Topic: How To

Before creating content stop and plan your course objectives. They will ensure you create a coherent course that is easy for the learner to follow and they will keep you focused during content creation.

What is the purpose of the course?

• Define the end goal – “At the end of the course learners will be able to…”

What is the purpose of each module?

• “At the end of module 1 learners will be able to…”

Are your learning objectives measurable?

• Create quizzes and assessments that when completed show the learner is on track for each modules learning objective.
• What percentage or level should a learner achieve to have successfully achieved the learning objective and completed the module/course?

Are your objectives interesting?

• You will most likely add your course objectives to your course description – do they sound convincing and interesting enough to entice someone to sign up?

• Are they meaningful and motivating for the learner?

And lastly…

Are learners made aware of how each element of the course relates to their achievement of a course objective?

Next Steps…

Now you can go ahead and create your course. Make sure you look at your course objectives regularly – all your material, assignments, activities and assessments should align with the course objectives.

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1. Go through our ‘How to use Dojo Learning’ course when you login.
2. Need some inspiration? Have a look at some of our top courses, such as Brian Mayne’s Goal Mapping for ideas: http://liftinternational.dojolearning.com
3. Browse our blog for checklists, getting started guides and more!
4. Use social media sites to enhance your learning. Follow us and top e-learning influencers on Twitter, LinkedIn, Google Plus and Facebook.
5. Gather all your resources (graphics, course objectives, content etc) in 1 folder on your computer before you start.
6. Don’t expect to put your course together in 1 sitting – although many have achieved this remember you are learning how to use a new tool and we recommend going through 1 module of our course a day.
7. Not sure about adding graphics or have some questions? Get on a call with us, we are here to help!

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A quick list of things to check BEFORE you publish your course…If you’ve already published your course DON’T PANIC!

Use this checklist to ensure your course is the BEST it can be…

1.Are you keeping your students hooked throughout?

Enthusiastic engaged students retain 25-60% more!

Have you added 2-3 of the following:

• Quizzes,
• Media e.g. photos, charts, graphics…
• Storyboards,
• Downloadable worksheets to fill out.

Using a variety of teaching method caters for more learning styles.

2.Have you provided scenarios, case studies or examples of how to apply your training?

Providing your learners with solid examples of how to use the training at the end of each module/lesson will solidify their learning, increase their confidence and give them the necessary tools to implement the training immediately.

3.Do your learning objectives + content match?

If not, change your learning objectives, content or both so your learners know what to expect.

Have you included the learning objectives in the course description or at the beginning of every lesson?

Don’t overcomplicate this - use simple bullet points.

4.Is the course organized logically and effectively?

Are the chapters/modules organized by topics, learning objectives or date?

Have you included a table of contents for quick reference?

Including a description at the beginning of each chapter/module/lesson as described above will add structure to the course.

5. Does your course have a clear, consistent design throughout?

Are you using the same templates, colours, writing font and layout throughout?

Have you used colours logically in your course to enhance learning points? e.g. black for the main points/words.

Are the main points easy to see? Are the pages cluttered or clear?

6. Have you created an action plan for the learner following the course?

Is there a higher level or related course your learner can progress onto?

Can the learner continue to contact you after the course?

Do you have a workbook or any homework the learners need to complete?

*SUPER TIP *

7. Are there any content gaps?

Set your course to private using our in built tool and invite a handful of learners to test it before your official release. Ask your test learners:

Did they discover any content gaps?

Did they stay focused throughout? Were there any chapters in particular where they lost focus?

What else could you add to improve your course?

Are there any points that needed further explanation? or where an example would be useful?

At the end of the course, did they feel they had accomplished the learning objectives?

Did you find this checklist helpful? Do you have any further suggestions we can add to this checklist? Let us know!

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Following our recent launch of Dojo Learning we are looking for new guest bloggers to join our expanding team of elearning AND edtech expert bloggers.

We are looking for exciting, engaging content in the form of articles, reviews, industry news, opinions or if you’re feeling creative, infographics that provide valuable content to our readers

In return you will gain some great exposure, we will even include a short bio at the end of your post, a link to your own blog/website and a link back to your twitter profile.

It’s easy to become a guest blogger at Dojo Learning. Simply write a post on a relevant topic e.g. elearning, edtech, training/consulting and submit it along with your twitter/google+ link and short bio to: info@dojolearning.com

All we ask is that you follow the guidelines below. We don’t want you to waste your time so make sure your content fulfils our criteria otherwise your post is likely to be rejected.

A few things to avoid in your posts: 

Swearing



Intolerant or offensive views or language



Graphic sexual references

Attacking an individual or organization

Persistent product placement

Spam/Posts FULL of links (we will have to remove them)

Duplicate + copyrighted content – Original content only please.

We cannot publish every post 

A few tips for creating great content:

400-800 words is generally the best length

Writing in 1^st person creates the most engaging content

Our audience is B2B so bear this in mind when writing

Publication:  We have the right to publish and remove articles at our discretion and we have the right to edit, amend, add to, delete and make changes to submitted articles as we see fit. (grammar and spelling are very important to us).

We will notify you of an estimated publication date within 7 days of receiving the post. If you do not hear from us in this time, it is likely we will not publish your post.

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