G.A.S. and Simulations

As your e-learning development skills improve, you may begin to use games, avatars, and scenarios together in different combinations. It's recommended that an e-learning episode begin with a story-line (scenario) that builds and builds all the way to the end of the lesson, taking twists and turns appropriate to the content being provided. The learner becomes involved in the story immediately, before any knowledge content is presented as an experiential learning episode. An avatar may be presented as a coach, providing the knowledge content and feedback to the learner as decisions are being made. A game may be thrown in at the end, instead of a test, if a grade or some form of measurement is needed. A game might also be used as a way to break up the story, sort of like an interactive commercial that tests the knowledge that has been presented up to that point in the lesson. There are a variety of ways to include games, avatars, and scenarios in e-learning opportunities for individual learners.


You may even consider building simulations. On-line simulations are 3D versions of scenarios that sometimes have a game-like feel, and may employ instructor and/or student avatars. A friend of mine explained the difference in scenarios and simulations like this: scenarios are the story, simulations are the event. Simulations use the scenario story line while allowing the learner to engage more fully into the event. Simulations become games when a competitive edge is added. Adding avatars to the simulations, especially when the student's avatar interacts with other avatars, increases the socialization of the e-learning process, which can improve the effectiveness of the learning opportunity since many people learn best in social environments.


There are so many ways to utilize games, avatars, scenarios, and simulations for educational purposes online. Explore the options, experiment with techniques, run pilot tests, and most of all...have a gas!

Scenarios

Scenarios can be utilized in e-learning similarly to the way facilitators use them in instructor-led classes to improve the transfer from learning to real-world performance. Scenarios provide a learner with a story that is similar to their real world environment in which they must make decisions about how to respond. The decision leads to an impact, which may lead to another decision, and so forth. (This type of scenario is called "branched.") The neat thing about using scenarios in e-learning is that the designer can include a "redo" option so the learner may start over and make different decisions to see how the scenario would play out if different choices were made along the way.


Scenarios offer learners an opportuntiy to test hypotheses and practice problem solving in a private setting. Feedback may be provided along the way to coach the learner. Many times, a professional in a learning situation feels more comfortable being coached by a computer than a real person. The professional can mess up without anyone knowing! Scenarios also provide the professional with an opportunity to try to do things a little differently than their habitual patterns, which may lead to learning to do things more effectively.

Your turn:

• In what ways have you seen or used scenarios for e-learning?
• Do you have tips for the readers regarding creating scenarios?

References:

Clark, R., & Mayer, R. (2008). e-Learning and the science of instruction: Proven guidelines for consumers and designers of multimedia learning (2nd ed.). San Francisco: Pfeiffer.


Shank, P. (2010). Getting started in e-learning: Simulations and games. The eLearning Guild. Retrieved from http://www.elearningguild.com/research/archives/index.cfm?id=144&action=viewonly. (2010, August 2).


Slotte, V., & Herbert, A. (2008). Engaging workers in simulation-based e-learning [Electronic version]. Journal of Workplace Learning, 20(3), 165-180.

Avatars

Hi, I am Xan's avatar. I was created at DoppleMe.com absolutely free! May I tell you a little bit about how me and my avatar friends can support your e-learning?

One thing we avatars can do for your e-learning is create a social feel to an otherwise lonely learning module. Adding avatars, like me, to your e-learning is also known to make your modules memorable, and therefore increase the effectiveness of the learning opportunity.

You can employ avatars like me to support students as they navigate through a course, provide feedback or coaching to the students, and you may even decide to allow the students to create their own avatars that will interact with others in a classroom or adventure game setting. Avatars have been said to be better than real teachers because they do not make mistakes which live instructors make. For example, have you ever had a student ask a dumb question and you struggled not to make a weird face? I don't make weird faces!! The student can go on thinking what their grandparents told them, "there are no dumb questions."
Now, I'm a pretty simple avatar. I don't talk. I don't move. I'm not in 3D. But some of my avatar friends are! So you can be as fancy as you want with avatars in your e-learning creations.

