Creating Content Through The Lens Of Education
Content creators online are becoming a trusted go-to source for knowledge and expertise in today's digital world. The internet naturally facilitates this transition and has allowed online content creators to have a much greater reach and become much more influential. This decentralisation of the creation of knowledge is an important step away from some of the challenges found in conventional centralised knowledge generating institutions, such as universities. Although it is a fantastic opportunity, content creators should be held accountable for the quality of the content they create. For content creators who are making educational content, it is important to maximise the educational benefits consumers of their content receive.
When creating content, it is a good idea to have a curriculum. A curriculum, also known as a syllabus, is the the content (the What) and the pedagogical approaches (the How) used to deliver that content. An explicit curriculum provides an overarching guide during the content creation process. Utilising tried and tested approaches and systems on the What and How of your content can save time and greatly improve the overall quality of your content as well.
Below are some questions an educator may ask themselves when considering the content they are creating.
Are any known theories of teaching and learning applicable here?
Are a variety of mediums and activities used to keep the content interesting and engaging?
Is there an optimal sequence to the content?
Are the learning outcomes clearly defined and the content and activities targeted towards achieving them?
Have approaches such as spaced-repetition and reflective questioning been incorporated to help consumers internalise the content?
Are the activities cognitively engaging or are they mechanical in nature?
A Closer Look At How We Can Help
There is a multiplicity of models and frameworks, theories and approaches in the field of education that can guide and assist you in creating content. New content can consist of knowledge and/or skills the content creator is teaching others about. There are numerous benefits to be gleaned by deploying the science of education to your content. Perhaps one of the greatest benefits to be conferred, is once some of these principles are in plan there will be structure to your content creation, greatly reducing stress and saving time.
The Long-Term Plan
Right from the get-go, the goal and purpose of your content should be known. With this in mind, a long-term plan of what you want to deliver should be known and sequenced. This sequence should be logical and progressive where possible. Once a long-term plan is in place, your daily actions have a purpose.
Specified Learning Outcomes
Learning outcomes are what you want your learners to know by the end of a video, a chapter or part of your course. This could be knowledge and/or skills. Learning outcomes can be broken down into the component parts that would need to be acquired in order to achieve the learning outcome. This can then be used to filter what should or shouldn't be included in the content to make it more concise.
Educational Cycles / Models / Frameworks
Learning cycles provide a sequence of steps to allow learners to engage with content. There are many different learning cycles, but they often follow a similar pattern:
1. Encounter new content
2. Engage with new content
3. Explore new content
4. Apply new content
5. Evaluate new content
Cognitive Demand of Tasks
Activities/tasks can help learners of content internalise what they are trying to learn. Tasks can be designed to require different amounts of work from the brain. Tasks can then be sequenced in a progressive manner to assist the learning process. Tasks can vary from the simplest - copying, all the way to the most advanced - creating.
