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15 Sep 2023
Are VR simulations necessary?
Blogpost, eLearning creativ technologies 0 comment

Are VR simulations so necessary for training? 

AI has added a new scope and dimension to companies’ learning and development initiatives. The term technical training has acquired a new context with the development of AI. But chatbots are no longer adequate to answer the queries of the employees. Companies must develop and implement large language models (LLM) that can answer employees in real time. 

How does the AI function? 

A large language model functions with a transformer model, which reads and simplifies the text, and then the LLM produces the text in response to human questions. A transformer model was first invented in 2017 when this neural network structure-based model was used to convert one kind of input into another. This neural network was used to produce French from English. 

The companies can now use large language models that can browse the complicated company manuals with a transformer model so that employees can use them to search for information. They can analyze the company’s compliance database compared to chatbots, which only provide employees with basic information.

Let’s talk about VR simulations:

Although the Metaverse is the coolest thing to have hit the industry now, it’s not always the best answer. The first reason for criticizing this much-celebrated simulations-based technology is that employees are taken from work for a long time, which is not feasible in every industry.

Companies must make critical decisions like where to use the simulations based technology to get the best return.

The companies have to create a plan and then follow it to ensure that such technologies are not overused, leading to an excess budget. 

However, immersive learning is needed when it comes to learning technical skills for employees, like using heavy machinery. The employees can’t be trained on using such machines in person due to the cost of accidents. When AR/VR-based technologies are used, the solution happens in a simplified manner because the learners imbibe the exact manner in which a robot or machine has to be used during their work. 

In certain industries like manufacturing and healthcare, it’s the demand of the competition to use such technologies. 

Pros

  • Industrial demand: 

It’s the job of the L&D professionals to see that success equals prudence, too, and using technologies like augmented reality/virtual reality is well justified. It can only happen when they have done a thorough analysis to prove why such simulation-based technologies were the best solution possible in a certain situation.

They can also implement a small program to check whether the investment in AR/VR systems is necessary, and then scale up everything if necessary.

  • Better results: 

They can lead to lesser costs and lead to easier recall. In such a situation, making employees learn about surgeries through such technologies is the most effective way to create efficient surgeons of the future with the least possible training time. 

Cons 

  • Need for data collection: 

Implementing VR is another task, but collecting data after its execution is also equally important. This data helps the company analyze whether the learners are truly gaining anything from this implementation. If the learners find any problems with the simulation that they cannot fully engage in the experience, it is time to contact the vendor.

Who uses the VR experience to learn and cannot understand anything? All this data has to be collected by a company before implementing VR for training. 

Why is data collection necessary? 

The data needs to be collected according to the stakeholders who are responsible for making decisions about implementing this technology. xAPI is a brilliant way to capture all the data about a user’s movements during virtual reality technology, where his hands are positioned on the controllers. For example, when the learner is putting off fire in a simulation, how long does it take to do that?

Does he consider certain other factors before taking that decision, like how many people had to be evacuated before the fire was extinguished?

In this kind of simulation, did the learner consider the number of people in the room who had to be evacuated? If the fire could not be extinguished, the occupants had to be evacuated, but it was not the case when it was possible to douse the fire(Decision point). Also, it is important to set a milestone so that the time taken by the learner to extinguish the fire is measured(Milestone).

 So, when the learner’s time exceeds that milestone, he can’t be considered relevant for the job. All this data assortment is necessary for VR/AR to generate successful results in a company and be considered a useful training resource. Whether VR simulations actually lead to intended training results causing a better performance in the company, or does the performance between a simulation and real-life events differ? 

In every decision a learner takes, it’s important to evaluate the chain of events, like when a learner took a certain decision. He might have extinguished the fire when he saw people running, not when the smoke alarms started beeping. So, such a learner needs more training, depending on his slow reaction to the beeping smoke alarms. 

Midway:

Blended learning is a better approach than virtual reality training. It’s because a company needs to analyze data like learners who were trained before performed better in VR simulations. Was it necessary to distribute instructions to elicit a better response from learners? 

At Creativ Technologies, we provide 2D simulations for our clients so that they can provide unrestricted learning experiences to their employees. With the right integration of authoring tools and craftsmanship, our niche simulations have been used by clients all over the world for focused experiential learning.

30 Aug 2023
simulations
Blogpost, eLearning creativ technologies 0 comment

How has the creation of simulations evolved over the years?

The simulations are now being used for all kinds of eLearning in the corporate world.

Importance of simulations for banking training:

For example, simulations have been extremely useful in banks, where they can be used for explaining to the employees what can be the harmful effects of making wrong decisions.

They are taught how various situations can affect the balance sheet of a bank.

In such simulations, various factors become more understandable to banking employees like how they must cope with poor business conditions which happens when there is a recession in the economy and banks don’t get many lending opportunities.

When the banking employees see a change in numbers due to any alteration in regulatory conditions like a hike in interest rates, they learn how to adapt to such situations. Also, there can be problems when the central bank increases interest rates to curb inflation.

When the central banks increase interest rates, the cost of lending increases, and hence banks have to increase their own interest rates to earn profits. The interest rates are increased and banks have to convey to the borrower the reasons behind them to maintain their loyalty. It’s because their loans go for a toss in such situations and hence, they must know how their decisions influence assets and liabilities.

These and many more changes in external factors require intelligent decision-making by banking employees, and this skill gets enhanced through a simulator. The simulation shows how the assets and liabilities of a bank change as a consequence of the changes in such factors, and how to cope with such situations.

