Write Technology

The Masie Center delivers again. This time they have released a large yet free e-book, available for download, that covers 701 Tips for eLearning. Tips include:

#57: Business Issues Need Only Apply Make sure there is a clear business issue that e-Learning will address. Too many projects are started that do not have executive sponsorship or clearly address a business issue that needs to be resolved. The result is failure to continue once the budget comes into question.
#139: Adapt, Don’t Just Copy Put thought into the creation of the e-Learning module. Follow instructional design principles. E-learning is NOT just a conversion of Word or PowerPoint documents. E-Learning is a different medium – adapt your content accordingly.
#219: Chunk Your Training Keep you lessons at 30 minutes or less but if training on a new application, 60 minutes or less is best. Online recordings? 20 minutes or less.
#271: Respect Copyrights It’s easy to borrow content from other sites on the Internet. Most people are flattered if you want to borrow an image or some text, provided they receive appropriate credit. But if you’re using someone else’s materials, be sure to find out if the content is copyrighted. The Internet is filled with pirated images so even if it appears that something isn’t marked, it could be stolen already.

And a lot more! These tips are all provided by readers of Elliot Masie’s TRENDS eNewsletter and eLearning Consortium members. (Tip #271 is provided by a friend and colleague of mine: Jeff Harris from Trivantis, Cincinnati, OH.)
Download the free PDF or order a (free) CD

The Instructional Design students at the University of South Alabama have collectively put together a pretty decent primer on the basics of ISD. It’s worth a look, despite the typo in the page header.

Instructional Design Electronic Workbook

Note: It is put together using MacroMedia Authorware, so you may require the free download/plug-in.