Giving good feedback in elearning activities
Too often I have come across elearning storyboards with knowledge checks or quizzes that don’t specify what happens after the learner answers the question! Good feedback is critical for reinforcing the content in the question, encourage learners who answered incorrectly, and appreciating the learner’s efforts to accomplish the goals of the course.
1. Feedback should not just tell a learner whether or not they’ve answered correctly, but also explain why their answer was correct or incorrect. At the very least, if the learner didn’t really engage with the question before answering, the feedback should give them a moment to consider the content one more time before moving onto the next question or part of the course.
2. For the subset of learners who failed a knowledge check or quiz, the purpose of the feedback is to persuade those learners to try again, as well as help them find the content they need to review to be successful on their next attempt.
3. One of the main draws of games is the feeling of satisfaction and accomplishment at solving a puzzle or beating a boss. Good feedback should strive to do the same: let the learner feel like a winner for their success, and it’ll keep them motivated to continue learning!
For more on great instructional design for elearning, check out the rest of this blog, or contact us today to see what we can do to help your audience feel like winners too!
