The Many Faces of Online Learning

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Libby Cross, Senior Marketing Executive

Online learning isn’t bound by just one medium. Head of Learning Experience, Jack Quantrill explores some of the tools you may not have realized you have at your disposal.

When the terms elearning, online learning or even computer-based training are uttered in a corporate setting, they’re likely to bring to mind images of old-school ‘click next’ modules that prompt a collective company sigh audible in the far reaches of the solar system.

But, it doesn’t have to be that way.  

As a developer or as a customer, you have more options available to you than ever before. Medium’s that may have been too costly or challenging to develop in the past are within reach and even old school techniques can have a new lease of life when designed intelligently and deployed on the right platform. 

So let’s take a look at some of the different mediums you can explore and when they may be the best tool for the job…

Typical Online Learning

Sure, we may have started with a gentle dig about more typical online learning, but it is still a hugely valuable part of the mix when done well. It can be particularly useful for basic, foundation knowledge and introduction subjects and is often used for compliance, product information and systems training. Our advice is to keep things short, practical and direct.

Animation

An animation can be a hugely flexible asset that can have a life beyond the pages of an online learning module or platform. Look for opportunities to develop animations that can also act as a communications tool for your big learning message or even as classroom training or team meeting resources. Staying under the 90-second mark will keep animation costs down and learner attention up.

Videos

The same points on animation apply to video. Our advice is to experiment! YouTube has become the world’s number one repository of learning content and you’re sure to find inspiration here in the wide array of formats and styles used to deliver content. 

Our Future Skills team has recently experimented with video essays, a format that combines speedy cuts of archive video footage, music and memes ideal for a twenty-first-century attention span.  

Paper-Based Resources

Sometimes a simple checklist does the trick. Performance support resources like this can be used by employees in the flow of work and may be just the right tool to nudge behavior in the desired direction.

Curated Content

There’s a whole range of content readily available on the web that can be used to support, extend and enhance any learning program. Subjects such as Leadership and Communication Skills are particularly well-served online. Learning Pool provides curation as a service to help you get the very most out of this rich vein of content.

Advanced Online Learning

Finally, should you choose to develop an online course, it doesn’t have to be ‘typical’. Full learning games, scenario-based experiences, interactive videos, spaced practice and many more formats are at your disposal if your ambition and budget allow.

You can choose to develop a solution using just one of these mediums or combine them into a modern, digital blend. Having a partner with the right learning design experience and expertise to guide you through these choices can help ensure you get the right solution for your learning challenge, company culture, timeline and budget.

Thankfully, Learning Pool has years of experience developing rich blends of online learning content for the likes of Sonova, Merck, Amway and many more. 

Get in touch to find out more.