The success of an eLearning project, or any training project, depends on multiple people coming together to work towards a common goal. While your project…
Tim SladeAugust 16, 2021
THE ELEARNING DESIGNER'S ACADEMY
Blog & Resources
Resources to help eLearning designers grow their skills.
LEARN MOREExplore by Topic
All Resources
When you’re nearing the end of development for an eLearning course, it’s easy to want to rush through the final review and quality assurance (QA)…
Tim SladeOctober 30, 2017
When you first start an eLearning project, there's a lot of information you must collect and expectations to establish. Much of this upfront work occurs…
Tim SladeAugust 14, 2021
If there's one thing I know to be true, it's that the eLearning and instructional design industry is in demand! Not only are organizations looking…
Tim SladeFebruary 17, 2021
As someone who designs and develops eLearning for a living, I always love discovering new and different ways it can be used to deliver learning…
Tim SladeAugust 22, 2019
If you've been working in the world of learning, instructional design, teaching, or eLearning for any amount of time, you've likely heard about the concept…
Tim SladeMarch 5, 2021
When you’re in the early stages of designing and developing an eLearning course, you may wonder whether or not you should spend the time drafting…
Tim SladeNovember 11, 2019
When you're managing an eLearning project, much of the effort is simply dedicated to keeping the project on track! While there's an unlimited number of…
Tim SladeJuly 31, 2021
If I were a betting man, I’d bet that managing eLearning review cycles with your subject matter experts has given you a headache on more…
Tim SladeJanuary 8, 2017
If you’ve been working in the eLearning industry for any amount of time, you know that we work in an industry that is continually evolving…
Tim SladeJuly 2, 2018
The success of an eLearning or instructional design project depends on many different variables. However, if I've learned anything over the years, it's that the…
Tim SladeAugust 5, 2021
What comes to mind when you think of “eLearning”? Do you imagine someone sitting behind a computer, clicking a Next button? Or maybe someone watching…
Tim SladeDecember 9, 2018
One of the most important lessons I learned when I first started designing and developing eLearning courses was the importance of building performance-based eLearning interactions.…
Tim SladeApril 29, 2019
When you're working to build your eLearning portfolio, you want to make sure it helps you put your "best foot forward." This means showcasing your…
Tim SladeSeptember 19, 2021
I’ll be 100% honest when I say that I struggle working with difficult subject matter experts. The fact is, I get frustrated when they want…
Tim SladeMay 12, 2019
Have you ever wondered whether or not you need a degree in eLearning or instructional design to be an eLearning designer or instructional designer? Well,…
Tim SladeApril 1, 2021
When designing and developing an eLearning course, it’s easy to stuff it with all of the required content and push it to your learners. However,…
Tim SladeJanuary 12, 2019
Although websites like LinkedIn, Monster, or Glassdoor might seem like obvious choices to find eLearning jobs, they aren’t always the best! These websites are often diluted with ads and…
Tim SladeMarch 18, 2017
When designing eLearning interactions, it’s easy to become overwhelmed trying to envision the actions the learner will take, how you’ll build them in your eLearning…
Tim SladeMarch 25, 2017
A good experience working with SMEs (subject-matter experts) can mean the difference between an effective versus an ineffective course; between a project that finishes on…
Tim SladeJuly 24, 2017
Bullet points in eLearning have a bad reputation. You might think they’re boring, ugly, or a sign of lazy design. No matter what your opinion…
Tim SladeMarch 10, 2016
I’ll be honest: I haven’t always been the biggest fan of using characters in eLearning. I used to think of them as meaningless and cheesy.…
Tim SladeMay 23, 2016
If you’ve ever created an eLearning course, you’ve experienced the challenge of chasing down your SMEs to get their feedback. All too often, SMEs will…
Tim SladeOctober 4, 2017
Selecting colors and creating custom eLearning color schemes is a struggle many eLearning designers face on a regular basis. In addition to selecting and using…
Tim SladeMarch 11, 2017
If you're looking to become an eLearning designer, whether you're a teacher looking to transition into eLearning or you're already an eLearning designer looking for a…
Tim SladeNovember 30, 2021
When you’re starting the design and development of an eLearning course, it’s usually a good idea to start by organizing your content and by drafting…
Tim SladeNovember 17, 2019
How often do you finish one eLearning project and move right on to the next, without evaluating the success of the last project? The truth…
Tim SladeJuly 16, 2017
In the past, I've shared my thoughts about various industry-recognized instructional design and development models, like ADDIE or SAM. However, the problem with most of these…
Tim SladeAugust 7, 2021
