Instructional designers play a key role in creating e-learning experiences. We at zipBoard are on a journey to understand the ever evolving role of instructional designers. So, after interviewing Keith W. O’Neal and Connie Malamed, we had a discussion with Anna Sabramowicz to know more about the instructional design world.

Anna Sabramowicz

Anna Sabramowicz, is an instructional designer and co-founder at Elearner Engaged,a strategy and design consultancy.Also Anna created skillagents acadmey,an online course and community, developed to help you create world class learning experiences.In her design career she has worked with big players like adidas Group, ABB Group, Sony, Rubbermaid and Michelin as e-learning strategist. Our discussion focuses : her journey, technologies used and key parameters for interactive course design.

Read on to know more about her design world.

How did you start your journey as an instructional designer? Any advice for the young instructional designers?

Anna “I started with a pursuit of an Educational Degree.I wanted to be an English and Science Teacher. My life took me on a different path and I got into the world of corporate training. Teaching adults is very different than teaching schoolchildren. Teaching in the corporate world is a different challenge. Adults have different expectations, they actually come in with much more of them. How success is measured is in some ways different too. When you work for a company success is measured in revenue generated through better execution, through successful performance as well as the motivation level someone has, after they leave your training session.”

How instructional design has evolved with time ? How does Skillagents fit into that?

Anna “Instructional design is a fairly new and corporate term. It is a profession that is still establishing its protocols and communities of practice. As this professional and skillset gets refined and continues to do so rapidly… a lot of discussion is also taking place as to what someone, who is an instructional designer is supposed to bring to a learning and development team. The demands to deliver products that will help employees upskill, or find the resources they need, when they need them; makes for a varied skillset.

Skillagents serves as an audit for someone who is getting started in the profession and wants to establish a base of knowledge and then hopefully find something that thoroughly fascinates them and they can delve into further (and eventually niche).”

Skillagents : Learn how to produce active learning

How do you map out learning needs of your learners?

Anna “By connecting their actions to the business performance. The more targeted I can be in finding out how a specific action can positively impact performance and business results (and convey that to both the business and the learner) — the more fine tuned I can make the performance and learning support product.”

What according to you are the key parameters for an interactive course?

Anna “In my world interactivity has everything to do with context.Can someone relate to the learning challenge?Do they find the learning worthwhile?Have I helped them imagine themselves in the situations where they can apply these strategies or thinking?

If this component, the context part, is fully satisfied… interactivity takes care of itself. All of the rest (visual design, colours, sounds, multimedia etc) is icing on the cake.”

e-Learning Scenario Formula : don’t design from scratch!

Share your experience at Elearner Engaged?

Anna “I work with my partner and husband Ryan. His background is in web design and usability and really complemented my goals of infusing my elearning projects with the kinds of thinking that has made the web what it is today.

You see, elearning design is still like the wild west.. you can do what you want, there are no rules, no standards… great for us, terrible for learners.

There are some expected standards when you’re dealing with accessibility issues, but on the overall, it’s still a free-for-all.

Ryan has been able to infuse our projects with the kind of pragmatic design thinking that goes into good web design.That, combined with my passion for context-centered design has served us well.”

Brokencoworker.com — the illustrated version

How do you collaborate with your team and clients?

Anna “We use Basecamp for most of our communications… plus, nothing beats a good ol’ phone or Skype conversation.”

How do you design courses for different devices?

Anna “Ryan and I have a term for this: “multichannel” learning. It really comes down to why someone would be motivated to access learning on a phone or a tablet or a desktop.

For example, if a person is accessing information on a phone it might be that they are in a commute and are wanting to use their time constructively or to catch up on some new info or skill…well then, the information should not be in a flash module, it might be in a podcast — a story or a well written and beautifully narrated case study that teaches them something. But this is one part of the learning journey.

The next day at work (and remember, they’ve had some time to internalize the story they listened to, on their commute) if they are at their desktop, they might have the space and time to participate in something very immersive, such as an interactive video module. Maybe a first person scenario experience that now asks them to put themselves in the role of the decision maker — where they can use a physical resource they have on hand (like a checklist) to make decisions in a critical situation and connect their on the job resources to “simulated” situations.”

What technology and tools do you prefer while creating a course?

Anna “The goal drives the technology selection.If I can create a course that will help meet the business need and it can be administered as a set of sequenced emails — I do that. Or if I can create a powerful learning activity using only a set of questions administered using Google forms — I’d use that.

If a scenario interaction is necessary to put the learner in a safe environment where they can make mistakes — I’d use development software like Articulate Storyline.

We always work to see what minimum viable product will help us achieve the results… so we can spend our energy and money on multiple events and channels that will help the learner upskill over time, instead of creating a one- off learning event.”

How do you think instructional design is different from web design?

Anna “It depends on which realm of “web design” you come from — but in many respects the differences can be huge.

An Instructional designer is concerned with the psychology of learning, what makes someone remember, integrate and apply their new knowledge and skills.

We are obsessed with questions like how much information is too much, what motivates someone to learn? How can we help someone learn better? How can we use the least amount of someone’s time to give them the most amount of value?

Instructional design is focused on the path someone takes to get from novice to mastery.

While a web designer might be focused on the path someone takes to get from the landing page to a product purchase.”

What blogs or books do you read for inspiration and daily trends?

Anna “

I advise that instructional designers stay away from daily trends…

instead, curate several resources to come to your mailbox (things that make you better at your craft). Too much distraction makes one a “master of none” — getting good at something takes dogged determination and focus.

Visit Cathy Moore’s blog — she is one of the most respected and trusted instructional design voices in our community.Read books like Make it Stick to learn about what helps people learn better.My YouTube channel has several videos that deep dive into what it takes to get good at instructional design, plus case studies of my past projects.”

To know more about Anna’s e-learning strategies and thoughts follow her writings here.