workspace on the run

Six elements of effective e-learning design

1. Activity - tasks for students to undertake that provide an experience likely to lead them to the desired new understanding.
2. Scenario - reason or motivation to undertake an educational activity if the learning is to be memorable and considered valuable.
3. Feedback - provision for feedback that amplifies the learning from the experience, and enables students to increase their level of skill and knowledge.
4. Delivery - educational design relies on appropriate delivery to reach its full potential (there is often a design tension between the practicalities of electronic production or delivery on the one hand (such as data transfer rates, file size, security, and cost) and the requirements of the learning activities on the other (for example, timely interaction, rich media content, and a desire for social communication and communal distribution).
5. Context - contextual considerations include the institutional objectives of the e-learning program, the role and skills of any instructor, longevity of the resources, and cultural sensitivities. The connection between context and delivery methods is highlighted by Silverman and Casazza (2000), who note that “different systems of communication seem to be at the heart of many of the cultural and ethnic differences that affect the learning environment” (p. 42).
6. Impact - can be assessed from a number of perspectives, including the way that it will affect the learner, the ramifications that it will have for the learning (and broader) community into which it will be implemented, and the environmental influence of its development and use.

Brown, A., R. and Voltz, D., B. 2005. Elements of Effective e-Learning Design. IRRODL.
Available online http://www.irrodl.org/index.php/irrodl/article/view/217/300

Also noted in the text - Silverman, S. L., and Casazza, M. E. (2000). Learning and Development: Making connections to enhance teaching. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.