Here’s Why Visual Design is Important for Effective E-Learning
Motivation is crucial for learners who intend to achieve their lifelong learning goals. At its very core, learning requires quality content, but certain elements need to be considered in ensuring that learners are engaged throughout a course.
According to the principle of motivational learning, there are four steps needed in sustaining motivation during the learning process. The first element required to motivate the learner is attention. To fully capture the attention of a learner, whether it be in traditional learning or in the digital platform, great visual design is necessary.
Visual design makes a vast difference in capturing the learners’ engagement. It plays a crucial role in keeping the attention of learners and trainees alike. The fundamental role that e-learning plays today, demands more emphasis in terms of the visual design and interactive aspects of their chosen platform.
Content as the Core of E-learning
Content is considered one of the most essential components of E-learning. Without quality content, no matter how visually appealing a course and program is, the learners will still not be able to achieve their assigned competencies and learning goals. In order to ensure that online learning takes place, it is vital to capture the interests of the learners.
In this case, quality content not only refers to the text-based presentation of a course or program, but this may also be presented in various means, which includes, but are not limited to: images, video clips, and graphic organizers. This is where visual design comes in, as it ultimately has the ability to transform less appealing content into an engaging and relatable training course or learning program from a similar source.
The Role of Visual Design in Learners’ Engagement
Approximately 65% of the world’s population are considered to be visual learners. This means that graphic design will always play an essential role in ensuring the learners’ and trainees’ engagement. Even if an institution or a company offers a program with content that is highly accurate, relevant, and competency-based, without that audience’s full undivided attention, learning could still not take place.
Visual design aids learners in a way that makes learning less complicated through their perspectives and personal preferences. Better learning outcomes can be achieved if a learner feels like he or she has a personal connection to the content that is being studied. Visual design also helps the educators and trainers in this aspect, wherein the learning process could become more engaging, consume less time than necessary, and it also makes achieving learning outcomes easier.
Using Visual Design to Empower Online Learning
Learning nowadays is no longer seen as an isolated experience that can only happen in the four corners of the classroom. This era of digital learning has taught educational and business leaders alike that education is a part of a lifelong process, that lifelong learning is more important than ticking off competencies to attain a degree or a certification, especially now that learning could take place anytime and anywhere.
Now that people are understanding to look at learning as a lifelong process, this means that visual designers now have a more significant role to play in creating the most conducive learning experience. Designs now should inspire the audience to learn and stimulate their desire to continuously satisfy their curiosities. It should be able to leave a lasting impact and impression and not only enrich the learner intellectually but also appeal to one’s emotions.
In other words, visual design has the ability to make or break the online learning experience, primarily since E-learning heavily relies on a visual medium of instruction. Despite all these advantages, learning course and training program creators should still critically remember that visual design is only one aspect of the online learning experience and that it should enhance the content without going overboard and overpowering it.
