Unlocking Effective Learning: The Application of Key Instructional Design Concepts in Illuminate’s PI Explorer?

Introduction to Instructional Design Concepts?

At Illuminate we pride ourselves on implementing new and effective delivery methods to keep our solutions current and engaging. With each innovation, we remain focused on the goal of learning and development (L&D), which is to help end learners acquire new knowledge, skills, and behaviors, and—here’s the important part—apply those lessons to their jobs. When considering how to make learning effective, we focus on a variety of instructional design concepts that elevate our solutions, four of which we will discuss in this article: learning transfer, retention, multimedia design, and formative assessment.?

Learning Transfer?

Learning transfer is the process by which learners effectively integrate newly acquired knowledge, skills, and behaviors into their professional practices. In life sciences training, this involves crafting scenarios that mirror real-world situations. Guided practice opportunities in controlled environments directly prepare learners to apply their newly acquired expertise to the field. By contextualizing information and encouraging hands-on practice, training professionals bridge the gap between the training environment and the challenges learners face in their roles.?

Retention?

Learning retention occurs when information moves through our working memory (used for short-term processing) and into our long-term memory (used for storing information that can be recalled later). Retention strategies are vital in a field where complex concepts are the norm. Without learning retention, expensive and time-consuming training solutions can fail to result in behavior change and lead to minimal results in the field. Techniques such as spaced repetition, regular reinforcement, and multiple presentations and applications increase retention by scaffolding and chunking information into digestible pieces. By implementing these techniques, trainers can ensure that learners retain critical information over time and can draw upon it effortlessly in the field.?

Multimedia Design?

Multimedia design uses visual and interactive elements to enhance learning. By integrating graphics, animations, and narration, L&D professionals can cater to various learning styles and foster deeper comprehension and engagement. In life sciences training, this could mean using animations to illustrate intricate biological processes, incorporating narrations to demonstrate the patient journey, or even employing interactive simulations for verbalization and role-play. When strategically integrating a variety of visual, auditory, and interactive elements to deliver content in ways that maximize cognitive processing it is important to consider the learner’s cognitive load, redundancy of content, use of extraneous information, and the organization of information on screen.?

Formative Assessment?

Formative assessment involves the ongoing evaluation of learners’ progress throughout a training program, supplying prompt feedback that guides and refines the learning experience for both learners and L&D professionals. In life sciences training, this principle comes to life through knowledge checks, group discussions, and practical exercises. By gauging learners' understanding and adapting instruction based on their progress, L&D professionals ensure that the learning journey is targeted to their learners’ unique needs. It also serves as a way for learners to better assess their own understanding and fill in any gaps by accessing additional learning opportunities or reviewing previous content. This approach empowers both L&D professionals and learners to collaborate in refining the learning experience, resulting in more effective outcomes.?

These instructional design concepts are essential tools in your toolkit for crafting impactful life sciences training. By understanding and implementing learning transfer techniques, retention strategies, multimedia design principles, and formative assessment, you can create learning experiences that not only impart knowledge but also empower learners to confidently navigate their roles within the life sciences field.?

Introduction to the PI Explorer? and Clinical Study Explorer??

One way in which Illuminate applies these instructional design concepts is through our Explorer tools, the PI Explorer and Clinical Study (CS) Explorer. PI/CS Explorer is a Life Sciences Trainers & Educators Network (LTEN) Excellence Award-winning program. It is designed to help learners digest and apply the PI and pivotal studies by making them interactive, self-paced eLearning experiences. Learners build muscle memory by learning the PI and study in the order and layout in which the information is presented in the document. Annotations and interactivity provide context to complex subject matter and data. To date, over 400 Explorer products have been developed and deployed. This year, we unveiled the next generation of Explorer products.?

Tyler Caffelle, Senior Learning Technology Manager for Illuminate, has been with the team since 2014 and has driven many of Illuminate’s innovative technology solutions during his tenure. As a part of the Learning Technology team, Tyler creates engaging eLearning experiences for our clients, supports clients’ administration of our LMS product, Magister?, supports Magister? learners through our help desk, and consults with Business Development when crafting technology solutions for our clients. I had the chance to sit down with Tyler and learn more about our newest iteration of the PI and CS Explorers. ?

