Alvaro G. Casanova’s Post

They say, "don't judge a book by its cover". But I literally picked up this book because of its cover (and title). Later, on googling it, discovered that "it was longlisted for the Best Designed Commercial Fiction Cover at the 2023 Australian Publishers' Association Book Design Awards for Jessica Cruickshank's design". (Clearly, I have an eye for good design ;)) Anyway, it reminded me how important "design" is. Not just learning design, but design in general, and particularly graphics/visual design. Certain colours and fonts do catch your eye. They speak to you in a certain way. Apart from the role they play in "branding", they are particularly important in the current landscape, where digital fatigue is no longer a fancy new word being thrown around. With most of our learning coming from online resources (e-learning courses, help or knowledgebase articles, videos, user guides etc.), our eyes are getting drier and our minds overloaded. Being mindful of a user's/learner's digital fatigue and incorporating design elements that are deemed soothing (or, at the least, not worsening the exhaustion) are critical in the development of learning experiences. The modern, sophisticated authoring tools have templates, themes, content/image libraries, which enable instructional designers to take on the visual design aspects too. While this is empowering, it is added responsibility. Not all instructional designers are trained in graphics design. But it is assumed that we will choose the look-and-feel wisely. And maybe we instinctively do! But it helps to be conscious of this added responsibility and intentional in our self-development, when it comes to these aspects of the learner experience. P.S. I have just started reading this book and am enjoying it so far (will make a good movie or limited series, I think). Can see why it won the 2023 Miles Franklin Award! #instructionaldesign #learning #learningdesign

𝐖𝐞’𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐀𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐥! Imagine standing in front of a blank canvas, ready to create something amazing. As Instructional Designers, that’s exactly what we do! We take ideas and turn them into exciting learning experiences that spark curiosity and inspire growth. Every course we design is a canvas where we blend colours of creativity, logic, and innovation. We take the raw materials of knowledge and skilfully transform them into engaging, interactive journeys. But what truly sets us apart? It’s our ability to see beyond the surface and understand the audience—just like an artist captures the essence of their subject. 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞’𝐬 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐰𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐥: 🖌️ 𝑼𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑨𝒖𝒅𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆: We don’t just create for everyone; we create for someone. We delve into the minds of our learners, understanding their needs, challenges, and aspirations. It’s about empathy—knowing how to connect the dots. 🖌️ 𝑫𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝑰𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒕: Every element we incorporate has a purpose, whether it’s a gamified module that sparks excitement or a video that brings concepts to life. Just like an artist chooses colours carefully, we select methods and media that resonate. 🖌️ 𝑰𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝑴𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒑𝒊𝒆𝒄𝒆𝒔: Great art is often a work in progress! Just as artists refine their work through sketches and drafts, we embrace feedback and iteration. We continuously evolve our designs to ensure they are impactful and effective. 🖌️ 𝑪𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑳𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑰𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔: Our ultimate goal is to evoke emotion and inspire action. Whether it’s a learner discovering a new skill or an employee mastering a crucial task, we leave our mark on their journey. 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐚 𝐂𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐎𝐑; 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐧 𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐈𝐒𝐓 𝐢𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐥, 𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐥𝐞𝐝𝐠𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠. So, fellow creators, let’s celebrate our craft! Every time you design a course, remember you’re not just building a program; you’re creating a masterpiece. What masterpiece are you working on right now? I’d love to hear your thoughts! Want to join me on this colourful journey? Follow me (Priya Raj Malhotra) for more insights and creative tips in instructional design! Your front-row seat to creativity is just a click away! #InstructionalDesign #CreativeLearning #EdTech #ArtOfLearning #DesignYourFuture

🎨 Visual design is one of my passions and an essential skill for those who work in digital learning. Fun fact: this skill helped me kick off my career in Instructional Design. How the learning materials look is pivotal in building an effective learning experience. Colors, fonts, images, negative space – all of this can help the learner focus on the material simplifying its understanding, or become an obstacle towards new knowledge. In this post, I'm uncovering five main aspects to consider when working on the visual design of your course ⤵ #instructionaldesign #digitallearning #learninganddevelopment #elearning #visualdesign #lxdesign

Why are design skills essential for teachers? Design skills are important for teachers because they support the creation of engaging, appealing, and effective learning materials. Good design can enhance student understanding, memory, and motivation. #EdTech #TeachingSkills Trending Design Tools for Teachers: Canva: Perfect for creating visual presentations, artworks, and infographics. Its user-friendly foundations make it accessible for all skill levels. #Canva #EdTech Google Slides: Great for collective presentations and interactive teaching. #GoogleSlides #EdTech Padlet: Best for creating interactive boards and shared projects. #Padlet #EdTech My Favorite Design Tool: I love Canva for its resourcefulness and ease of use. It offers a large selection of templates and design media that can help teachers create proficient-quality materials quickly. Plus, it's free! #Canva #EdTech #TeachingTools #EdTech #TeachingInnovation

