Designing Digitally
07/17/2017
As technology evolves and changes, so does elearning. Elearning has become an acceptable and desirable mode of educating. Therefore, custom elearning development is rising to the forefront.
The advantages of game-based learning are well-known. The immediacy of feedback, the cooperative and active learning aspects, and the greater level of engagement are a few of the benefits that are repeatedly mentioned in terms of elearning.
Custom elearning development is a way to delve a little bit deeper within the genre. Just as it sounds, custom elearning programs are designed with the goals and learning objectives for a specific company in mind. It narrows the range of topics and specializes the learning to fit within the parameters of certain key skills.
There are three main areas of development that should be the focus when developing a custom elearning program. These are cognitive, emotional, and social. Let’s take a more in-depth look at each of them.
Cognitive. The element of challenge is a big component in cognitive growth. Custom elearning development allows an individualized approach to education. Each learner can move through the program at their own pace, focusing on the key elements they need. In the corporate environment, this plays out in the learner needing to successfully complete one skill level before they can move on to the next challenge. Learners have to mentally engage with the game and try to arrive at a solution. This often requires approaching a problem from different angles until they figure out the best method.
Emotional. A player can fluctuate through a whole range of emotions in the course of a game. There’s excitement, apprehension, disappointment, and sometimes even anger. Game-based learning allows learners to discover how to deal with failure in a risk-free environment. They learn to look at defeat as an impetus to keep trying, to try harder, and to learn from their mistakes. This is an important skill for anyone in a corporate environment to hone. Elearning also allows the learner the chance to take risks, knowing that failure is a stepping-stone to learning.
Social. Custom elearning development has a unique way of engaging the social development of employees going through a training program. In any workplace, it’s imperative to have good relationships with coworkers. Custom games can be designed to replicate the types of interactions that an employee would have with peers. Knowing how to navigate interpersonal communication on a professional level is a big part of being successful in a job. Customers and clients very quickly recognize a person who isn’t pleasant to work with. These skills may not seem as important as the actual job function, but they are vitally important. A company’s reputation can rest to some degree on the employees representing them.
Games are enjoyable. They promote engagement and motivation on the part of the learner. Custom elearning development takes this deeper, delving into the cognitive, emotional, and social aspects of the learning process, resulting in workers who are prepared, skilled, and ready to take on the challenges of their positions.
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