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Remember the old distinction between “nice to know” and
“need to know.” Adult learners will only be attentive to
self-paced instruction if the content is relevant to them and if
they see it as critical to their mastery of the desired skill.
Good designers, like good authors, know what material needs
careful elaboration and what material can be made available
as an additional resource.
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Article Content Guidelines
Successful adult learning experiences are relevant and critical. As skilled instructional designers
developing course content, we should continually ask ourselves: What types of information and knowledge
will the learner need to comprehend a concept and later to perform a certain task or skill?
We recommend the following specific content guidelines when creating instructional articles:
- Each instructional article must support the learning objectives/goals of the course.
- Get the learner’s attention immediately by clearly making the topic relevant to something important within the learner’s frame of reference (i.e., job, studies, professional development).
- The body of the article should follow the traditional form of expository writing with an introductory paragraph, one or more explanatory paragraphs, and a summary paragraph.
- The body of the article should also contain questions or other interactive activities, such as exercises, problem-solving situations, or short simulations.
- Always limit the instructional article to one or two main ideas or concepts.
- Use only the most important “need-to-know” supporting details.
- When possible, support the article content with audio and/or video clips containing relevant information, such as “how to’s” or examples that further clarify key learning points.
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