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.