E-learning by design
Need
to deliver consistently effective education globally on a tight budget? E-learning
can help—but only if it is designed to adapt Internet and computer technologies
to the ways human beings really learn. Based on William Horton's acclaimed
book, E-Learning by Design, this workshop balances instructional
design with technology to teach you how to design active, instructionally sound
e-learning. The best practices taught in this workshop do not depend on any
proprietary technologies or particular program.
In this workshop you will learn to:
- Design online learning experiences that
accomplish specific learning objectives.
- Organize and sequence online learning experiences to implement learning
strategies.
- Select and specify media to educate and engage e-learners.
Length: 2, or 3 days. The 2-day version includes the core
topics. The 3-day version includes core topics and your choice of optional
topics.
Developed by William Horton. Taught by William
Horton or Katherine Horton.
On-site base price: For 25 students, inside North America: US$9000 for 2 days
and $13,000 for 3 days. Plus instructor's travel costs. Outside North America, add $2000 plus travel costs for a second instructor. Also add $100 for each student above 25.
Virtual workshop base price: US$3000/day. Learners may download
their handouts and order the textbook either from us or amazon.com.
To schedule this course: Call Katherine Horton
at +1.303.545.6964 or e-mail kit@horton.com.
Who should attend?
This workshop is for:
- Instructional designers who must specify and craft e-learning.
- Instructors
moving from classroom to e-learning.
- Technical writers moving from online
documents to online learning.
- Managers who must direct the design and
development of e-learning.
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Core topics
These core topics are covered in the 2-day version of this course. They are
also included in the 3-day version.
- Target e-learning precisely. How do I zoom in on high-priority enterprise goals and set realistic expectations? How do I achieve the potential of e-learning and overcome its limitations?
-
Quickly design instruction. How do I set clear, achievable objectives?
Are there ways to streamline design
without sacrificing effectiveness? How can I
identify what must be taught and how to teach it?
-
Accomplish learning strategies. How do I design e-learning to cover vast, complex, dynamic
subjects, to overcome habits and instincts, to engineer better application of learning,
and to foster independent learners? Are there ways to leverage
existing materials to reduce costs
and development time?
-
Activate learners. How can I learn to select learning activities
to accomplish specific objectives? Are there ways to transform passive reading, listening, and watching into active discovery and creation? How can I reliably connect learning to life and work?
-
Assess learning. How do I write fair, challenging, legally-defensible test questions? Can I design tests to match enterprise and educational goals? How
can I increase learning through meaningful, encouraging feedback? Are there alternative ways to measure learning?
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Optional topics
For a 3-day version of this course, you may select an additional 3 to 5 of the following
topics:
- Picking an approach. What form of e-learning is best
for my purposes: Pure or blended? Stand-alone or embedded? Synchronous or
asynchronous? Learner-led, instructor-led, or facilitated? Solitary e-learners
or classes of thousands?
- Organizing the course. How do I structure and sequence
learning experiences? How do I guide e-learners without imprisoning them?
How do I shape navigation to implement particular instructional strategies
or achieve specific learning goals?
- Analyzing e-learners. What must I know about my learners
before designing the course? What characteristics can spell triumph or doom
for e-learning? How can I design for the specific needs of groups of e-learners?
- Promoting collaboration. How do I help e-learners share
their thoughts, inspirations, and feelings? Where do I use e-mail, chat,
instant messaging, discussion forums, audio-conferencing, and video-conferencing?
How do I ensure that online behavior is professional and conducive to learning?
- Teaching in the virtual classroom. How do I design and
deliver instructor-led e-learning? What forms of collaborative learning activities
work? How do I design brainstorming sessions, role-playing activities, team-design
activities, polling questions, and discussion activities?
- Planning access and navigation. How do I accommodate
just-in-time learners accustomed to the fluent navigation provided by the
Web? How do I keep e-learners from getting lost in hyperspace? How do I design
menus, maps, indexes, and search mechanisms?
- Designing learning objects. What are learning objects?
How do I design such self-contained, complete modules? How do I make objects
that others will reuse in multiple courses, deploy in multiple projects,
and tailor for specific e-learners?
- Motivating e-learners. Why do e-learners drop out or
fail to learn at their full potential? How do I get e-learners to spend the
time and effort necessary to complete e-learning? How do I make learning
engaging and fun? How do I convince e-learners to overlook shortcomings in
my e-learning?
- Designing the visual display. What should screens look
like? How should I design icons, buttons, and other items displayed on the
screen? How should I lay out the screen? Which colors should I use? Which
fonts? What is the balance between aesthetics and functionality?
- Saying it in pictures. How do I express complex ideas
in a way befitting a visual medium such as e-learning? How do I translate
words in to graphics? Which graphics are effective and which gratuitous?
How do I edit graphics to ensure they work online?
- Designing games and simulations. Where are online simulations
and games the most effective way for people to learn? How do I design simple
games that are quick and inexpensive to produce? How do I ensure that games
teach rather than just entertain?
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How will I learn?
This is a fast-paced, yet structured, workshop, heavy on examples and light
on academic theory. It is brains-on rather than merely hands-on. Rather than
operating a particular brand of software, you will engage concepts and procedures
directly. You will examine and critique dozens of live real-world examples,
view animated presentations of crucial concepts, discuss design approaches
with fellow students, and practice applying your skills in realistic design
activities.
Variants and customizations
We can adapt the basic workshop to better fit your specific needs:
- Base major activities on your materials (+ $1000 USD).
- Use your materials as examples throughout (Call for price).
- Critique your current work (adds 1 day, $2000 USD).
- Base workshop on a critique of your work (+ $4000 USD).
- Redesign your current work (adds 1 day, $2000 USD).
- Video-recording for replay by other members of your department (+ $4000
USD).
- Follow-up Webinars (+ $1000 USD per 90-minute Webinar).
- Hands-on computer exercises using laptop computers or a computer lab. (Call
for pricing and requirements).
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What else will I receive?
Besides the knowledge and skills you acquire, you will receive:
- William Horton's newest, best-selling book, E-learning by Design.
- Over 200 pages of handouts, notes, design forms, and job-aids.
- Access to hundreds of live, online examples of design techniques.
- Access to William Horton by e-mail or discussion group for follow up questions
after the workshop.
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Audiovisual requirements
To successfully present this workshop at your location, we will need the following:
- Computer projector with 1024 x 768 NATIVE resolution .
(Some projectors can display 1024 x 768, but only by stretching the output.
These projectors will not work.)
- Speaker and amplifier for computer sounds. Must be able
to take output from the computer's stereo-mini socket.
It would be nice to also have high-speed Internet access for showing live examples. We will need to get through
your routers and around your firewall.
And if you want to include hands-on activities:
- Compute lab with computers running Windows 2000 or later and
the authoring program of your choice.
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Related resources
Here are some related resources you might find useful:
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