Content Types To Include In e-Learning

We always recommend a variety of different types of content within an online training course. This variety maintains the learner’s interest and makes the learning experience more fun. Studies have shown that people learn the most when they are having fun and that different people respond to different types of information displayed in a variety of ways.

So here’s an overview of the benefits of different types of content within an e-learning programme to help you think outside words on a page.

Photos

They say a picture is worth 1,000 words, so the use of well selected, good photographs will help you get information across to your learners. They can break up a page, show rather than tell key information and make the content more visually appealing and memorable.

Videos

If a picture is worth 1,000 words, a video is worth a million pictures. This brilliant storytelling tool is eye-catching and can convey a great deal of information in a short time period.

Video within e-learning courses allows an organisation to demonstrate behaviours, culture, and emotion within their e-Learning programme.

360 Degree Imagery

Immerse your learners in the learning experience. Gives you the ability to see for themselves a particular scenario. Being able to see scenarios in 360 degrees is great for risk identification training.

Virtual Tours

Kicking 360° up several notches is the use of virtual reality. VR has all the benefits of 360 degree video, with additional ability to add more interactivity.

Narration

The spoken word is a powerful and effective teaching tool. Including narration in online training offers the chance to add the tone of voice missing from written word and inject more personality and storytelling into the training programme.

Webinars

Delivered live giving the opportunity for those in the initial training group to ask questions and give feedback. Live webinars are recorded for future learners to view.

This is a great first step if you are moving from in person training to online.

Illustrations & Graphics

Support written content with graphs, infographics and the like. Information is far easier to digest if it is in chunks and well displayed visuals such as these are highly effective.

Use visually impactful graphics to break up the page and draw attention to certain aspects of the content.

Animations & Cartoons

Make your content come alive with animations or cartoons. Bring out the fun and engage with the learners, improve knowledge retention and make complex concepts easier to digest.

You could have common characters running through your training programmes linking them together and/or differentiating different types of content by the character delivering the information.

Sound Effects

Particularly in health and safety training, the inclusion of examples of sound effects can be hugely beneficial. Imagine being able to teach the difference between different types of alarms or warning sounds without having to do a live practice drill.

Quizzes

Check understanding and monitor performance/knowledge of employees and contractors with quizzes at the end of learning modules.

Good Learning Management Systems will offer a variety of question types to keep the learner engaged and make it easy to test different types of information, whether it be written or visually depicted in photos or video.

We can and do talk about content all day! Pick up the phone or email us to chat about what types of content will make your e-learning programme really sing!