Interview?

Carly: Hello Tyler, thank you so much for talking with me today. You were at the forefront of developing the original PI and CS Explorer tools and have led the most recent evolution of the tools. Can you share a bit about where the original need for the Explorer tools came from??

Tyler: I’ve been looking forward to this for some time! PI Modules have long been the foundation of a field representative's education, and I’d suggest it is the most important as it dictates what can and can’t be said about the product. At Illuminate, we have always experimented with different formats for PI modules, whether print or e-versions, to make them as user-friendly and intuitive as possible as well as to maximize knowledge transfer.??

We always look for ways to innovate, even when there were only print based PI modules, but as the e-version became standard (and the standard was a bit bearish and boring), we really felt the need to explore more innovative, forward-thinking solutions. As we moved from a print-module version to a e-version format, we looked at 2 popular tools to train on the PI: An annotated PI, which was great visually, but lacked depth, and a PI Module, that certainly had the depth, but wasn’t as user-friendly, engaging, or aesthetically pleasing. We took the best of both to create PI Explorer. With the PI Explorer, learners can engage with the PI as a self-guided, interactive eLearning experience. Intentional instructional design elements provide additional context, reinforce key concepts, and allow for intermittent assessment. The feedback has been consistently positive.??

Carly: Can you describe the learner experience of using PI Explorer??

Tyler: From the start, learners are fully immersed in the PI. The sleek, modern interface should feel familiar to other apps or websites they may have used in the past.??

As users progress, every page becomes an actual page of the PI itself! Each page includes annotations that highlight, expand on, and contextualize the content of the PI. This creates muscle memory and recall of where information is. So, when they are in a doctor’s office and a question arises, they are now familiar with the PI and can quickly refer to it and navigate to the relevant section. Using our Explorer technology, we ensure that users absorb all the information they need to know on a given page before moving on.?

They also will be provided engaging activities such as Check Your Progress questions, flashcards, games such as “Move the Clinician” and “Prove It”.?

Learners will be able to access the information on the devices they most commonly use in the field such as their tablets and laptops.??

The Explorer tool fits into and works with your current LMS system. It can be built into the curriculum to reinforce ideas covered in earlier modules or eLearning experiences, all delivered as an omnichannel experience.?

We can customize everything from the colors to the look and feel to match your organization’s branding. Our talented team of developers have the skills and institutional knowledge to help make PI explorer your own. It’s your product, with Illuminate quality.?

Carly: What are some of the key features a learner can expect to encounter in the Explorer tool??

Tyler: As I mentioned, the interactivity portions will be something learners encounter throughout the piece. Learners can also expect to interact with images, audio files, videos, and hyperlinks. For example, if there is a study website with more information on clinical trials or a provider resource portal that is useful when discussing specific parts of the PI, those can be linked directly within the PI Explorer. We have many standard instructional call-outs for topics like Clinical Concepts, Safety Notes, and Key Points but each PI Explorer is unique, and we ensure every element is designed to best support learning outcomes.??

In addition, we include a full glossary with an optional pronunciation guide for words that are challenging to pronounce or often read but not heard. When reps are trying to establish credibility as a trusted source during sales calls, mispronouncing key clinical terms is the fastest way to lose rapport with clinicians. This tool helps the reps to learn the pronunciations in context and prepare them for real-world interactions.??

Carly: What if a certain audience needs a type of annotation or instructional call-out that you haven’t used before??

Tyler: We have a “toolbox” of instructional features that we can use for a multitude of purposes. If a request comes in for a feature that we haven’t worked with before we consult with our medical and learning strategy team who work to identify the most effective solution. Then, our design and learning technology teams work to make it a reality, specific to your Explorer. For example, perhaps you have a specific marketing message that you would like to include. We can create a unique icon to call out that information.??