There are many many avatar creation programs available. Search online until your heart is content and see what you find. Tom Khulmann also describes how he add characters to his online creations in his blog.

Your turn to talk:

• What great avatar creation programs have you found?


• In what ways have you used avatars?

One last thing, may I tell you where Xan found all this information about me and my avatar peers?

Bailenson, J. (2008, April 4). Why digital avatars make the best teachers. The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved from ERIC database.

Jaay, A. (2010, September 16). Better training results with AlterEgos and Camtasia Studio. Retrieved from http://newbizine.com/better-training-results-with-alteregos-and-camtasia-studio/. (2010, October 17).

Slotte, V., & Herbert, A. (2008). Engaging workers in simulation-based e-learning [Electronic version]. Journal of Workplace Learning, 20(3), 165-180.

Games

Games have proven to be effective learning aids in clasrooms. They can also be effective for online learning!

Different games support different types of learning. For instance:

• Jeopardy style games are good for promoting facts, labels, and concrete concepts.
• Arcade style games are good for promoting speed of response and visual processing.
• Adventure style games are good for promoting problem solving and hypothesis testing.

There are two keys for using games effectively

1. Keep the learning objective at the forefront by choosing/building games that provide the type of practice needed to meet the objectives.
2. Do not overload the learner's short term memory.

An online search for "game templates" will yield a variety of opportunties for designers to begin using games quickly. These screen shots came from PowerPoint Games , a web-site which contain free game templates meant for use in a classroom setting but they can be modified slightly for use in an e-learning program. Check out Jane Bozarth's book Better Than Bullet Points for more information on how to modify them for e-learning.

Of course, there are many programs available now for purchase for more games.

As your e-learning development skills improve start building customized games for even greater impact.

Useful books to reference include:

• Ruth Clark & Richard Mayer's book: e-Learning and the Science of Instruction
• William Horton's book: e-learning By Design
• Robin Williams' book: The Non-Designer's Design Book

References for this blog include the books just mentioned, and:

Barkland, J., & Kush, J., (2009). GEARS a 3D virtual learning environment and virtual social and educational world used in online secondary school [Electronic version]. Electronic Journal of e-Learning, 7(3), 215-224.

Landy, S. (2010). Online Learning 101: Part I: Authoring and course development tools. eLearning Magazine. Retrieved from http://www.elearning.org/subpage.cfm?section=articles&article=124-1. (2010, Octover 6).

Shank, P. (2010). Getting started in e-learning: Simulations and games. The eLearning Guild. Retrieved from http://www.elearningguild.com/research/archives/index.cfm?id=144&action=viewonly. (2010, August 2).

Slotte, V., & Herbert, A. (2008) Engaging workers in simulation-based e-learning [Electronic versin]. Journal of Workplace Learning, 20(3), 165-180.

Cycle of Experience

I recently updated a canned e-learning program that my organization purchased from a source some years back. It had two parts, the content in slides with a bullet point format, and a quiz with several multiple choice and true/false questions. A server crashed a few months back and the content was lost. The module needed to be updated anyway, so I was charged with the task.

I made some design changes to the program, such as

• creating a glossary of terms, placing links in the content to the glossary as appropriate,


• adding some visuals that, when clicked, would lead to more information about the concept behind the visual,


• making some of the visuals cover the full page, just to change the look of the module from time to time and grab the learner's attention, and


• embedding matching questions, fill in the blank questions, and a short answer case study into the content instead of saving the questions until the end.

All these strategies I have been learning about over the last couple of months from Clark & Mayer and Courville.

The module has been published for a month now. This past Wednesday I received two calls about it. Unfortunately they were not positive. They didn't like that I moved the buttons from one place when it was a simple "next" button to another place when I wanted them to pay attention. They also didn't like having to click on the visuals to find the optional information, nor the full page visuals where the buttons appeared on top of the picture. Hmmm...do I listen to the experts, or do I listen to my customers?

