Creating and teaching online classes - e-learning, beginning.

At the present time, "on-site" meetings are under a big question mark. Due to epidemiological restrictions, our contacts have been severely truncated, and life as such has largely moved to the Internet. The tool of the web is largely the answer for companies offering training or consulting services to their clients. In this regard, I have prepared a guide that begins our series of posts on creating and conducting remote classes. I invite you to familiarize yourself with the entry!

Preparation phase

In order to properly fit specific training content into an e-learning model, preparation is required. By performing a one-to-one transformation (i.e., making a digital equivalent of each slide of a given presentation), there is a risk that the eBook thus prepared will be poorer in terms of the instructor's training experience that is attractive to a group of learners.

1. Prepare a detailed inventory of the materials at hand:

Instructor Lead Training (ILT) consists not only of slides, handouts, course notes, audio and video files - it also includes supporting materials such as student guides, feedback forms, cue sheets, etc.

Gather the aforementioned materials so that the e-learning conversion can be carried out successfully.

2. Obtain information on why the course was originally created:

It is important to understand why a particular course material was created. This will give you the knowledge to facilitate its digital readability.

Example:
Existing flowcharts were designed to facilitate understanding and application of process flow to a specific procedure. Based on these, an interactive module could be created where students could drag and drop online "flow" elements and match them with "procedure" elements.

At the same time, if these flows were to be used in the workplace, a digital reconstruction with hyperlinks and interactivity could be created; store in a repository.

3. Evaluate the material and make improvements, if necessary, before conversion:

It is a mistake to start a digital transcription of the material in your possession without checking it first.

Appropriate procedure:

• reviewing all existing content for accuracy of information;
• correcting or marking misleading, outdated information;
• creating links to previously created content, rather than copying information (should mark these notes for the conversion team).

4. Session observation (if possible):

Observation of a training session using current materials is key. Here's how this can be done:

• providing the conversion team with insights into the materials, how a particular snippet of information on paper is converted to digital;
• helping the team identify how to design an intuitive user interface for an online course;
• observing potential information "gaps" in a particular piece of content (e.g., when students ask for an explanation of a particular piece of material) incorporated during the conversion process (e.g., adding an FAQ section).

Conversion phase

Preparatory steps that lay the groundwork for conducting the actual conversion:

1. Organization

In order for the e-learning process to be effective, it must be organized in the right way:
a) Identify all team members (e.g., instructional designers (ID), subject matter experts (SMEs), support staff)
b) Assign roles and responsibilities to team members; define areas of shared responsibility (project goals, timeline)

2. Reinventing

It is worthwhile at this point to rethink already existing content. There are many ways in which you can adapt it to e-learning, configure the information, make it more relevant to the user. Here are hints:

• How much of the given information can be turned into graphics, infographics, images? What can be discarded?
• Can static images be turned into hyperlinks or animation, allowing students to move freely between images and text? Perhaps a "mouseover" option, or establishing a hyperlink for a better learning experience, will help. All within the same slide.
• Instead of comprehensive textual content, for example, is it a good idea to include videos you've created, or audio content for better student understanding of the material?

3. Restructuring (not just adapting)

It's worth modifying the course content so that the new version being created has a different flow. Trainer-led ILT can be adapted for self-study by the student (e.g., displaying content on demand; skipping given course content depending on the level of proficiency)

4. Reduction (without repetition)

To avoid repetition of existing content in a conversion exercise, the following steps can be used:

• simplifying the text so that it is not overwhelming for the reader to focus maximum attention (too much content means faster fatigue with the online material);
• dividing the lessons into smaller components (a module lasting 12 to 15 minutes);
• adding a sidebar to the course, making it easier to get to the desired module, course, or its summary more quickly

Conversion is the final goal. However, the transfer of information must not be a complete copying, transcription of content. The right approach is to reuse the content of the educational materials in question using new techniques and proper instructional design practices.