There are many words people use to help increase interest in their training design. Words such as “interactive” and “engaging” are thrown around so much in the training world that they seem to have lost their meaning.
Have you met an instructional designer that says, “I design engaging e-Learning,” but his/her product just results in nothing but a boring page-turner that puts you to sleep? I have. Plenty of times. There’s nothing more disappointing than to see an online training course that’s simply a glamorized PowerPoint presentation with scattered images, roll-overs here and there, and multiple-choice questions that are supposed to asses the reader’s knowledge after reading two hours of content and information.
I want to introduce a new word to the training community. Immersion.
Immersion is the feeling of being actively engulfed by a specific experience. People can be immersed by reading their favorite novel, or watching their favorite movie, or playing a video game, or by doing research. Immersion is not a passive experience. For immersion to happen, you must accept what is given to you, let go of the world around you, and realize all that matters is the experience at hand.
If your learners or students are immersed in the training that you have developed, you know you are doing your job as an instructional designer. Think back to every training course you have ever designed. Can you go through the entirety of your courses and say to yourself, “I was fully immersed in learning that information?”
Creating immersive training is not easy. On the other hand, it’s not terribly difficult either. The most challenging part about learning how to design immersive training is letting go of everything you have already learned about instructional design. Once you discover the world of immersive training, you will also discover motivated learners, increased learner competency, realistic business goals and objectives, easily acquired measurements, and a newfound passion for your profession.
This blog was created so that I can share my knowledge and experiences with designing immersive training. My vision is to help shape the standards of design practices throughout the training world. All I ask of you is to provide some feedback in the comments section of each blog entry, and perhaps share some of your knowledge and experiences as well. It’ll be a fantastic ride.
