Designing Successful e-Learning, Michael Allen's Online Learning Library: Forget What You Know About Instructional Design and Do Something Interesting (Michael Allen's E-Learning Library) [Paperback]

Michael W. Allen (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0787982997 | ISBN-13: 978-0787982997 | Publication Date: May 25, 2007 | Edition: 1

This is the second volume of six in Michael Allen’s e-Learning Library—a comprehensive collection of proven techniques for creating e-learning applications that achieve targeted behavioral outcomes through meaningful, memorable, and motivational learning experiences. This book examines common instructional design practices with a critical eye and recommends substituting success rather than tradition as a guide. Drawing from theory, research, and experience in learning and behavioral change, the author provides a framework for addressing a broader range of learner needs and achieving superior performance outcomes.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“The theoretical literature on learning and growth can be difficult to master and even more challenging to integrate into e-learning, but Michael has made this easy for all of us. He explains this thinking in clear and accessible language, amplifies the theories with research results, and describes popular approaches by applying these theories to learning and growth. Taking the illustrations even further into the field of e-learning design, he offers useful scenarios and practical examples of how these theories can be employed in online learning programs, providing readers with concrete ideas to leverage them in their own work.” --Nick van Dam, global chief learning officer for Deloitte and founder and chairman, e-Learning For Kids Foundation (www.e-learningforkids.org)

 “Here, through research and examples, Allen delivers vivid ways to realize the promise of e-learning.”--Allison Rossett, professor of educational technology, San Diego State University

“While its target audience is instructional designers, this book should also be required reading for all training managers seeking guidelines on implementing world-class training. Allen provides bridges the gap from theory to practice on both training and educational programs. His guidance is as applicable to classroom-based as it is to e-learning based training.”--Patty Crowell, director, Global Education Services, LSI Logic Corporation

 “Our sales/service performance has greatly improved due to the ideas and processes in Michael Allen's books. They not only solidified our e-learning practices, but enhanced our blended learning skills as well.”--Dave Hooker, vice president, Training and Program Development Institutional Sector, Ecolab Inc.

From the Back Cover

Praise for Michael Allen's e-Learning Library

This is the second volume of six in Michael Allen's e-Learning Library—a comprehensive collection of proven techniques for creating e-learning applications that achieve targeted behavioral outcomes through meaningful, memorable, and motivational learning experiences. This book examines common instructional design practices with a critical eye and recommends substituting success rather than tradition as a guide. Drawing from theory, research, and experience in learning and behavioral change, the author provides a framework for addressing a broader range of learner needs and achieving superior performance outcomes.

"The theoretical literature on learning and growth can be difficult to master and even more challenging to integrate into e-learning, but Michael has made this easy for all of us. He explains this thinking in clear and accessible language, amplifies the theories with research results, and describes popular approaches by applying these theories to learning and growth. Taking the illustrations even further into the field of e-learning design, he offers useful scenarios and practical examples of how these theories can be employed in online learning programs, providing readers with concrete ideas to leverage them in their own work."
—Nick van Dam, global chief learning officer for Deloitte and founder and chairman, e-Learning For Kids Foundation (www.e-learningforkids.org)

"Here, through research and examples, Allen delivers vivid ways to realize the promise of e-learning."
—Allison Rossett, professor of educational technology, San Diego State University

"While its target audience is instructional designers, this book should also be required reading for all training managers seeking guidelines on implementing world-class training. Allen bridges the gap from theory to practice on both training and educational programs. His guidance is as applicable to classroom-based as it is to e-learning based training."
—Patty Crowell, director, Global Education Services, LSI Logic Corporation

"Our sales/service performance has greatly improved due to the ideas and processes in Michael Allen's books. They not only solidified our e-learning practices, but enhanced our blended learning skills as well."
—Dave Hooker, vice president, Training and Program Development Institutional Sector, Ecolab Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Pfeiffer; 1 edition (May 25, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0787982997
• ISBN-13: 978-0787982997
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 0.5 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #178,052 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #78 in Books > Computers & Technology > Computer Science > Software Engineering > Design Tools & Techniques

More About the Author

Michael Allen is a recognized leader in the architecture and design of interactive multimedia learning systems and strategies. He is the chairman and CEO of Allen Interactions, which builds custom interactive learning solutions and provides consulting and training for interactive multimedia professionals. Allen Interactions will launch a revolutionary authoring system, ZebraZapps, in 2011, allowing developers and non-programmers to create rich interactive media applications easily and quickly, as well as share, publish, and sell their inventions. Technology designed and built by Michael Allen led to the formation of Macromedia and revolutionized multimedia software development. With ZebraZapps, Allen is set to disrupt the industry once again.