Do you want to push your course design further? If you’re a learning designer, or a learning professional who wears many hats, including designing eLearning for your organization, this on-demand workshop is for you. Watch as two of Maestro’s interactive designers bring an eLearning course to life in real-time, transforming canned, cookie-cutter design elements into an elevated, on-brand, visually beautiful learning experience. What you’ll learn: - The principles of strategic design and how good design is about much more than a pleasing aesthetic - Five key aspects of design that will elevate your Rise courses: brand direction, information hierarchy, bite-sized content, seamless transitions, and striking visuals - Practical tips and examples for improving these five areas in your own Rise courses Hit the link in the comments to watch the webinar on-demand and for free right now! #ArticulateRise #eLearning #TrainingandDevelopment #CorporateTraining #LearningandDevelopment

Take all advice on LinkedIn with a pinch of salt. I often post on here with hints, tips and ideas for better learning design and instructional design. But remember, every thing I'm talking about is contextual. Take my Restful Refreshments project... When developing learning, 'decorative' images are usually a big no no. I see plenty of other posts on here advising others to only use images if they have a direct link to the learning, which I do agree with. But let's be real, this project is all decorative images. So does that make me a hypocrite? No. Because in this instance the decorative imagery is a key component of the overall visual design of the course. Now this aesthetic may not be everyone's cup of tea (see what I did there?), but if I had taken this advice at face value, then it would mean stripping this course of all its illustrations. Heck this Restful Refreshments course ignores quite a few of the traditional visual or learning design principles. I mean it is a bit like your nan's living room, it's cluttered and overly decorative, but it kind of works right? What I'm saying is that it doesn't have to be an all or nothing approach. You can pick and choose what feels right for you and the project you are working on. (not including accessibility of course) So before you go and delete all your images, re-configure your text, or change your UI, just pause and ask yourself if this would make your learning better, or whether you're just doing it because someone else has said to. Use theories, models and principles as your guide, but always consider the context. #learningdesign #visualdesign #elearning #digitallearning

Well, as someone who generally doesn’t care what something looks like, as long as it does the job, I’ve just learned a LOT from this morning’s webinar by Omniplex Learning Visual design influences not only our first impressions of online learning content, but also our ability to engage with it and how well we retain the information we learn. It was encouraging to be told that visual design is a skill that we can all learn, if we train our designer’s eye and look out for good examples of Alignment, Proportion, Repetition, Emphasis, Contrast, Movement and White Space. Excellent stuff! #visualdesignforlearning

Do you want to push your course design further? If you’re a learning designer, or a learning professional who wears many hats, including designing eLearning for your organization, this on-demand workshop is for you. Watch as two of Maestro’s interactive designers bring an eLearning course to life in real-time, transforming canned, cookie-cutter design elements into an elevated, on-brand, visually beautiful learning experience. What you’ll learn: - The principles of strategic design and how good design is about much more than a pleasing aesthetic - Five key aspects of design that will elevate your Rise courses: brand direction, information hierarchy, bite-sized content, seamless transitions, and striking visuals - Practical tips and examples for improving these five areas in your own Rise courses Hit the link in the comments to watch the webinar on-demand and for free right now! #ArticulateRise #eLearning #TrainingandDevelopment #CorporateTraining #LearningandDevelopment

Did you know? 🧠 Our brain processes images 60,000 times faster than text! 🎨 90% of the information sent to our brain is visual (Eisenberg, 2014). 🔍 75% of all information we process comes from visual communication (Sharma, Bhosle, & Chaudhary, 2012). Visual design isn’t just a bonus—it’s the secret to grabbing attention and keeping learners hooked! 🚀 And like every great skill, it takes practice to stay sharp. Join myself and Leena Randhawa on 6th November for a 45-minute webinar where we’ll walk through the essentials of visual design and share practical tips to enhance your content. 💡 Whether you’re confident or curious, this session is the perfect chance to level up your skills and make learning truly unforgettable! Register here: https://lnkd.in/e3QCR3vE #visualdesign #visualdesigninlearning #digitallearning #elearning Omniplex Learning

Working as an Instructional Designer has taught me one thing: designing isn’t easy. It never was… At first, I thought designing was quite straightforward—turning ideas into visual or functional reality. But it’s far from simple. 👉Balancing aesthetics and functionality is like juggling flaming torches while riding a unicycle. I had to first learn the principles of art, color theory, user experience, and stay updated with the latest trends. 👉Once that was achieved, I had to spend more time diving into the minds of the target audience, figuring out how to deliver the content effectively. 👉Then I realized designing involves drafts, revisions, and more drafts. It’s like baking a cake, except the client keeps changing the recipe. Each iteration meant refining my work to meet project goals. 👉While designing, collaboration is key, whether it’s with clients, trainers, or developers. It’s like herding cats, but those cats have strong opinions on font choices and color schemes. Despite these challenges, seeing learners engage with and appreciate the work makes it all worthwhile. Every positive evaluation feels like a “Mission Passed”, and that’s all an Instructional Designer desires, don’t they? #instructionaldesign #graphicdesign #userexperience #learning #learninganddevelopment