How To Make Your E-Course Appeal To Any Learning Style
Because your brilliance should not be missed.
Remember way back in the day when you were a kid, and how you used to do crafts in school sometimes? I bet you also did reading, and oral debates, and group projects.
Chances are, you probably preferred one (or a few) of those activities over the others. Each of those activities appeals to a different learning style.
This has nothing to do with intelligence. It’s more about technique than subject matter!
Here are the seven different learning styles we know of so far (courtesy of the very helpful Learning Styles Online):
- Visual (spatial): Using pictures, images, and spatial understanding.
- Aural (auditory-musical): Using sound and music.
- Verbal (linguistic): Using words, both in speech and writing.
- Physical (kinesthetic): Using your body, hands and sense of touch.
- Logical (mathematical): Using logic, reasoning and systems.
- Social (interpersonal): Learning in groups or with other people.
- Solitary (intrapersonal): Working alone and using self-study.
Betcha didn’t know there were that many ways, huh? But appealing to these techniques go hand in hand with creating a good course from the bottom up. It’s not as scary as it may look.
When you’re building out a course of your own, it’s important to design it in such a way that it resonates with as many different types of students as possible.
Cue the “duuuuuuuuuh” sound from all the course creators out there.
I know, I know. It seems obvious! But there’s actually a lot of nuance to this idea. And when we start building a course all by ourselves, we sometimes take for granted how to communicate concepts.
If you’re a verbal learner, for example, you may assume that the wall of text you just wrote to instruct someone is as clear as glass.
But to a visual learner? All they see is a wall of text.
Ideally, a course should be designed so that no matter who they are or what their learning style is, a student will be able to understand.
The other benefit? More people complete courses that appeal to their learning styles. And more course completions equals more happy learners and more testimonials so you can sell more courses!
Here are some ideas for appealing to the different learning styles:
Visual learning
Okay, so we all know that pictures can help break up a monotonous lecture. A well-designed slide does wonders for retaining attention.
See?
But here’s another consideration: What about video?
One of my favorite examples of visual learning is Moz’s Whiteboard Fridays. This is such a brilliant idea, because the folks behind this break down complex ideas around marketing just by… drawing them out.
[https://moz.com/blog/image-link-building]
Image Link Building — Whiteboard Friday
By taking the time to sketch out something complex and technical like link building, the team at Moz is doing their best to make sure that their readers can understand everything. With a friendly, let’s-learn tone, they invite us to sit back and absorb the lesson piece by piece.
(Editor’s note: importing your videos to your online course on CourseCraft is super-simple. We even have a video tutorial for the visual learners in the house!)
They also regularly include audio tracks for every lesson, which brings me to the next learning technique…
Aural learning
Hearing is one of the first senses most people develop in utero, and the human brain has a natural need to make sense of sound. Which means aural learners are literally good listeners. They’re ready to absorb what you have to say and process it so they can internalize it.
What does this mean for you as a course creator?
Make sure you always have an audio element to your course.
An easy way is to narrate your course in your video. This may seem obvious to you, but there are many courses out there that rely on slide shows without audio.
OR you can create a version of your course specifically targeted to aural learners, like dog health expert Andrea Partee’s audio course, The Big Wide World Of Dog Treats.
If you choose to narrate your lessons, be sure that you speak clearly and try to avoid “filler sounds” like “ummm” and “y’know.” They can distract from your message.
If you’d prefer not to offer a voiceover, a creative way to engage aural learners is to underscore your video lessons with music.
Verbal learning
These top three learning styles are really intertwined, aren’t they?
Or maybe it’s because one thing is recommended when you’re using any of the techniques I mentioned previously: Always make a transcript.
I worked in web accessibility for a time, and it’s incredible what it means to have a transcript to someone who is deaf, hard of hearing, blind, or has attention deficit issues. A transcript allows more students to stay in the loop than you may initially think.
