Category Archives: Instructional Design

Ready Player One

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I recently had the chance to read the book Ready Player One (to see what it is about please read the synopsis below). This is a great book for use in gaming and educational classrooms. I will more than likely be incorporating it into my Gaming and Simulation class. The books does a great job of predicting what our world might look like in years to come. While a fiction book the idea behind VR technology and its role in our lives and internet may not be far off. In fact, as the technology progresses I believe its pretty spot on. So I definitely recommend this text to anyone interested in gaming, instructional technology, or in need a fun book to read. I also love all of the 80s references as I grew up in the 80s and loved reading about games like Joust and Adventure – 2 of my favorites from Atari. You can read more about the book here: http://readyplayerone.com/

Book synopsis:

It’s the year 2044, and the real world is an ugly place. 

Like most of humanity, Wade Watts escapes his grim surroundings by spending his waking hours jacked into the OASIS, a sprawling virtual utopia that lets you be anything you want to be, a place where you can live and play and fall in love on any of ten thousand planets. 

And like most of humanity, Wade dreams of being the one to discover the ultimate lottery ticket that lies concealed within this virtual world. For somewhere inside this giant networked playground, OASIS creator James Halliday has hidden a series of fiendish puzzles that will yield massive fortune—and remarkable power—to whoever can unlock them.   

For years, millions have struggled fruitlessly to attain this prize, knowing only that Halliday’s riddles are based in the pop culture he loved—that of the late twentieth century. And for years, millions have found in this quest another means of escape, retreating into happy, obsessive study of Halliday’s icons. Like many of his contemporaries, Wade is as comfortable debating the finer points of John Hughes’s oeuvre, playing Pac-Man, or reciting Devo lyrics as he is scrounging power to run his OASIS rig.

And then Wade stumbles upon the first puzzle.

Suddenly the whole world is watching, and thousands of competitors join the hunt—among them certain powerful players who are willing to commit very real murder to beat Wade to this prize. Now the only way for Wade to survive and preserve everything he knows is to win. But to do so, he may have to leave behind his oh-so-perfect virtual existence and face up to life—and love—in the real world he’s always been so desperate to escape. 

A world at stake.

A quest for the ultimate prize.

Are you ready?

Instructional strategies by training type

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Here is a chart I have made which highlights the ease at which it is to implement strategies by training type. This is a very good starting point when considering an instructional strategy once you know what kind of training a client wants. While I probably can do any strategy in any environment if I am creative enough, its not always plausible. Thus when someone tells me they want CBT training I know that direct instructional strategies are more than likely the best method.

›Instructor led: 1 – Direct, 1 – Indirect, 1 – Experiential

›Online: 1 – Direct, 2 – Indirect, 3 – Exp

›Virtual:1 – Direct,1 – Indirect, 1 – Exp

›CBI/CBT: 1 – Direct, 3 – Indirect, 3 – Exp

›Simulation: 1 – Direct, 1 – Indirect, 1 – Exp

1 = Easy, 2 = medium, 3 = Most difficult

*note that given the technology and capabilities of your team and technology, these could all be different for you. For example in the Online section, Indirect heavily depends on the LMS type and capabilities – it could very easily be a ‘1’.

 

Guidelines for interface design

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*Note 1 – these are general guidelines that need to be modified for each project and media type.
*Note 2 – –I would first consider: Users,  Context, Technology, Goals/objectives,  Task Analysis
*Note 3 – –These would be examined in order to start creating a design that is usable (usability), and then I would evaluate my prototypes using heurisitc, pluralistic, style, and cognitive walkthrough

1. –Simple and natural dialogue

1.1.     Speak the users’ language

2. –Minimize cognitive load

2.1.    Miller 1956 – 7 Concepts (+/- 2)

3. –Multimedia principles

3.1.    Images and text that explain for one another

3.2.    No extra details – only what is required; no unnecessary images

3.3.    Highlight important information

3.4.    No busy screens/backgrounds/fonts

3.5.    Fitt’s law

4. –Be consistent

5. Colors/fonts/layout – across the site/app

5.1 Colors – 2-4; fonts – legible; layout – Grid and organized

6. Follow current font, color, layout trends

7. –Provide feedback

8. Provide clearly marked exits

9. –Provide shortcuts

9.1.    Breadcrumbs

10. Deal with errors in positive and helpful manner

11. Develop for the output technology – resolution, colors, golden ratio/rectangle

12. –Rule of thirds

13. Provide help and documentation

13.1.Site map

14. –User friendly layout

14.1.Buttons/links easy to find/use

14.2.This will vary based on audience and objectives

14.3.Color, fonts, layout, sizes

ADDIE

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This is a summarized breakdown of ADDIE. One would assume that front end analysis was completed at this point to determine that there was a training need.

ADDIE

Evaluation for an instructor led course (the materials)

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Evaluation for an instructor led course (the materials)

The following is a guide for evaluating materials for an instructor led course. This is not a guide for evaluating a person teaching the course.

