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The field of learning design isn’t improving as quickly as many practitioners would like. One way to move things forward is to explore how effective we are at designing learning experiences. With an honest look at our designs, we then know what direction to take to improve. This isn’t always easy to do in the world of eLearning. But Julie Dirksen has some solutions.
Julie Dirksen is the author of Design For How People Learn. She’s an experienced independent consultant and instructional designer with more than 15 years of experience creating highly interactive e-learning experiences. She also has a background in user experience design, game-based learning and behavior change.
WE DISCUSS:
- Why eLearning design isn’t improving quickly
- Deliberate practice in eLearning design
- Why the feedback loop doesn’t get closed
- Ways to close the feedback loop
- How to do user testing
- Why getting an outside perspective is required
TIME: 22 minutes
TRANSCRIPT: Download the ELC 014 Podcast Transcript.
RATE: Rate this podcast in iTunes
RESOURCES:
- Julie’s website: Usable Learning
- Design for How People Learn by Julie Dirksen
- My review of Design for How People Learn
- Gorilla HCI by Jakob Neilsen
- Don’t Make Me Think, Revisited by Steve Krug
- Rocket Surgery Made Easy by Steve Krug
COMMENT
How do you close the feedback loop? Ideas? Comment below.
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Yes I agree about the paper prototypes and I am sure Julie does too. Thanks for the Design School link.
Connie
Really enjoyed this podcast. Thanks for making this happen Connie and Julie.
One thought about user testing – it may be best to do this early on in the design process while using paper prototypes. This provides designers with the feedback loop necessary at a stage of the design when the content is still malleable.
More about how to do paper prototypes here – http://dschool.stanford.edu/wp-content/themes/dschool/method-cards/prototype-to-test.pdf
Hi Leslie,
I’m glad this was inspiring! That was the goal. 🙂
Best,
Connie
Connie and Julie, thanks for this great podcast. It’s lighting the fire under me–again–to get real feedback and test usability. The tips on how to do this remotely are helpful, too.
Great podcast Connie. I really liked the idea of using a web-based way to do some user testing. I think the Quality Matters program and process can be a good way to “check” for user experience. Three faculty review an online course using a researched-based rubric for course design; they all provide significant feedback. This is an adjunct to performing user testing with students. Just a thought…
Thanks, Jeff. It was a fun conversations to have.
This was an interesting podcast, thanks.
I’ve read Julie’s book, so was familiar with a good deal of this, but it’s always a good reminder.
I also liked the reference to Steve Krug’s book, the mentions to user experience testing (the guerilla testing stuff was new information to me), and enjoyed recognizing Julie’s points about right v. better from her learning resolutions post on OpenSesame.
As always, thanks. Have great days, you two.