Determining the cost of a custom e-Learning course
Calculator for pricing custom e-learning based on a number of factors (graphics and multimedia, interactivity, instructional design)
Question on SCORM licensing | LinkedIn
This isn't really about SCORM, but a question on pricing e-learning courses for perpetual licenses rather than annual per user fees
Most perpetual license deals I've seen in the eLearning space are usually priced at 3.5x the annual user price plus another 10-15% of the contract value for course maintenance and support.
Those Who Do, Can’t Teach: Why SMEs Make Bad Instructors
Example of why experts often can't teach well (or write good courses without an ID) based on research of NICU nurses who knew how to recognize infections but were such experts that their knowledge had become automatic and intuitive for them.
<p>When you’re a domain expert in your field, it’s difficult to step back and remember what it was like to be a beginner. Once we have knowledge, it’s very hard to remember what life was like without it.</p>
<p>Instead of placing the burden of training on a subject-matter expert, it’s often more effective to establish a collaboration between subject-matter experts and trainers who are experts in breaking down information, recognizing the critical elements, and putting it back together in a way that’s digestible for people who aren’t experts. </p>
Your LMS Works, but is it Working for You? - Part I » Capterra Blog
Requirements gathering for LMSs. This is a 3 part series, starting with evaluating your current LMS to see how well it's really working.
9 Cheap Alternatives to Moodle for Small Businesses » Capterra Blog
LMS options besides Moodle if you don't want DIY, including pricing for each so you don't have to hunt for those figures. Totara is a flavor of Moodle from Kineo. Other options included in the list: CSB Learning, DigitalChalk, Docebo, eFront, Feathercap, Inquisiq R3, Latitude Learning, and Litmos.
8 Free Applications To Record Your Computer Screen | inspirationfeed.com
Multiple free options for screen recording. This is mostly about making videos for YouTube or similar sites, but these could be used for quick tutorials and demos in e-learning. I'm familiar with Screenr, Jing, and CamStudio, but not BSRSoft, XVidCap, EZVid, BB FlashBack Express, or Rylstim.
Free eLearning Development Calculator
Calculate your time to complete development in Captivate. The calculator is a free PDF download, but it requires registration.
Chronic Disease Management Population Management
pyramid graphic on chronic disease management: population management. Marked as public domain, but need to verify
From Intervention to Prevention: Demystifying Population Health Management
Overview of pop management with graphic
Drinking Too Much? Don't Count On Your Doctor To Ask : Shots - Health News : NPR
includes links to some brief interventions
IDTopedia™
Glossary of instructional design and technology terms
Levels of Interactivity in eLearning: Which one do you need?
Definitions of 4 levels of interactivity for e-learning. This doesn't explain when you'd use each type, but it might help describe the differences when working with a client.
The Top 39 eLearning Resources » Capterra Blog
Blogs, publications, associations, events/conferences, and tools for e-learning
eLearning Cyclops: Getting Started in eLearning
Jeff Goldman links to a free ebook on How to Get Started in eLearning, plus a few comments on getting into the field and links to training.
Free Download — Useful Legal Documents For Designers (PDF/DOC) | Smashing Magazine
Free sample contracts and legal documents for web and graphic designers. These could be adopted for instructional designers and e-learning developers.
8 Things You Should Include In Your Terms of Service Agreement
Contract elements for freelance designers. This is more for graphic/web designers, but it's all relevant to instructional designers too. The suggested interim charge cap is way too low for e-learning projects, but the principle is valid.
Freelance Heroes - E-Learning Heroes
Discussion for Articulate freelancers with lots of shared tips and resources. Questions for potential clients, things to include in a terms of service agreement, when and how to say no to clients, managing risk, etc.
Cometdocs
Online tool for converting PDF files to Word, Excel, PPT, etc. It does a good job of making text editable, but converts SmartArt as static graphics. It would work for small text edits in a presentation where you don't have the original PPT file, but if you had a lot of SmartArt to rebuild it wouldn't save much time. It might work better for Excel spreadsheets than the PPT I tested.
Optimal Video Length for Student Engagement | edX
In edX courses, about 6 minutes is the maximum length students will watch. In traditional online graduate courses for credit, the length could be longer, but this is a good reminder to keep things short.
The optimal video length is 6 minutes or shorter -- students watched most of the way through these short videos. In fact, the average engagement time of any video maxes out at 6 minutes, regardless of its length. And engagement times decrease as videos lengthen: For instance, on average students spent around 3 minutes on videos that are longer than 12 minutes, which means that they engaged with less than a quarter of the content.
5 Cost drivers of E-learning projects
The answer to "how much does a course cost" is "it depends." Here's 5 factors affecting pricing for e-learning projects: project management, instructional design, multimedia development, interactivity, and SME availability.
Section 508 Authoring Tool: CourseAvenue
Tool for creating Section 508-compliant e-learning. More accessibility features here than the standard rapid development tools.
Designers for Learning | matching nonprofits with instructional design students in service-learning
ID students can volunteer their services for nonprofits and gain valuable experience
8 Effective Scenario Ideas for Instructional Designers - eLearning Brothers | eLearning Brothers
Visual structures and story structures for scenario-based learning
Thoughts on pricing — Stuff & Nonsense, And All That Malarkey
An interesting model for freelance pricing. Instead of doing either fixed price or hourly/daily rates, he bills on weekly rate. For small projects with a clear scope, fixed price works fine, but this method might work better for complex projects with fluid requirements.
Educational Jargon Generator
Automatically generate educational jargon like "We will triangulate visionary presentations in data-driven schools."
Boring to Brilliant: 5 Tips to Convert Your E-Learning to a Story-based Approach
Diane Senffner on using storytelling for learning
The Science of Storytelling: Why Telling a Story is the Most Powerful Way to Activate Our Brains
Hearing stories activates areas of our brains as if we were experiencing the elements of the story ourselves, not just language processing areas.
11 iGoogle Alternatives for Teachers
I've been using iGoogle as my home page. igHome looks like a good alternative with a good gadget selection, but there are several other choices here to check out.
Make your Moodle courses load faster without fiddling with the server | I Teach With Moodle | Sharing good practice using Moodle in and out of the classroom
Tips on making courses load faster in Moodle
The Open Source eLearning Blog: Why Your Moodle Site is Slow: Five Simple Settings
Settings to change to improve the speed of a Moodle site