eLearning comes in many forms. Utilising a multitude of methods to be the best solution for learners to acquire new information. However, it’s the art of storytelling that could prove to be the most effective for end users. Why? Here, we explore why storytelling is so effective in eLearning and how you can harness it’s power for yourself!
Tell Me A Story: The Origins Of Storytelling
Storytelling forms an intrinsic part of our humanity. We tell stories for many reasons: fun, entertainment, to pass on knowledge, and to learn. In fact, learning is probably the main reason humans ever engaged in storytelling in the first place. Take fables as example. They were the first major storytelling device used to teach morals in a fun way to younger generations. The story of Little Red Riding Hood, for example, teaches children to not talk to strangers. However, the message is dressed up in a much more engaging narrative!
Now, storytelling is used in thousands of eLearning courses and learning materials every single day. Any end-user will tell you they prefer courses that uses a storified approach over a dull, uninspired tick-box exercise. So, it’s no surprise that eLearning courses which make use of storytelling are so popular.
Tell Me Again: Using Storytelling To Aid Retention
Hard and fast facts are rarely memorable. At least, not accurately. This is why dumping lots of information on people in the name of eLearning is a sure-fire way to ensure that they don’t retain any knowledge of the subject.
Retention of information is at the heart of all learning experiences. If your learners can’t remember what they have been taught, and apply it, then what’s the point? Now, perhaps more than ever, learners are distracted by the world around them. Therefore, eLearning content needs to be entertaining and enjoyable in order to make it stick.
Storytelling by its very nature isn’t dull. It’s fun (when done right) and crucially it’s relatable. Relatability hits to the very core of why we engaged with storytelling. Humans need relatability and context in order to form solid connections, emotional or otherwise, with the materials in front of us. Learning is no different. Therefore, storytelling can be used to create an overarching narrative that chimes with the end-user and, ultimately, aids retention.
Shape The Narrative: Tips For eLearning Design
So, how can you shape the narrative and use the art of storytelling in your eLearning content?
Use Real Life Stories
Telling stories can feel kind of intimidating. But the good news is you don’t have to be a bestselling author to create stories that stick for eLearning. Instead…use what you know! When we talk about storytelling, what we are really talking about is context. Half the battle to creating engaging eLearning content that will be retained is providing the right amount of context.
The best way to do this is to use real-life scenarios that will resonate with your learners. If they can better understand the context of why they are learning something and how they will apply it in future, they’re much more likely to retain and recall that information further down the line.
Create An Immersive Experience
We have all come to expect high-quality content in everything we consume. From social media to television shows, our brains demand immersive experiences to sufficiently distract them from all the other things we could be doing at any given point in time.
Creating an immersive experience is the way to grabbing attention and getting learners involved in the story. The good news is, there are so many ways you can do this. From using personalized graphics to audio, video and other interactive elements like quizzes or questions.
While your story delivers the context, immersive elements make it fun to engage with. The trick is to put your end-user at the centre of the narrative. Doing this can help them to better understand why and how they will use this information in real-life situations.
Consider Different Learning Styles
The 70:20:10 model says that 70% of learning happens when we experience something. But that doesn’t mean everyone’s learning styles are the same. With eLearning content, you have the power to cater to different learning styles. For example, while some people find that reading information will help them retain information, others learn better when they listen to an audio description or watch a video.
For eLearning that utilises storytelling there’s a great opportunity to shake up your offering from the traditional read-and-click format to a more interactive design. Gamification, for example, can be a really effective way to get learners to engage with a range of concepts and put their new-found knowledge to the test.
Having said that, while it might be tempting to throw everything but the kitchen sink at your eLearning content, be sure to take a strategic approach. Interactive elements may not always be the most appropriate choice for certain topics. Any piece of eLearning should always take into account who is consuming it and the learning objectives of piece. Take some time to consider the best ways to present information to users, and in what context it is best showcased.
Get Started With Storytelling
Storytelling might not seem like the best fit for your business, brand or sector at first glance. But we disagree! Story-driven eLearning can be effective in every business sector when it’s done in the right way. It’s all about the narrative – and using the right elements at the right time.
Discovering the right narrative can be a challenge. But once you’ve identified the right one, you can use it as a skeleton to attach information to. Granted, this might not work for every single point of your learning. For example, sometimes microlearning is more effective which can be consumed in the course of doing a task. But, when used as a tool to convey the key points of learning, you’ll find your users will engage with material enough to retain what they need to know in order to go forward. You can then use this as a starting point to extend their knowledge further down the line in other eLearning pieces.
Storytelling in eLearning is here to stay, and is something that we use frequently to create engaging learning experiences here at DBLX. If you’d like to learn more about our off-the-shelf or bespoke eLearning content, get in touch with us today or take a look at our Projects to see our work in action.