E-learning by design

Online course logo Need to deliver consistently effective education globally on a tight budget? E-learning can help—but only if it is designed to adapt Internet and computer technologies to the ways human beings really learn. Based on William Horton's acclaimed book, E-Learning by Design, this workshop balances instructional design with technology to teach you how to design active, instructionally sound e-learning. The best practices taught in this workshop do not depend on any proprietary technologies or particular program.

E-learning by Design book cover In this workshop you will learn to:

Design online learning experiences that accomplish specific learning objectives.
Organize and sequence online learning experiences to implement learning strategies.
Select and specify media to educate and engage e-learners.

Length: 2, or 3 days. The 2-day version includes the core topics. The 3-day version includes core topics and your choice of optional topics.

Developed by William Horton. Taught by William Horton or Katherine Horton.

On-site base price: For 25 students, inside North America: US$9000 for 2 days and $13,000 for 3 days. Plus instructor's travel costs. Outside North America, add $2000 plus travel costs for a second instructor. Also add $100 for each student above 25.

Virtual workshop base price: US$3000/day. Learners may download their handouts and order the textbook either from us or amazon.com.

To schedule this course: Call Katherine Horton at +1.303.545.6964 or e-mail kit@horton.com.

Who should attend?
Core topics
Optional topics
How will I learn?
Variants and customization
What else will I receive?
Audiovisual requirements
Related resources

Who should attend?

This workshop is for:

Instructional designers who must specify and craft e-learning.
Instructors moving from classroom to e-learning.
Technical writers moving from online documents to online learning.
Managers who must direct the design and development of e-learning.

Core topics

These core topics are covered in the 2-day version of this course. They are also included in the 3-day version.

Target e-learning precisely. How do I zoom in on high-priority enterprise goals and set realistic expectations? How do I achieve the potential of e-learning and overcome its limitations?
Quickly design instruction. How do I set clear, achievable objectives? Are there ways to streamline design without sacrificing effectiveness? How can I identify what must be taught and how to teach it?
Accomplish learning strategies. How do I design e-learning to cover vast, complex, dynamic subjects, to overcome habits and instincts, to engineer better application of learning, and to foster independent learners? Are there ways to leverage existing materials to reduce costs and development time?
Activate learners. How can I learn to select learning activities to accomplish specific objectives? Are there ways to transform passive reading, listening, and watching into active discovery and creation? How can I reliably connect learning to life and work?
Assess learning. How do I write fair, challenging, legally-defensible test questions? Can I design tests to match enterprise and educational goals? How can I increase learning through meaningful, encouraging feedback? Are there alternative ways to measure learning?

Optional topics

For a 3-day version of this course, you may select an additional 3 to 5 of the following topics:

Picking an approach. What form of e-learning is best for my purposes: Pure or blended? Stand-alone or embedded? Synchronous or asynchronous? Learner-led, instructor-led, or facilitated? Solitary e-learners or classes of thousands?
Organizing the course. How do I structure and sequence learning experiences? How do I guide e-learners without imprisoning them? How do I shape navigation to implement particular instructional strategies or achieve specific learning goals?
Analyzing e-learners. What must I know about my learners before designing the course? What characteristics can spell triumph or doom for e-learning? How can I design for the specific needs of groups of e-learners?
Promoting collaboration. How do I help e-learners share their thoughts, inspirations, and feelings? Where do I use e-mail, chat, instant messaging, discussion forums, audio-conferencing, and video-conferencing? How do I ensure that online behavior is professional and conducive to learning?
Teaching in the virtual classroom. How do I design and deliver instructor-led e-learning? What forms of collaborative learning activities work? How do I design brainstorming sessions, role-playing activities, team-design activities, polling questions, and discussion activities?
Planning access and navigation. How do I accommodate just-in-time learners accustomed to the fluent navigation provided by the Web? How do I keep e-learners from getting lost in hyperspace? How do I design menus, maps, indexes, and search mechanisms?
Designing learning objects. What are learning objects? How do I design such self-contained, complete modules? How do I make objects that others will reuse in multiple courses, deploy in multiple projects, and tailor for specific e-learners?
Motivating e-learners. Why do e-learners drop out or fail to learn at their full potential? How do I get e-learners to spend the time and effort necessary to complete e-learning? How do I make learning engaging and fun? How do I convince e-learners to overlook shortcomings in my e-learning?
Designing the visual display. What should screens look like? How should I design icons, buttons, and other items displayed on the screen? How should I lay out the screen? Which colors should I use? Which fonts? What is the balance between aesthetics and functionality?
Saying it in pictures. How do I express complex ideas in a way befitting a visual medium such as e-learning? How do I translate words in to graphics? Which graphics are effective and which gratuitous? How do I edit graphics to ensure they work online?
Designing games and simulations. Where are online simulations and games the most effective way for people to learn? How do I design simple games that are quick and inexpensive to produce? How do I ensure that games teach rather than just entertain?

How will I learn?

This is a fast-paced, yet structured, workshop, heavy on examples and light on academic theory. It is brains-on rather than merely hands-on. Rather than operating a particular brand of software, you will engage concepts and procedures directly. You will examine and critique dozens of live real-world examples, view animated presentations of crucial concepts, discuss design approaches with fellow students, and practice applying your skills in realistic design activities.

Variants and customizations

We can adapt the basic workshop to better fit your specific needs:

Base major activities on your materials (+ $1000 USD).
Use your materials as examples throughout (Call for price).
Critique your current work (adds 1 day, $2000 USD).
Base workshop on a critique of your work (+ $4000 USD).
Redesign your current work (adds 1 day, $2000 USD).
Video-recording for replay by other members of your department (+ $4000 USD).
Follow-up Webinars (+ $1000 USD per 90-minute Webinar).
Hands-on computer exercises using laptop computers or a computer lab. (Call for pricing and requirements).

What else will I receive?

Besides the knowledge and skills you acquire, you will receive:

William Horton's newest, best-selling book, E-learning by Design.
Over 200 pages of handouts, notes, design forms, and job-aids.
Access to hundreds of live, online examples of design techniques.
Access to William Horton by e-mail or discussion group for follow up questions after the workshop.

Audiovisual requirements

To successfully present this workshop at your location, we will need the following:

Computer projector with 1024 x 768 NATIVE resolution . (Some projectors can display 1024 x 768, but only by stretching the output. These projectors will not work.)
Speaker and amplifier for computer sounds. Must be able to take output from the computer's stereo-mini socket.

It would be nice to also have high-speed Internet access for showing live examples. We will need to get through your routers and around your firewall.

And if you want to include hands-on activities:

Compute lab with computers running Windows 2000 or later and the authoring program of your choice.

Related resources

Here are some related resources you might find useful:

Book: E-learning by Design by William Horton
Presentation: Activating E-Learning
Knowledge bundle: Activating E-Learning

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