Questions I No Longer Ask

Over at Learning Circuits the Big Question is "What questions are you no longer asking? What are your new questions?" Here are my reflections on what I no longer ask... or do.

• Is adding levity to a course a good thing?
  Where humor is not appropriate I obviously do not include it in the design,  but if it is appropriate I will enthusiastically run with it. Adding humor gets people's attention, and keeps their attention, when done right. From my own experience I have also seen higher attendance and completion rates along with improved retention. I have learned to be weary when stakeholders insist on keeping it "serious" when they have no viable reason for it to be "serious." Good chance they don't really care much about engaging the learner.


• Allowing input on course design from stakeholders BEFORE identifying course objectives and having an initial design.
  I had a job in the not distant past where every SME thought they were an instructional designer. They had it all figured out before consulting the training department. Involving them too early regarding the design opens an opportunity for them to set objectives that will not address the learners' needs and what will result in a poor design. Do I ask them to review objectives and the design? Yes, and I listen to their input, but if you approach course design too soon you will most likely be given a list of topics they want included, most of which have nothing to do with the training need at hand. They will also suggest silly things like a very linear design. For example, the classic "I want them to have to read every page."


• Should I use Next buttons?
  Unless you are extremely stressed for time and need to create it "rapidly," you don't need no stinkin' Next button. Exclude the Next button and I promise interactivity and engagement will be increased!


• Will the course work on our LMS? "Of course it will, it's SCORM compliant!"
  Ask a stupid question, get a stupid answer. What I do say, "Send me the course and I will test it on our LMS." SCORM  or not, there is no guarantee it will work on every LMS. Wish I had a dollar for every time I had to tweak a SCORM manifest from a vendor's course.