You're starting a career in Digital Learning. What are the most important things to know?

Digitized Content ≠ Online Education “For technology to truly have an impact on student learning, we have to do more than simply digitize what we have always done.” -Graham et al. 2019 Online Education is NOT: - digitized pdfs - digitized lecture notes - digitized curriculum content - digitized quizzes - digitized worksheets - digitized video demonstrations Online education has impact when it applies the affordances of technology for intentional course designs based on technology integration frameworks. Don't just digitize, innovate!!

The first thing in any learning, digital or otherwise, is to know who you are creating the learning for. The more you know about your audience, the more you can direct the learning to their needs.

In my experience, the best skill is curiosity. The skills will continue to add up regardless of experience. Always be open to new skills. Read. In the industry you are serving or in a sector that catches your eye, read articles, books, manuals, etc. Those of us who did not grow up in this digital era have particular perspectives, and with the advent of Machine Learning, we are seeing the rise of a new wave of learning with Artificial Intelligence; learning the skills and language in those areas also fall under Digital Learning. You can use your education training to organize and assess the usefulness and capabilities of current learning environments and keep learners moving forward. Anything you learn, teach.

Understanding your audience is incredibly important when drafting content for digital learning. Begin by brainstorming who your learners are, involving subject matter experts in one-on-one conversations to capture insights that might not be immediately apparent. Additionally, reviewing previous data or performing an analysis on past information can offer significant clues into what content needs to be developed. This approach ensures your material is tailored and relevant to your audience's needs.

It's crucial to understand the end-user of any technology, including digital learners. A surface overview of the learner (end-user) is insufficient. You'll want to dig deeply into who needs your learning solution, and who will most benefit from what you're offering. Be sure to spend adequate time on research, on focus groups, and (consented) observational activities and interviews. As always, monitor your programs and adjust as needed for optimal user experience (Ux) and knowledge retention.

Knowledge and know-how can come from anywhere. Never assume by someone's title that they won't be able to help you build a digital learning program. Education is a cross-functional effort requiring a lot of different kinds of people with different backgrounds and roles. You will be surprised how people can and will offer to collaborate, so long as you make the goals of the learning program clear and keep an open mind.

When starting out in digital learning, play around with tools that have been around for a while, that a lot of people and organizations use, but also research and experiment with new tools and have a source of information for new developments.

The process of knowing one's tools in ID is an ongoing process. There's a good chance that when we wake up tomorrow morning, there's some new innovation on offer. I do think we need to learn to select wisely and pace ourselves, to avoid chasing our tails in a never-ending game of tag (i.e. constantly trying to learn the latest thing) - the true value of tools emerges over time, so some observing from the sidelines to see if the new tools on the block are likely to stick around probably isn't a bad idea.

Understanding the regulations and standards that govern your industry and topic, as well as your learning delivery methods, is crucial for success. Find credible resources and read the regulations (entirely). You'd hate to miss something seemingly small, but critical for compliance.

Make sure you know about accessibility standards and your responsibilities under them. This can include knowing how to add alt-text to images, suitable fonts and colours, readability, functionality of your layout (is it intuitive to read in an order that makes sense, where are your eyes drawn to first?), colour contrast, captions and subtitles, focus order, and how your content is viewed and used by people with disabilities, including hidden disabilities. Also consider your writing style - does your content need to be academic or more conversational and relaxed?

Consider the goals and objectives of your activity first, NOT the technology. What students need to know, do and feel will inform the choice of method and technology that you use.

I would start with familiarising yourself the methods surrounding the audience you have. From there, branch out. For example, gamification is a great method in the digital learning world, however the real world application of gamification varies widely depending on the user.

The methods and strategies you adopt will be informed by the learning objectives, the types of learners you're designing for, the general context, the time frame, and many other factors, not least of which is the budget. While the world is your oyster in terms of *potential* strategies, the budget is going to be a big influence on final decisions. And while, say, a learning solution which is one long, rollicking, gamified adventure might be the ideal path to take, you have to be ready to manage your own expectations along with the clients', and find the best approaches which are also doable.

Too often, an Instructional Designer or L&D Learning Program Leader will use 'rapidly accessible' sources instead of 'most reliable' sources. It's important to investigate the trust ratings and credibility of your sources and their websites; to seek information from a variety of reputable sources; and assess the currency of their website data. Navigating instructional design and digital learning delivery can be challenging when dealing with SMEs who bring diverse & strongly held opinions to the table. Even within the same industry, three different SMEs may hold wildly varying opinions based on their experiences. This is one of the challenges an instructional designer faces when using multiple SMEs on a digital learning delivery project.

Knowing and building your network has many advantages, one of which is having access to the cutting edge of digital learning developments. Develop relationships that you can trust, find people who share interesting articles and possess unique perspectives.

A wide and deep industry network is imperative for a digital learning expert. That's because each Subject Matter Expert (SME) will offer a unique perspective on the learning topic, and some of your SMEs may not be available when you have an important question. I have nurtured my professional networks for years and am fortunate to have a solid network in my fields of learning design and education delivery. This makes delivering a Learning & Development program (training program) or change management project far more efficient than if I didn't have access to such an expansive and knowledgeable network.

Sem dúvida estabelecer uma rede de contatos na área de trabalho é fundamental. Pode ajudá-lo em parcerias de trabalho, aprendizagens e trocas valiosas. No campo do designer instrucional no Brasil há alguns grupos onde acontecem trocas intensas e comunidades de aprendizagem, um deles liderado pela @Elis Silva é um dos mais ativos e ricos. No espaço de trabalho formal, por sua vez, você pode criar um grupo no Whatsapp, por exemplo, no caso de trabalho híbrido, com os seus colegas para trocas de ideias, tirar dúvidas e ter uma comunicação mais rápida. Na minha experiência este recurso tem auxiliado muito para o crescimento profissional.

Understand that you will likely know more than those around you about the current digital landscape and the nuanced issues we face as facilitators of 21st century learning. Consider neither underscoring nor broadcasting this knowledge, but instead establishing a baseline of curiosity when communicating with stakeholders. Most collaborators lean toward spending ample time unpacking the problem - and you may find this trite or even boring - but the provision of this context is vital to the development of realistic solutions. Consider listening and absorbing before offering suggestions on moving forward; when consulting, plan an initial meeting that incorporates this exposition, then plan to reconvene after taking a bit of time to absorb.

Expect change. Stay abreast of changes in the sector you're delivering digital learning experiences in (or for), and read extensively. Keep your multi-media skills up-to-date to enrich the learning experience and improve the training resources.

As one who has been heavily involved in publishing over 100 educational software packages in 20 years, programmers, web designers, etc. are not the best for creating instruction and teachers are not the best in utilizing those tools. It is a collaborative effort related to that of making a movie. You need the producer, director, scriptwriters, etc. working together and not against each other. Casting is so important in getting the right developers for the script to be made.