u2019re in the e-Learning space or you\u2019re in charge of making instructional videos for your workplace, you\u2019ve likely found it challenging to assess engagement levels in your students.<\/p>\n
While a teacher can visually see who\u2019s falling asleep or paying attention, e-learning engagement is entirely dependent on the course itself. The moment a student loses interest, it\u2019s very difficult to pull them back. The answer? Keeping e-learners hooked from the very first course slide.<\/p>\n
Fortunately, adding video is incredibly effective for retention and recall. Be it an animation or skit, it doesn\u2019t matter, as social video generated 1200% more shares<\/a> than image or text content combined. You can use video\u2019s power to improve your student\u2019s overall learning experience.<\/p>\n With that said, you can\u2019t just add videos to your e-courses and generate any success. You need to record, edit, and use them in a way that resonates with your audience throughout the course.<\/p>\n These 7 best practices will make all of your e-learning videos more effective and engaging.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/strong><\/p>\n You may know a lot about the subject you\u2019re teaching, but how well do you know your audience? Before you create your e-learning video, do some research on your audience demographic, their knowledge, experience, and skill gaps, as well as what challenges they face while learning.<\/p>\n You can gather this information via surveys, reading FAQ forums, and scrolling through social media profiles. Once your e-learning course is up, you can use data analytics to track students.<\/p>\n This knowledge will help you set clear objectives for your course and stay concise with your messaging. You can even adjust your language, visual, audio, and editing style, and course curriculum based on user data, which makes your videos more accessible to your audience.<\/p>\n In the Workplace: Pay Attention to Everyone\u2019s Learning Style<\/strong><\/p>\n When applying e-learning videos to the workplace, it\u2019s equally important to know the learning style of your audience. Because you can\u2019t assume that every learner will grasp information in the same way or stay as consistent as other workers. That\u2019s why it\u2019s vital to adjust your content based on learning style.<\/p>\n The VARK style<\/a> is the most commonly accepted learning style model in academia. \u201cVARK\u201d stands for Visual, Auditory, Reading & Writing, and Kinesthetic. Employers can ask employees how they learn best and apply one or more tactics or test out different tactics if they aren\u2019t sure.<\/p>\n These learners thrive with graphic descriptions and visual hierarchies. You can use stock photos, like Wepik\u2019s free logo maker<\/a>, to visualize information. Or, use arrows, charts, diagrams, or symbols in e-learning slides. Try adding subtitles as they also help visual learners to follow the content.<\/p>\n These learners prefer to hear the information orally. This makes video an already perfect medium for these learners, but you should also incorporate group work and presentations. Encourage them to read out loud or with a team.<\/p>\n These learners like to fill out worksheets or read text-heavy resources. They\u2019re fond of taking notes. Using a structured reading worksheet<\/a> can help them better organize their thoughts, highlight key ideas, and reflect on what they\u2019ve learned. Incorporate active elements, like quizzes and assessments, to keep them on their toes and to see if they\u2019re succeeding in the course.<\/p>\n These learners love to engage all their senses when learning and prefer hands-on instruction. Assessments also work well for these learners, but it helps if you show how these skills apply to the real world. It helps them visualize their skills at work.<\/p>\n Catering your videos to the right audience and switching up the content based on learning style is the most difficult part of creating a course. Fortunately, it gets much easier from here.<\/p>\n A study that looked at attention span<\/a> found that viewers spend 4 minutes on average watching an e-learning video. Attention span dips dramatically after six minutes, so if you have a lengthy topic to cover, break your content into multiple videos. Make each video around 2 to 4 minutes.<\/p>\n Another benefit of shorter videos is the assumption of progress. Let\u2019s say you produce 10 three-minute videos instead of one 30-minute video. Students will feel as if they accomplished 10 tasks instead of one. Plus, the first video will be done sooner, which keeps them motivated.<\/p>\n In the Workplace: Keep e-Learning Sessions Short<\/strong><\/br><\/p>\n It\u2019s equally as boring to spend a whole day on training, even if it\u2019s essential for the job. Instead, start their training session off with the basics, then ask them to do that task in real-time. Not only will this prevent the learner from getting lost, but it also offers variety during a training session.<\/p>\n You should never spend more than an hour a day dedicated to sitting down and watching training videos. A whole day of training is fine as long as you switch it up. The only thing better than that is scheduling training<\/a> over a three-month period to avoid overwhelm and burnout.<\/p>\n Effective e-learning videos are those that can be used long after they\u2019re created. While some topics won\u2019t remain relevant forever, the content should be useful enough for learners for years to come. By doing this, you retain long-lasting viewership and loyal e-learners\/students.