e-Learning and the Science of Instruction: Proven Guidelines for Consumers and Designers of Multimedia Learning

16.1. Applying Our Guidelines to Evaluate e-Courseware

The goal of our book is to help consumers and designers make e-learning decisions based on empirical research and on the psychological processes of learning. In an ideal world, e-courseware effectiveness should be based on measurement of how well and how efficiently learners achieve the learning objectives. This measurement requires a validation process in which learners are formally tested on their skills after completing the training. In our experience, formal course validation is rare. More often, consumers and designers look at the features rather than at the outcomes of an e-learning course to assess its effectiveness. We recommend that, among the features that are assessed, you include ...