Month: November 2022

Embedding interactive multimedia and design principles while creating a lesson is key to providing an effective approach to learning. As we have made it this far in the course, I feel as though I have learned a lot about the proper ways to create strong multimedia tools that can enhance the understanding of content for a learner. Reflecting through previous assignments that I have done for other courses, I have noticed that I have made multiple mistakes that could be adjusted to improve the effectiveness of presenting the content. The multimedia object that I have chosen to upgrade is a short lecture video that I created in EDCI 339 for a mini course assignment that I did about skincare. The lecture video was accompanied with a powerpoint presentation, which now looking back on it, I see that it could be harmful to a learner, as the design of the slides may increase the extraneous load.

Video Lecture (original)

As you can see in the video, the slides have way too much content on them and can make it hard to focus on any single point being made. The overall video violates the redundancy principle and signalling principle due to the poor design of the slides. The elements that I focussed on when creating the updated version of the lecture video include, reducing the cognitive load, implementing the signalling and coherence principle, and keeping one idea per slide.

Upgraded Video Lecture

In the upgraded video lecture, I believe that I was able to effectively present the lesson in a much clearer and more suitable way. Incorporating the design principles that I have learned in this class, along with the tips given in David JP Phillips’ TedTalk, How to Avoid Death By PowerPoint, I was able to design the slides in a manner that could improve the learning for a student. By keeping one idea per slide and reducing the amount of text on a slide, I am able to  reduce the cognitive load and make it easier for a learner to pay attention to the narration. This is an example of the redundancy principle. I also wanted to incorporate the signalling principle, so I decided to show the points on a slide one at a time, as to hold the focus on only one element with the narration. This reduces the cognitive load by giving learners a clear path to follow along while they are watching the lesson and to not be overwhelmed by there being too much information given all at once. I also added subtitles manually to make the lesson more inclusive by including proper grammar that matched with the narration perfectly. One of the elements that I kept the same was the background colour, as it is dark and provides a good contrast to viewers, especially those who may have impaired colour vision.

What storytelling techniques have you used instinctively and which ones require more work for you? Which techniques will you focus on moving forward?

I find that my personal strength in storytelling is my ability to engage audiences with a suspenseful plot. When I am telling a story to a friend, for example, I notice that I’ll instinctively begin directly from the start of the story, then I will discuss the events that lead to the climax. Following a well-structured and chronologically ordered story, makes people more engaged as they know the events that lead to the main point of the story. The events before the climax are ultimately the key to engaging the audience, as it gives them further insight into the storyteller/protagonist’s life and allows them to empathize with whoever’s story is being told.

While creating suspense in a story is what I would consider a strength for myself, I do however find that I share too much information when building up the plot. When I am telling my friends a story, I tend to dive too much into the details of a specific point or event in order to try and give them as much background knowledge as I can. While this can be good for adding to the suspense of a story, it can sometimes come across as me rambling. My friends have often told me to “get to the point”, due to me going on and on about a specific detail. Moving forward I want to try and tell stories in a way that can keep the leading events of the plot more concise and structured to effectively present a story that doesn’t stray too much from the plot.