Learn how to design the best online modules and become an expert in your field.
E-learning has come to stay. Many students prefer this option to traditional learning because there are fewer restrictions when learning online. Apart from that, students get the opportunity to enroll in their desired course(s) at their own pace. Who doesn’t like this level of autonomy?
Certainly, as an instructor, you have a big responsibility to educate learners from diverse backgrounds. You are probably searching for the solution to design the best online modules for your students but the truth is, there is no single solution for perfect e-learning designs. The hack is to create interactive content for your learners. As an LMS development company, we have the opportunity to try out different design techniques. Read on to see our suggestions on how to design the best online modules.
First, create an outline
Before anything else, you must create an outline for your module. This will inform students of what the lesson is about so that they better prepare for it. Also, it helps learners to have a brief outlook of the lesson so they can build interest or curiosity for it. Your outline should be comprehensive and brief. Making it too long can bore your students. Read our post on short attention spans to learn a thing or two.
Second, make your introductions brief and clear
Students can easily lose focus beyond your introduction. To keep them focused, make your introduction as brief and as clear as possible. You can tell an interesting story to introduce your lesson. But be sure to relate the story to the topic you’re about to teach. Note that, you must set learning objectives for your modules and share them with your students during the introduction. This will help you track the progress of your lessons.
Third, make your modules interactive
For one thing, nobody likes a boring class. So as an instructor, it is your responsibility to ensure that your students follow through with your lesson. In other words, keep them engaged. This may sound easy to do but it is not. In a traditional classroom, teachers have the option to group students and task them to work on a project. This simple strategy can be a very effective way to have students interact with each other, However, we can not adopt this effectively in an online module. As a result, you need to find other means to make your module interactive. For instance, inserting short questions for students to answer during the lesson.
Fourth, include knowledge checks
Most online modules have summative exercises (exercises at the end of the lesson). This practice does not work well a lot of the time because students don’t pay proper attention during the lesson. Knowledge checks (exercises during the lesson) work best. After every major heading, include a short exercise to keep students focused. Another good thing is that, it will alert students when they go off tune. Your exercises should not be too difficult, don’t scare away your learners.
Finally, wrap up with a good summary
Have you seen those epic final scenes that keep playing in your head? Exactly, make your modules have a similar effect. End every module with a summary of the important points you discussed and a short note on the next topic. This will pique students’ interest for the next lesson.
Conclusion, how to design the best online modules
To design the best online modules: create an outline, make your introductions brief and clear, make your modules interactive, include formative exercises and finish off with a banging summary.
Our tips have been very effective for a lot of instructors. Try them too and let us know what you think. Are there other tips that work for you? Let us know in the comment section below.
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