Criteria Description Scale
N/A Comments
Content
Working memory/Cognitive load

 

 Learners can hold 5-7 concepts in their working memory at one time. Does this content ask learners to work with more at one time (per screen/topic)? Thus screens should have limited text/bullet points.

 
Multimedia principles

 

 Images and text (or narration) that explain for one another are better for learning and communication then just one by itself. Thus PPT or lecture should follow this model.

 
No extra details – only what is required Extra images, text, or colors distracts
Highlight important information

 

 Use of cues or color coding for important concepts
No busy screens/backgrounds/fonts

 

 These distract learners
Objectives are clear What is the point?
Content is inline with objectives Does the site do what it says?
Assessment is inline with content Is there an assessment and does it asses each objective?
Flow Introduction, content, ending
Learning strategies Are learning strategies apparent and appropriate?
Motivation Are motivation (ARCS) applied?
Learners apply/problem solve (ie case studies) Are the learners actually learning more than factual information?
Sources To back up claims
Assessment
Is there an assessment?
Assessment measures high level knowledge Does the assessment measure more than factual information?
Is there a satisfaction survey?
Style
Colors/fonts/layout

 

 These should be standard throughout
Colors Should NOT be more than 2-4 colors on screen
fonts Are fonts legible
layout

 

 Grid and organized
Simple and natural dialogue

 

 Speak the users’ language – informal is better than formal for learning

 
Rule of thirds

 

 Does the screen utilize them?
Technical
Audio Sound/voices volume, background noise, easy to understand
File formats Are they compatible with all hardware
Video Does it play well/take a while to load?
Develop for the output technology

 

 Resolution – is the resolution look correct or pixelated?, colors look right on screen, golden ratio/rectangle (organization and layout look correct)
Instructor Guide
Time How long does it take to complete each section?
Narration Does it tell the instructor what to say?
Notes Are there notes for the instructor?
Materials Are all materials provided for the instructor?
Facilitating/teaching Does the instructor guide contain enough information that one could pick it up and teach the course (assuming they have all the materials, know the content, know how to teach)?
Student Guide
Schedule Do students know the schedule of the course and topics?
Objectives Do students have the objectives?
Content Do students have a copy of the PPT/Materials to take notes and follow along?
Materials Are student materials included in this guide?
Job aid Is there a job aid for students to take with them to help them transfer knowledge from course to job?

 

Usability Evaluation for websites and computer based instruction

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Usability Evaluation for websites and computer based instruction

The following is a guide for evaluating computer based instruction and websites. It can also be used for mobile and tablet based software. This will vary based on audience and objectives. Some criteria may or may not apply to all devices or instructional media types. This is a general evaluation and should be modified for every single project. Keep in mind I developed this with training/learning in mind.

Criteria Description Scale
N/A Comments
Content
Working memory/Cognitive load Learners can hold 5-7 concepts in their working memory at one time. Does this content ask learners to work with more at one time (per screen/topic)? Thus screens should have limited text/bullet points.
Multimedia principles Images and text (or narration) that explain for one another are better for learning and communication then just one by itself
No extra details – only what is required Extra images, text, or colors distracts
Highlight important information Use of cues or color coding for important concepts
Objectives are clear What is the point?
Content is inline with objectives Does the site do what it says?
Assessment is inline with content Is there an assessment and does it asses each objective?
Flow Introduction, content, ending
Learning strategies Are learning strategies apparent and appropriate?
Learners apply/problem solve Are the learners actually learning more than factual information?
Sources To back up claims
Assessment
Is there an assessment?
Assessment measures high level knowledge Does the assessment measure more than factual information?
Is there a satisfaction survey?
Style
Fitt’s law Buttons should be big and close enough to prevent error
Colors/fonts/layout These should be standard throughout
No busy screens/backgrounds/fonts These distract learners
Colors Should NOT be more than 2-4 colors on screen
fonts Are fonts legible
layout Grid and organized
Simple and natural dialogue Speak the users’ language – informal is better than formal for learning
User friendly layout Are there directions on using the tutorial?
Rule of thirds Does the screen utilize them?
Functionality
Provide feedback Feedback for navigation
Provide clearly marked exits Get to home screen/Exit program
Provide shortcuts Breadcrumbs
Reversal of actions Can you go back?
Errors Deal with errors in positive and helpful manner
Provide help and documentation Help button/documentation
Navigation Menu, next, back, help buttons – easy to find
Technical
Load time Does it load in a few seconds?
Develop for the output technology Resolution – is the resolution look correct or pixelated?, colors look right on screen, golden ratio/rectangle (organization and layout look correct)
Video Does it play well/take a while to load?
Audio Sound/voices volume, background noise, easy to understand
File formats Are they compatible with all hardware
508 Compliance Does it meet 508? i.e. alt tags
SCORM Compliance For an LMS