Allen holds a PhD in educational psychology from The Ohio State University and is an adjunct associate professor at the University of Minnesota Medical School. He has written four books including the best-seller, Michael Allen's Guide to e-Learning and his e-Learning Library Series - the third volume of this series, Learner Interface Design releases July, 2011. Additionally, he is editor of Michael Allen's e-Learning Annuals. Michael received ASTD's Distinguished Contribution to Workplace Learning and Performance Award in May 2011.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good content if you are looking for basics, January 8, 2008

By 

Armchair Interviews (Minneapolis, MN) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Designing Successful e-Learning, Michael Allen's Online Learning Library: Forget What You Know About Instructional Design and Do Something Interesting (Michael Allen's E-Learning Library) (Paperback)

The second book in Michael Allen's series on E-Learning jumps right into the design aspect of E-Learning. The book assumes that you have read the first book in the series and is taking you along the path to the next logical step. It goes into more depth on the skills necessary not only to design a successful E-Learning program but any training or instructional program.

The author is writes in a very familiar style and tone. Reading the book feels more like a conversation with the author than a standard instructional text, which, in keeping with the theme of the book, makes a certain amount of sense. It takes a little getting used to, but once past the feeling of familiarity, the ideas were presented very well.

The subtitle: Forget what you know about instructional design and do something interesting, is the key aspect of the book. The author gives many examples of the tried-and-true and boring training and instructional programs that are used today. There are several key elements necessary in effective Instructional Design. The author suggest, and rightly so, that instructional programs need to be Meaningful, Memorable, and Motivational. Within each element there are four factors involved: feedback, activity, challenge, and context. When the design encompasses all of these elements and factors, it is useful, functioning design. Instructional programs that fail in any one category tend to fail overall.

Several real-world examples are used to help the reader understand the concepts that are being conveyed. The author gives examples of each key and factor throughout the book to drive home the concepts presented on Instructional Design.

As a basic book on training and instructional design, this book does a good job in getting key points across and holds some components and interesting ideas in training and development, applicable to E-learning and other areas.

Armchair Interviews says: Good basic information.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars E-learning isn't so different, July 5, 2007

By 

Paul S. Safyan - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Designing Successful e-Learning, Michael Allen's Online Learning Library: Forget What You Know About Instructional Design and Do Something Interesting (Michael Allen's E-Learning Library) (Paperback)

Although Allen says,"Forget everything you know," much of what he describes here is good instructional design in any context. What's unique is that he makes the book interactive. He teases out certain instructional components, like incidental learning, that have been alluded to in other books and fleshes out how to be more purposeful about these components. He also refers within the text to good examples of this in other literature, making it easy to "go after" a point that rings a bell for the reader right away.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great E-learning Resource, November 17, 2009

By 

Alexander Raymond (Boulder, CO United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Designing Successful e-Learning, Michael Allen's Online Learning Library: Forget What You Know About Instructional Design and Do Something Interesting (Michael Allen's E-Learning Library) (Paperback)

I bought this book over a year ago but haven't yet written a review.

This is a practical, hands-on book for those who are in the training business. Whether you currently build e-learning courses or are looking to, this is a good resource for both background knowledge and helpful tips.

The author has deep experience and authority in the field of online training and it shows because the examples and case studies are detailed and well-presented. The flow of the book is clear and oriented toward readers who are already familiar with e-learning.

I agree with another reviewer who said that there isn't as much new in the book as the title may suggest, but this is still a good resource that should be part of your e-learning knowledge base.