The Story of the E-Learning Storyboard – Part 2

In part 1 of this blog post, I gave you a brief history and background of the storyboard. In this part, I'll talk about the popular storyboard formats and the steps for creating an effective storyboard. I shall end the post with my top tips on storyboarding.

Popular Storyboard Formats

Today, the two most common storyboards formats in the industry are Word and PowerPoint. While there is no right or wrong format, each of them has its pros and cons. Eventually, it for the ID to weigh both options and decide which format will work best for the specific course.

PowerPoint is better suited for visuals; it isn’t really a good choice if a lot of textual information needs to be represented. A PowerPoint storyboard gives a good visual presentation of each frame. Each slide may come really close to what will finally be developed. However, editing and reviewing the storyboard can be tricky.

Word on the other hand, is so much easier in terms of working with text and comments. It’s easier to copyedit too. The downside is that it is hard to get a real feel of the final course in Word. Those relatively new to e-learning may not fully comprehend the final outcome of a storyboard in Word. So even after multiple reviews, a Word storyboard is more likely to be altered at an advanced stage.

How to Storyboard?

Now that you are convinced of the need to storyboard and know how to pick a storyboard template, let me guide you step by step on how to storyboard.

Six Steps for Creating a Storyboard

1. Identify the learning objectives: The very first thing to do is find out the learning problem and your target audience. Study and ask questions about what exactly is expected from the learning solution. Based on your study, identify the learning objectives. Never lose sight of the objectives.
2. Organize all your materials: Ask the stakeholders, including the SMEs, for all the raw learning content that they can provide you. Determine how you are going to use the material.
3. Choose your storyboard template: Based on the kind of project, choose an appropriate storyboard template and customize it for your specific needs.
4. Choose your instructional design strategy: Decide on the instructional approach you will use. You could use a scenario-based approach, a conversational approach, a game-based approach or even a simple page-turner approach. A favoured option is a combination of many approaches.
5. Sequence and chunk your content: At this stage, you have to put pen to paper. Present your content in the order that is best suited for effective learning. For the learner to absorb information easily, present your content in small chunks. Maintain a natural flow throughout.
6. Review: Once you have created your storyboard, review it for accuracy of facts, language and grammar, instructional design strategy and 508 compliance. As in any process, the importance of a review cannot be emphasized enough.

Guidelines for Outstanding Storyboards

To create powerful e-learning, you must begin with an outstanding storyboard. Here are my seven key guidelines for storyboarding awesomeness.

1. Push the envelope. Use innovative strategies and your imagination to make your storyboard stand out. Ask a question, use a quotation, add a conversation, or bring in an analogy. For example, instead of a boring five-point bullet list, show the points on the image of a hand; one point for each finger.
2. Balance all the elements of a storyboard, specifically the visual and audio elements. Make sure your audio is not a word-to-word replica of the onscreen text (OST).
   • Crisp, short OST is preferred when there is a lengthy audio playing simultaneously. The learner should be able to scan the text quickly when the primary medium is audio.
   • When the text is long, the audio can be short. For example, when an entire case study or problem is displayed on screen, there needs to be very little or no accompanying audio. The learner will be able to concentrate on reading the case study or problem without being distracted by an accompanying audio.
3. A picture is worth a thousand words. Humans are visually wired and learn a great deal more and faster when the learning content is visual. Your visuals should never be an afterthought. Choose meaningful graphics and videos with high recall value.
4. Include purposeful interactivity on every possible screen. However, an interactivity just for the sake of interactivity is a strict no-no. All interactivities are different forms of the following basic ones:
   • Click interactions: click and reveal, click and pop up and click carousel
   • Drag and drop
   • Rollovers/mouse hovers
   • Text entry
5. Work on an engaging tone throughout the storyboard. The tone can be developed, in particular, in the introduction, slide transitions, examples and conclusion. For a conversational tone, make use of contractions in the audio. Change the frame style every few slides, while keeping the overall theme intact. Ensure your slide transitions are smooth.
6. Beware of scope creep. It is normal for a storyboard to go through several rounds of revisions before it is signed off. However, once it is signed off and production starts, changes to the storyboard can be a costly affair. Make sure that all the stakeholders are aware of this.
7. If you are developing device independent e-learning, you must be clear about what is allowed and what is not even before you begin storyboarding.

With these tips, you can create some excellent storyboards. If you have more good ones, please share them in the comments section.