eLearning Through Animation
If you’re familiar with our work, you’ll know that we specialise in producing promotional animation (explainer videos, advertisements, etc.) as well as eLearning content. While these videos share a lot of benefits in terms of value and versatility, the methodology and techniques used can differ. When done right, animation can make for the ultimate learning or training experience, but to achieve this we must consider learning styles, information retention, and visual accuracy to ensure its effectiveness. Here is a quick rundown of some of the key techniques we implement in our educational videos to maximise their effectiveness:
Storytelling
As with our commercial/promotional videos, storytelling is a powerful tool to help the audience connect with the material in a unique way, not only by adding an emotional component but also by adding substance to otherwise abstract concepts. Psychologist, and expert in Learning Theory, Jerome Bruner (1986) put it best:
“[Narrative] deals in human or human-like intention and action and the vicissitudes and consequences that mark their course. It strives to put its timeless miracles into the particulars of experience and to locate the experience in time and place.”
Rule of 3 (learning styles)
There are multiple methods of learning including (but not limited to) visual, aural, logical, and verbal. While it’s not true that people can only learn in one way, it is often common for people to have their own preferred methods, which they will find easier to engage with. When developing learning material, we use the rule of three: When explaining particularly complex or abstract topics, we will have them explained using three different methods at once. This is usually visual through the animation and graphics, verbal through the on-screen text and headings, and aural through the voiceover.
Not only does this method ensure that the information is accessible to more people, it also works to reinforce the information as it is presented.
The power of visuals:
We’ve touched on this topic in previous articles and even made a video about its benefits, in short: when it comes to retaining information, Visual learning is one of the most powerful methods. This goes hand in hand with animation, as it allows us to visualise things that are otherwise abstract or boring in interesting and engaging ways.
When in the research and development stage, each visual cue is meticulously planned to ensure it represents the subject clearly, concisely, and without room for confusion.
Overcoming Language Barriers
When producing content for a wide and varied audience, as learning material often does, we must take into consideration varying degrees of English comprehension. In addition to supporting any verbal information with visual elements, as per our Rule of 3, we also choose our words carefully. When writing the script and planning words on screen, we look to use multilingual cognates, or words that are similar across languages. For example, a “laptop” will be called a “computer,” which sounds similar in Germanic, Arabic, Kurdish, and Slavic-rooted languages.
The take-away?
There’s no question that animation is a powerful tool for education (there’s a reason it’s used by Ted, BBC Bitesize, and YouTube educators), and understanding the nature of learning helps maximise the potential! If you want to know more about how animation can aid eLearning and training material, get in touch. We’d love to chat!
