10 Practical Ways to Make Dull E-Learning Topics Dynamic and Interesting
There are some training and e-learning topics that are simply dull. In many of these situations, the objective is just to get through them while ensuring learners have access to the required information. Many compliance topics are good examples.
However, just because the topic is dull doesn’t mean the e-learning course you create has to be dull, too. Here are our 10 tips for making dull e-learning topics more interesting, dynamic, and (dare we say it) fun.
Answer the “What’s in it for me” Question
You will lose learners even before they start an e-learning course if they don’t understand why the training is important to them. Will the training help them do their job? Will it help them progress their career? Will the training help in other areas?
These are the sorts of questions learners ask in their minds when they are instructed to complete training. So, make sure you answer the “what’s in it for me” question head-on.
Get Learners Hooked from the Start
In the following tips, you will find content options and methods that you can use to enhance dull topics, making them more interesting. Don’t delay too long in using these techniques, however.
For example, it is probably better to include your most engaging content element towards the start of the e-learning course rather than towards the end. After all, if you wait too long, it could be too late as learners might already have switched off.
Make the Content Human
Making the content of your e-learning course more human and relatable is another good way to enhance an otherwise dull e-learning topic.
An example could be training on an aspect of employment legislation. These sorts of topics can be very dry, but they become much more interesting and relatable when you move away from stats and legislative jargon to instead talk about real people, events, or incidents. Giving context can also help make a range of different training topics more interesting.
Use as Many Active Learning Elements as Possible
Reading text in an e-learning course can become boring, even when the topic is interesting. This particularly applies if there is a lot of text or the text is presented in large chunks.
Even watching videos can become a bit dull. The reason is that content like this requires minimal participation from the learner. Instead of being actively involved, all you are asking them to do is to take in the information.
So, you should replace text and other content that requires minimal learner participation with active content, i.e., content that requires learner participation. One way of doing this is coming up in the next point.
Use Branching Scenarios
Branching scenarios require full engagement by the learner. They are a highly effective active learning tool that teaches by doing. The result is that even dull topics become engaging.
Make a Connection by Telling a Story
Stories can also be very powerful as a tool to spice up dull e-learning topics, making them more interesting.
An example is health and safety training. Instead of giving stats that include massive numbers – numbers that can feel distant and often meaningless to learners – you should drill the stats down to a specific story.
So, instead of just giving stats on the numbers of people who suffer a particular injury at work, give this information but then also describe the story of an injured person from Saudi Arabia or the UAE, explaining how the injury happened and how it affected them.
Be Concise
One of the best things you can do when creating an e-learning course on a dull and uninteresting topic is to keep it as short as possible. You still need to include all the necessary content but keep everything concise to ensure it is no longer than it needs to be.
Use Powerful Visuals
Powerful visuals can also have a significant impact on making e-learning courses more interesting and engaging. So, instead of using images and other visuals to dress-up the screens on your e-learning course, make them meaningful.
This could be using an infographic instead of text, an animated video instead of a person explaining to camera, or real photos that have relevance rather than bland stock images.
Add Gamification Elements
Gamification elements are another way to make e-learning more fun. As a result, they can be used to enhance dull topics. Examples of gamification elements that you can use in your e-learning courses include badges, achievements, leader boards, etc.
Analyse, Improve, Repeat
Analysing the performance of your e-learning course is also important. The objective is to identify parts that are not clicking with learners, i.e., the parts of the course where learners lose interest.
When you know the problem screens or sections, you can make improvements to ensure they become more interesting and engaging.
Enhancing Dull E-Learning Topics
As you can see from the above, there are plenty of ways to make dull e-learning topics more enjoyable, dynamic, and interesting.
Some of them will require more work than others, and not all will have the same level of effectiveness, but this list shows that it is possible.As it is possible, it is definitely something you should do as it will deliver better results for the individual course you are working on as well as your overall training and e-learning strategy.