<\/p>\n Some creators will add on to the curriculum as new information comes to light. For example, the tactics that helped you beat the Pinterest algorithm this year won\u2019t be the same next year. If you add sections or delete parts of the video that are no longer relevant, you improve your credibility.<\/p>\n In the Workplace: Focus on Program Learning Objectives<\/strong><\/br><\/p>\n Employers need to have the end in mind when storyboarding their videos and overall course content. For example, if you want your team to change their behavior, state what results you want to see. You should never assume this is obvious, even if everyone around you says it is.<\/p>\n There\u2019s little evidence that sexual harassment training works<\/a>, and this is typically because the objective is to reduce legal liability, not to cut down on harassment. It\u2019s also only done once a year, without a lot of seriousness, and puts the responsibility on the victim to report an issue.<\/p>\n But if employers empower bystanders, encourage civility, promote more women, encourage bystander reporting, and take training more seriously, sexual harassment cases will decrease<\/a>.<\/p>\n If employers aren\u2019t reaching their desired outcome, there\u2019s something wrong with the course or the workplace\u2019s enforcement of said policies. The employees are rarely responsible for a failed policy. Instead of forcing it to work, consider re-recording videos and adjusting the course work.<\/p>\n In the \u201cKnow Your e-Learning Audience\u201d section, we talked about the importance of adding visual, auditory, text-based, and hands-on learning elements to your videos. We\u2019re only missing one piece of the puzzle now: active elements, or elements that keep the viewer engaged.<\/p>\n It\u2019s a lot harder to keep learners interested and engaged with video content (especially when the learner is alone) because you aren\u2019t interacting with them in real time. You\u2019ll need to include active elements, like polls, quizzes, assignments, and surveys to make truly interactive videos.<\/p>\n Here are a few ways to grab the learners’ attention:<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/br><\/p>\n Although shorter videos can help prevent boredom, they won\u2019t do any good if the core video isn\u2019t fun to watch. Always review your videos before submitting and ask, \u201cis this entertaining?\u201d <\/p>\n In the Workplace: Be Clear on the Benefits of the Course<\/strong><\/br><\/p>\n While it’s essential for casual students to understand why they should be watching your videos, employees need their learning objectives to align with their jobs. They need to know why they\u2019re taking this course, what they\u2019ll gain from the experience, and how it\u2019ll improve job performance.<\/p>\n At the end of the day, you need to keep the information relevant. If you\u2019re having issues at this step, hire<\/a> an industry professional or teacher that can create the rubric for your organization.<\/p>\n It helps to have a high-quality corporate learning management system (LMS)<\/a> by your side when developing a story narrative. For example, Vmaker has over 1000+ premade animation templates that you can insert into scenes, meaning even non-animators can use their tool.<\/p>\n It may feel silly or even pointless to ask your audience a question. You can\u2019t hear them, and you\u2019re not even sure if they\u2019ll respond, so why both? The popular kid show Dora the Explorer uses this tactic because it helps the audience think about the information they absorbed.<\/p>\n It also encourages viewers to speak out loud, which can help with retention. The inflection we use when asking a question also pulls us back to the conversation. Think of a time when you weren\u2019t listening. Did the sudden tone or volume switch in the person’s voice get your attention?<\/p>\n In the Workplace: Tell a Story to Establish Connection<\/strong><\/br><\/p>\n Dora the Explorer did another thing right: it taught viewers using stories. When Dora would ask the audience how to say \u201cbackpack\u201d in Spanish, it was because there was a narrative reason to refer to the backpack. This builds a connection between the information and why it\u2019s used.<\/p>\n Storytelling in eLearning often follows the Freytag Pyramid<\/a>, which includes an inciting moment, climax, and falling action. It\u2019s a good idea to have a general narrative that runs throughout the course so each video allows the same characters to interact and de-escalate situations.<\/p>\n Ideally, you\u2019ll keep your employers in their workplace or focus on workplace scenarios or topics.<\/p>\n Keeping your audience engaged is the most important thing when creating a course, but don\u2019t forget that you\u2019re making an e-learning video. All fact-based knowledge should be supported by facts. It doesn\u2019t matter if it\u2019s \u201ccommon sense,\u201d as common sense isn\u2019t as common as you think.<\/p>\nKnow Your e-Learning Audience<\/h2>\n
Here\u2019s how to apply VARK to make e-learning more enjoyable:<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Visual<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Auditory<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Reading & Writing<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Kinesthetic<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Keep e-Learning Videos Short<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Ensure You Offer Long-Term Value<\/h2>\n
Include Active Elements and Ques<\/h2>\n
Ask Questions to Encourage Discussion<\/h2>\n
Support Your Video With Other Materials<\/h2>\n