Being a member of the organizational development department at my organization, it is my role to assist the employees with change. Research from the last two months tells me I am implementing the right techniques in e-learning, but it also tells me to gently support them with the change. The latter bit I seemed to have forgotten.

This brings to mind the Gestalt Cycle of Experience.

I have realized that my customers were plunged into Sensation without warning while I had moved around to Action. All they knew to do is cry out, "I'm not computer savvy." Realizing the error of my ways, I made some changes, again, to the e-learning so that the changes are less drastic. Some things I left alone to support them moving toward a more active involvement in their online learning skills. Here are the changes I made:

• removed the links from visuals and put the "next" button back in place to force everyone through the optional slides (for now), and
• took out a complicated fill in the blank question because it didn't really meet learning objectives anyway.
• I left the "next" and "continue" buttons in their different places since my customers are accustomed to that, even though they could not remember with all the other changes "muddying the water" for them.

I believe this compromise will give my customers some familiarity (which they want) and a smaller amount of change (which they need). I'll have to let you know what feedback I get from this newer version.

Tools

Someone new to e-learning design may be shocked at the number of tools available and needed. The fact that it often requires several types of tools to construct the masterpiece you've dreamed up can also blow you away. In fact, when I began I became overwhelmed with the number of tools being loaded on my computer and wondered how in the world I would learn to use them all. Honestly, that is still a work in progress for me. (You can see by this table that I need to focus some learning on improving my graphic art skills.) This journey, however, has helped me understand more clearly the types of tools available and when they might be used. Be comforted because many of the tools are user friendly so getting started doesn't take too much time. Here is a short list (not exhaustive in any sense) of types of tools available for e-learning designers.

Good news! Many tools being introduced are like swiss army knives in that they can be used for more than one task. Some of the tools listed here are multipurpose. The way designers use the tools depends on the knowledge and skill of the programmer. Remember to start with what you know and add a little more knowledge and skill with each e-learning module you develop.

Be sure to check out the blogs and links on the right side of this blog page. There is a wealth of knowledge a support about e-learning available.

I'd be interested to know what your favorite tools are and why.

Breathe Easy

I found this terrific book:
Wow, if you already use PowerPoint pretty well, you can start building better e-leaning right away with the information that is in this easy to read book. What a relief!!

Turns out, PowerPoint doesn't always have to be bullet points. There are lots of ways to use pictures, insert movements and videos, and create games that the learners can enjoy engaging in while learning important information. PowerPoint is also capable of supporting branching styles scenarios. If many of the skills you teach are relationship building skills, branching is an important feature for the e-learning tools you should employ. PowerPoint can also be used to create games and simple simulations that move into action on your user's command. These are great ways to quiz learners or show how objects work together for a particular function.

You can order this easy to follow book from Amazon.com.

Your Turn: Anyone else use PowerPoint to build engaging e-learning? Share your story here in Comments!!

There are other useful tools that an eLearning designer can use, so stay tuned...

The Surprise

Shifting from being a designer and facilitator for instructor led classes to a designer of e-learning opportunities has proved surprisingly challenging this last year. So many tools needed! So many skills to learn!! So many options available!!! Whew, what have I gotten myself into?

These challenges can be both exciting and overwhelming (read frustrating), but in the end all I want is for the e-learning opportunities I design to be effective for learning for adult customers, and at the same time, not be something they dread doing. So, the last couple of months I began a journey to learn all I could about building e-learning opportunities that are engaging and effective, so that I don't fall into the bullet-points-and-multiple-choice-question (page turner) trap that I've experienced as a learner in e-learning. Technology has advanced dramatically over the last few years, and there is so much more to offer.

Come and explore with me how to pump up e-learning using games, avatars, and scenarios. eLearning doesn't have to be a drag, it can be a GAS!!

Jumping Jack Flash, It's a Gas, Gas, Gas!!

I believe in continuous learning over a lifetime and welcome your suggestions and comments.