In short, there are courses that have absolutely nothing to do with your job, skills, or needs, and sometimes it can seem as if companies are designing their courses just to get the job done.
But it doesn't have to be this way. We've discovered a lot in recent years about how to get the most out of every aspect of learning, from the environment and content to the instructors and participants.
In this article, we offer seven quick tips to help you get started designing training sessions that engage participants, enhance retention, and improve results.
Seven Instructional Design Tips That Engage Learners
1. Start by knowing the unknown
Before you design your training, identify what the participants actually need to learn. Instead of wasting your time explaining topics that the trainees already know, identify important learning needs so that you can keep your training design more focused and inclusive.
2. Give participants a reason to learn
Ensure that the training is designed to deliver a beneficial outcome for the participants. Learners need to understand how acquiring new skills or knowledge is linked to their job success and future career, and when the audience sees a personal benefit from completing the training, they are likely to stay motivated and engaged.
3. Stick to the rule (90-20-10)
The basic principle of the participant-centered trainer-led training approach (90-20-10) is key to increasing learner engagement. Simply put, the goal is to keep the total course length under 90 minutes, change the pace of presentation every 20 minutes, and boost participant engagement every 10 minutes.
4. Determine the order of your content
Think about your audience and goals to determine the order and sequence in which you should present your content to best optimize learning. Do you believe it is best to present lessons from beginning to end in functional order? Do you want to follow the critical chain and rank the content in terms of relative importance? Or should you move from the simple to the complex, covering familiar topics before moving on to the unfamiliar? The choice will depend on your topic and the needs of the participants. This is why you should think carefully.
5. Use the sequential approach with e-learning
If you're using e-learning as a standalone or in a hybrid educational context, ditch the static PowerPoint bullets for a more interactive tiered content style. Think of it as a triangle pyramid, with high-level audiovisual information at the top.
From here, learners get an overview of the basics of the course or topic, and the second level provides more text-based background information, Such as detailed strategies, specific instructions, helpful tips, etc. The final level is where you encourage interaction from the participants, whether through quizzes, games, or the application of new skills. This type of hands-on engagement helps improve learning outcomes and information retention.
6. Incorporate elements of gamification
No matter how great a trainer you are, there will always be some learners who do not respond to traditional training methods, and this is where gamification can help. It is a training method that adds game elements, group exercises, role-playing, video games, competitions, prizes, etc. To create a fun and rewarding learning environment that promotes participation.
7. Design the training according to objective assessments
Although it may seem counterintuitive, the design phase is when you need to start thinking about evaluating results. How will you determine the effectiveness of your training? What objective criteria must be met for success? How and when will you measure competency during training and your return to work? Now is the time to establish these expectations with your leadership so that you can develop appropriate evaluation tools, such as quizzes, assessments, benchmarks, etc., in your design.
In conclusion
Instructional design is an ongoing process, and even when you get to coordinating a successful session, you'll want to keep looking for ways to improve engagement, retention, and results as you work.
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