But here’s the sneaky audience for transcripts: Verbal Learners. If someone wants to learn a lesson but is annoyed by audio, a transcript accompanying the content allows for them to just read in peace. Transcriptions are also more inclusive of Deaf or hard of hearing learners.
American Sign Language interpreter Priscilla McNealy understands the importance of providing visual AND verbal information in her Ultimate ASL Crash Course. All of her lessons include video demonstrations of sign language along with closed captioning and transcription.
Physical learning
Real talk: This is probably the trickiest learning style to incorporate into every individual course. Because, well… you’re not always going to be right next to your students.
Depending on your subject, there is a lot you can show through video. If you’re teaching a course on outlining a book, why not film yourself writing out a plot on notecards? If it’s hula hooping, why not try filming from different angles so people can see a movement playing out?
The trick is to show the principle being worked out by a human in as close to “real life” as possible. This is why lessons such as Lauren Pace’s Modern Calligraphy course so well — if I’m learning how to write something beautiful, I want to know exactly how I should be adding individual strokes. A diagram can help, but being able to physically picture doing it myself is even better.
Logical learning
At first, this seems like the trickiest learning style to incorporate. Especially if you’re teaching something artistic — no scary numbers, please! But really, logical learning is just about clearly laying out your ideas in a logical pattern.
Logical learners love systems and organization above all. That means that to cater to them, you should consider how you structure your lesson plans and communicate each concept.
- Is there a common theme throughout?
- Is there a concept you can explain at the beginning that carries through the entire course?
- Are you demonstrating how these concepts work toward a logical conclusion?
- Are you clearly defining each concept?
- Are you summarizing what they will learn in each lesson?
- Are you keeping your course content organized and simplified using headings and bullet points?
Literary agent Dominique Watson demonstrates her respect for logical learners by sharing her course syllabus on the landing page of her Organization of Fiction Writing course. She also paces the release of each module so students don’t lose track and can stay focused on one concept at a time.
Social learning
Another learning style that seems hard but is secretly easy. Isn’t the internet wonderful?
Appealing to Social Learners is all about encouraging conversations between students. Is it possible for you to set up a Facebook group for them, where they can both ask and answer questions? That can be a premium offering if you’re looking to set yourself apart — sign up for the lessons, stay for the community!
One of the best learning experiences I ever had (offline and on) was in the first-ever Copywriter Club Accelerator program. The true appeal was the Slack channel that was exclusive to the group. I could ask questions and get advice from anyone in the group at any time.
One way to take it further for Social Learners (that I also saw practiced in the Accelerator) is to establish office hours for your students. Setting up a time for students (from any level in the course) to come and ask questions will be invaluable.
(Editor’s note again: Psst! If you’re a social learner, you might just love Craft Your Life: our Facebook group for creatives, artisans, handmade sellers and purpose-driven entrepreneurs. Come learn with us!)
Solitary learning
Allowing resources such as Facebook groups to be optional signals to Solitary Learners that they don’t have to jump in if they don’t want to. Don’t punish people who lurk and read!
As you gather more information on where students tend to struggle, feel free to make a list of Frequently Asked Questions (or Helpful Resources) that students can readily access. This will enable Solitary Learners to access questions on their own time without having to depend on others’ schedules.
Parenting blogger and The Creative Life podcast host Karen Andrews understands that her learners are busy parents and freelancers who work from home. Her e-course is self-paced and designed specifically for the solitary learner.
You can also cater to solitary learners by giving them an option for one-on-one guidance to help them stay on track. Many of our course creators offer an add-on element of personal coaching sessions in the checkout process of selling their courses.
Conclusion
One last thing: never underestimate the power of the beta course. When you create your first course, invite people with a variety of learning styles to test it out and give you feedback so you can adapt your course content to their needs.
As you may have figured out by now, the principles that make a course accessible to everyone are also things that just make them good courses. When you keep your learners at the center of everything you do and articulate your ideas in an appealing, impactful way, your lessons will stick with your learners for a lifetime.
New to CourseCraft? Sign up and start building your course today! Sign Up