We also work with clients to assess if their learners would benefit from a printable version of the PI Explorer to help those users who have trouble learning digitally or who prefer to have a hardcopy to highlight and reference back to.?

Carly: What are some of the ways that the Explorer tools reinforce learning??

Tyler: Each of our thoughtful instructional features serves to reinforce learning throughout the Explorer experience. By presenting information in multiple ways while highlighting the key information within the document, we engage different processing pathways and make visual and conceptual connections that can help ease recall.?

The interactive experiences that are embedded throughout the tool also help with recall. For example, after the learner has reviewed the Adverse Events section of the PI, they can then quiz themselves on the occurrence rates using flashcards, and then be prompted to respond to potential objections from a provider related to adverse events. These interactions help facilitate learning transfer and increase retention so the rep can easily recall essential information once they are in the field.??

Additionally, once completed, the PI Explorer is “ungated”. Meaning that the end user can go in and freely navigate to the location they are looking for to get that information. We hear all the time that after initial completion field representatives go back to this tool time and time again to refresh their understanding of key information. I think we all can agree we didn’t hear that happening very often with a PI module.?

Carly: Are the results of the Check Your Progress questions and assessments tracked anywhere??

Tyler: Since Explorer products can be exported as SCORM files they can be hosted on your LMS just like any other eLearning module. This way we can send completion and assessment results directly to the system.??

Carly: In this newest iteration, what are some of the key improvements and developments that were included???

Tyler: First, we redesigned the user interface from the ground up to be more intuitive. This new interface meets learners where they are with a more familiar UX and sleek UI that aligns to how learners are accustomed to consuming content. A sleek and easy-to-use interface enables quick and easy uptake by users as their attention can be focused on the content, not figuring out the functionality of the program.?

We also created a robust, interactive tutorial to teach learners how to use the tool. This tutorial is available before beginning the PI Explorer and can be accessed and referenced at any time if a question comes up during the learning experience.?

Carly: Thank you so much for your time, Tyler, and for all this valuable information. I am impressed with the thoughtfulness and innovation that went into this development process.???

How does PI Explorer Incorporate ID Concepts??

As we learned from Tyler, PI Explorer does a great job at supporting learning transfer. It reinforces learning through key points, clinical concepts, flashcards, Check Your Progress questions, and assessments, but because this happens within the PI itself, the learning isn't isolated to that event. When the learners are in the field and they pull out that static, now familiar, PI document, they know exactly how to navigate it, where the key information is, and why it is important.?

Multiple presentations and application opportunities for important concepts and data within the PI allows learners to practice recalling it in diverse ways, which improves overall retention. As Tyler mentioned, PI Explorer itself also becomes ungated after the initial completion and has a handy print version so learners can use it as a reference tool to continually reinforce the content.?

PI Explorer does an excellent job of incorporating a variety of different multi-media presentations, many of which Tyler described in our conversation. One strategic application multimedia design that PI Explorer does particularly well is the principle of spatial contiguity. This principle states that learners learn best when relevant text and visuals are presented physically close together. In the PIX we see this in the way that the relevant text on the PI is highlighted in the same color that the associated annotation is labeled, and that annotation opens in close proximity to the highlight. In this way it is easy for the learner to associate the added context with the relevant information in the document and ultimately refer back to it in the future.??

The inclusion of flashcards, embedded games, Check Your Progress questions, and other innovative interactions serve as formative assessments that allow learners to assess their own understanding based on their performance. They can then determine in the moment where they should go back and review again or identify questions to ask of their managers and peers. As a bonus, this process of empowering learners to evaluate their own understanding of content helps them to develop self-efficacy and become more efficient learners in the future. Administrators can review the outcomes of these assessments and then use that information to identify gaps in understanding and assess needs for future training on the content.?

It is no wonder we have had so many clients incorporate the PIX as an integral part of their product training. It is a powerful instructional tool that has revolutionized the previously cut-and-dry, didactic PI training modules.??

If you are interested in learning more about PI Explorer or seeing a demo, please contact Brian Kane at [email protected] .?

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