How Infographics can be used in e-Learning

In this age of accelerating change and growth in information, it is becoming increasingly important for corporate learners to stay informed and keep learning. Technology-enabled learning has made information easily available and accessible, but this has also raised another concern – are we heading towards an information overload?

Infographics is a solution for presenting information through palatable visual nuggets. This provides the learner a visually attractive and logical spread of pertinent information that can be easily understood, retained and applied.

A case in point is a recent project on environmental pollution which we completed for a multinational client. We relied heavily upon infographics to speak to the learner. Here are a few tips that we utilized for creating impactful infographics to bring home to the learner the need to minimize the harmful effects of environmental pollution:

• Start with What the Learners Know: We began by identifying the terminology that the learners were familiar with. The familiar terms were then used to explain concepts through infographics. This helped the learners to relate to the topic quickly and easily.
• Chunk Your Information: We created information chunks to develop a logical flow of knowledge. Key concepts were broken down into ‘steps,’ which were then illustrated through attractive visuals. The infographics explained one concept at a time, giving the learner the opportunity to learn at ease.

• Use Colors Judiciously: Keeping the infographics visually attractive, we took a conscious decision to use minimum colors to make sure that information was the real hero. The background colors were kept non-intrusive so that textual content could be read well.
• Utilize Visual Reiteration: We used a number of visual reiterations like bold fonts and text colors to emphasize important sections or steps. However, when the data on a particular infographic was more, we made sure that bolder reiterations – like encircling – were done in order to bring to attention the moot point.

• Follow the Cardinal Rule of Graphics – Less Is More: Introducing infographics for just their eye-candy value is not a good idea. Make use of them only when the course is information-heavy and a lot of it can be said through visuals. We used clear-cut images and enough white space in the infographics so that the learners did not feel overwhelmed. Icons were used to establish a visual connect and sustain it through recurring usage.

Infographics can come to your rescue when the information load becomes too heavy to handle. They provide an impactful solution that appeals to the new-age learner by enabling quick retention of information and it helps that the information is easy on the eyes!

There is a lot that you can do with infographics and here is a compilation of some attractive examples that can provide some food for thought.

• What is e-Learning?(http://jasmineoconnell.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/elearning-infographic1.png)
• The ADDIE Model (http://flirtingwelearning.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/addiemodel.jpg)
  e-Learning vs. Classroom Learning: Battle of the Century (http://www.infographicsarchive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/elearning_vs_class-final-550×2206.jpg)
• How the Internet is revolutionizing education (http://images.onlineeducation.net.s3.amazonaws.com/internet-revolutionizing-education.jpg)
• Are we wired for mobile learning? (http://voxy.com/blog/2011/02/are-we-wired-for-mobile-learning/)

For more on how infographics can be utilized for your learning needs, write to in**@gc**********.net