Online courses evolve over time. Although you may have created the best elearning material, time will come that the content in it will become useless or in need of a major revision. After all, change is the only thing that is constant in this world. You cannot expect that your course will be used forever. It needs to be updated every now and then.
That might seem like you will be wasting a lot of content along the way right? Not really. You can always turn old content into something new so your course will feel updated and improved from the last one. Sometimes, you do not have to throw away the whole course. You can create new online courses from all the old content that you have. You just have to know how to combine all of them so you can create a new one. This will help save you some time, energy, and money.
Here are some tips that will help you turn your old content into new and exciting elearning materials.
Analyze your old content.
Start by analyzing what you currently have. What old content do you have that can be repurposed? Take note of them so you can identify the parts that you will use in the new course that you will create. This should make it easier to copy and paste it in the new course. By identifying the content and the tools that you currently have, you can easily plan how the next course will turn out. Make sure you take note of the tools that will help you convert certain content (e.g. text to video, etc).
Create an outline.
This will be very helpful when you take content from different sources. The outline will guide you and give you an idea about how you can combine your content to make it a cohesive course. This will also give you an overview and will allow you to decide which tools can be used. For instance, you can use a video in one area and an infographic in another. You can see where a slideshow can best display the content and where the assessments and activities will fit in perfectly.
Identify the text that you can convert.
Old content will not look repurposed if you convert it into a format that is more exciting and engaging. You can convert text into an infographic to give it a twist. Or you can use a slideshow to represent the concepts that you want to teach in the online courses. You can even use animation and narration to get the lessons across.
Use videos and interactive materials.
Adding a new video or interactive material can make the course all the more exciting. The video can be a slideshow of images with some background music and narration. You can also add activities that will boost the engagement of the participants in the course. You can insert it where the assessments should be. Or you can create a game that can be played. This will not only make the elearning material engaging, it will also boost the retention and make the learning experience fun.
Follow these tips so you can create online courses out of old content. This is oftentimes the most economical way of coming up with new courses. Just make sure that the course you will create is cohesive and aligned with your elearning goals.
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