Basic Parent Training & Vyond Motion Graphic Videos
What do you get when U.S. Air Force Academy appointees enter basic training for six weeks and the Basics (Doolies, as first year students are called) have their cell phones taken away? A lot of worried parents.
A shift in parenting styles in recent decades along with smartphones has meant parents are accustomed to knowing what is going on in their son or daughter's life at most times of the day. Going into the "information dark" for weeks at a time is no easy task.
These young adults are going through Basic Cadet Training and Spaid eLearning Associates put together a Basic Parent Training course with videos that mimic in an entertaining and informative way, the experience of their son or daughter.
Vyond is a motion graphics and video creation platform that Spaid eLearning Associates uses frequently as a way to setup situations to be discussed throughout the course, which places context to course learning objectives. These videos are embedded into Articulate Storyline 360, the online course development platform.
At the Academy, in just a few months, the Doolies seemingly begin to speak their own language. There is a lot of military terminology used and parents are able to inform themselves through an online glossary built into each course.
Parents are presented with real-world scenarios and are assessed through interactive questions. As shown below, in this drag-and-drop exercise, responding incorrectly incurred a strong rebuke from the cadre. The Vyond characters are imported either as static of animated GIF images overlapped within the course screen, an effective way of integrating Vyond and Articulate Storyline 360.
Vyond has numerous graphic styles, which allows us as a developer flexibility in choosing one style versus another. The business style has more life-like characters and is terrific for depicting relationship interactions using expressions. The contemporary style is more simplified and we find it is a good option for presenting conceptual information. In some instances, it is entirely reasonable to mix styles within the same video.
The parent curriculum being designed includes 60 Second Skills. These are brief motion graphic videos using the Vyond contemporary style to present some terrific ideas for parents or to encapsulate information to highlight outside of a course.
Feedback on the courses have so far been terrific. One parent wrote: "Great guidance for Cadet Parents! Our daughter graduated, but I can see mistakes that I wish I'd known to avoid. This will be a significant blessing to those looking for guidance as they begin their journey!"
Vyond has empowered us to present emotionally touchy topics in such a cheerful and light-hearted way that it disarms what could otherwise be a preachy tone to which no one would otherwise subject themselves.
For more information about how to "make media that moves," visit Vyond. To learn more about how Spaid eLearning Associates can assist you in your own course development, email us at info@spaidassociates.com.