In the world of eLearning, click-to-reveal interactions are often viewed as having little or no value. And while it's true that they don't actually challenge…
Tim SladeJuly 1, 2021
Whether you’re looking to work for a large corporate organization or for yourself as a freelancer, your success depends on how well you market yourself…
Tim SladeFebruary 17, 2017
I made the transition into becoming a full-time freelance eLearning designer back in 2019, while I was working as the Director of Global Instructional Design…
Tim SladeAugust 18, 2019
As I’ve been working within the eLearning industry over the last 10 years or so, I’ve realized there are some questions about eLearning we should…
Tim SladeNovember 3, 2019
When you’re new to eLearning, the start of any project can seem chaotic. It’s easy to become overwhelmed trying to collect the information you need…
Tim SladeNovember 26, 2016
Whether you're an experienced eLearning designer, a teacher looking to leap eLearning, or an aspiring freelance eLearning designer, the most important thing is to have…
Tim SladeSeptember 9, 2021
When you’re in the early stages of designing and developing an eLearning course, it’s likely your subject matter experts will throw a boatload of information…
Tim SladeJune 1, 2019
If you're looking to become an eLearning or instructional designer, it requires you to be a guru of instructional design, a master of visual design,…
Tim SladeAugust 17, 2021
When you're starting any new training project, whether it's a single eLearning course or a large-scale training program, it's easy to become overwhelmed trying to…
Tim SladeAugust 12, 2021
In the world of instructional design, there are two industry-recognized instructional design models most people follow: ADDIE and SAM. And while each model has its…
Tim SladeMarch 24, 2021
Working with subject matter experts (SMEs) isn’t always the easiest part of developing an eLearning course. Subject matter experts can sometimes be demanding. And they…
Tim SladeOctober 22, 2016
Have you ever started an eLearning course, only to discover that you're forced to watch a navigation tutorial on how to adjust the volume and…
Tim SladeMarch 11, 2021
When managing your eLearning projects, it can be convenient and easy to manually create your project plans and development timelines using tools like Microsoft Word…
Tim SladeSeptember 21, 2021
As an eLearning designer, you’ve likely used photos in eLearning. Photos are a great way to reinforce your message or convey an emotion. Photos can…
Tim SladeApril 17, 2017
Whenever I’m at a conference, at work, or online, I often find myself interacting with folks with many misconceptions about eLearning. Usually, these misconceptions “show”…
Tim SladeMay 13, 2018
When you spend a lot of time creating an eLearning course, it's only natural that you'd want to ensure your learners get as much from…
Tim SladeMarch 18, 2021
Graphic design is one of those topics and skills that a lot of new (and experienced) eLearning designers struggle to master. However, I’ve always believed…
Tim SladeJuly 2, 2018
When starting a new eLearning project, it’s easy to jump right in and start designing the course. However, it’s important to take a step back…
Tim SladeOctober 15, 2017
When you're starting the design and development of an eLearning course, one of the biggest challenges people face (especially new eLearning designers) is taking a…
Tim SladeDecember 5, 2021
Before starting development on a new eLearning project, it’s important to make sure you’ve collected and analyzed all the information used to justify the creation…
Tim SladeJune 18, 2018
I spend a lot of time here on my blog, in my online courses, in my book, on my YouTube channel, and at conferences talking…
Tim SladeMay 18, 2018
If you've been attempting to land an eLearning or instructional design job or transition out of teaching, you've undoubtedly heard that you build an eLearning portfolio.…
Tim SladeApril 16, 2021
One of the most challenging aspects of the eLearning development process is when you have to sit down and write the first draft of your…
Tim SladeAugust 23, 2021
If you're a teacher looking to make the transition from teaching to eLearning design or instructional design, you're not alone! According to the Alliance for Excellent…
Tim SladeApril 9, 2021
Whenever I’m starting work on a new eLearning project, I always like to start my design process by creating a course outline and by drafting…
Tim SladeJune 16, 2019
When I first fell into the world of eLearning and instructional design, I had no clue what I was doing. I remember my very first…
Tim SladeJune 12, 2022
When you’re starting work on an eLearning project, it’s not always clear what information should and should not be included in your eLearning course. How…
Tim SladeDecember 2, 2019
When designing and developing an eLearning course, after you've collected and organized all your learning content, it can be challenging to leap straight into development.…
Tim SladeAugust 6, 2022
Building and developing a highly effective eLearning team isn’t easy. Whether you’re working with a team of new or experienced eLearning developers, it’s important that…
Tim SladeJuly 9, 2017