Simulations before 1980s:

A simulation showcases a business situation. When this happens, the businesses know how to leverage or emerge as a survivor in such a situation. They understand the challenges of a situation as a whole, rather than being absorbed in the complexities of the situation.

Now, due to authoring tools, creating simulations is not as tough as before.

The simulations were however initially not so popular. This was because there had been no advent of eLearning authoring tools. So, it was quite complicated to create simulations using programming and generating computer variables. The users could not be given simple variables for decision-making, due to which it was tough for them to understand and learn. Therefore, the users could not establish any relations between the variables chosen in decisions and their results. Consequently, the earlier simulations could not fulfil any kind of learning goals of clients. Hence, making simulations simple was required.

How were simulations created back then?

There was a need for creating graphic characters from scratch using design software and then creating body movements and gestures for them through Flash.

Apart from that, it was also required to use programming languages such as C++ and Java to showcase the behavior of the elements in such simulations after any option was chosen, like the user would see a pop-up on screen after he chose any option in a quiz.

Creation of Simulations after invention of authoring tools:

Firstly, the authoring tools have templates, elements, and characters designed for a specific business situation. Even gestures and facial expressions have been created to depict situations.

Therefore, the creators just need to drag and drop animated characters and other elements into templates to create situations. There is no coding required to create templates.

Benefits of using authoring tools for creating simulations:

  • No need for programming:

Moreover, programming is also not needed to create branching scenarios in such simulations. The eLearning authoring tools are already well-endowed with the triggers and the users just have to choose the options.

They contain triggers that are invoked as a user chooses a certain option in a pre-built quiz, and then the user is enlightened about his choice.  Therefore, the user can be presented with many options in terms of situations and quizzes.

  • Immediate feedback received:

Another advantage of these simulations is that since they can be produced so quickly, feedback can be sought immediately from the client. So, the procedure to produce these simulations is quite agile. Changes are made often, and the client does not have to wait for a certain time to offer feedback before the final results are shown to him. Different scenarios can be prepared, produced and altered till they satisfy a client in terms of end results.

  • Easier collaboration:

Since these authoring tools are hosted on cloud-based servers, the graphic designers can work alongside them with SMEs who can tell them whether a certain situation has been shown correctly. When they find anything wrong with a situation, they ask the graphic designers to correct it immediately.

25 Aug 2023
Create instructional video with Mayer's principles
Blogpost, eLearning creativ technologies 0 comment

How to make an instructional video using Mayer’s principles?

Instructional videos are at the core of learning now. But how to ensure that the learners remember everything? It’s not so simple. The learners don’t watch a video completely, hence an organization cannot transmit all the information. Moreover, learners can also not pay attention to a video while watching it, which means they go through it for entertainment purposes only.

Hence, in that case, the businesses cannot ensure that an instructional video has created the cognitive impact that they wanted to create. Due to a lack of understanding, the video is not stored in the long-term memory of a learner.

The eLearning companies USA know how to create the perfect instructional video for the learners which makes them focus. The research has proven over the years that when certain features are used in videos, user engagement is more. For example, in the case of demo videos, highlight boxes can be used to capture the attention of learners. Such boxes make users understand which button to press to complete or initiate a certain action. With the use of highlight boxes, the users can be made to remember such minute information for a long time. 

There are certain principles suggested by Mayer which are necessary to follow to have the maximum impact of a video. 

  • Signaling principle:

The first principle of signaling says that the user needs to be signaled that something important is about to come on the screen through narration or other means so that attention is maximized toward that slide only.

So, just like highlight boxes, in the case of text, we have blockquotes where a certain text is enlarged and enclosed with quotes to make sure that the user pays attention. The user does not know what to watch keenly, he can only do so when his attention is diverted to the important part.

Therefore, signaling is important because there is so much information contained in a slide, that the user can’t retain everything. But when important text is shaded, users know that it needs attention.  

  • Temporal Continuity Principle:

The temporal continuity principle is also crucial, as per which the users get the best explanation of things when the visuals and the text are shown on the screen simultaneously.

This implies that the audio and visuals should be displayed on the screen at the same time. The user gets the best understanding of the screen when both audio and video happen together, rather than audio coming after the animation.

  • Pre-training principle:

The pre-training principle of designing multimedia elements states that the users must have been given an introduction so that they can get the best out of the video. Such an introduction makes sure that the learners are not confused by the visuals included in the first slide, but rather comprehend them.

Hence, pre-training is critical before imparting the actual training.

A little history of the topics and the meaning of basic terms included in the module can be provided to the learners before the instructional video begins. 

  • Personalization Principle:

The personalization principle is also important for an instructional video as per which the user understands a simple language than the use of difficult words.

Hence, instead of using the third-person tone, it’s better to use the second-person tone to ensure the user understands. This is the basic principle behind localization also, where the use of complex words in the narration avoids forming a connection with the audience. 
  • Image principle:

Image principle is also vital in making a better instructional video where the use of visuals is better for human understanding rather than talking heads. In the talking head video, a human narrator explains the basic concepts, but the learners might not be interested in listening to him.

So, relevant visuals should be used to explain the concepts to the learners. Mayer has stated that when a talking head is included in a video, it does not mean better learning results. Research is still getting conducted on whether talking head videos are effective for learning or not.

A talking head in the video means that the source of the information is credible. It can be used at the beginning or the end of the video but refrain from using it throughout. Instead, the visuals should be used for a better understanding of the audience.

The following assumptions have been used to formulate these principles: 

  • The Limited-Capacity Assumption:

There is the limited capacity information stated by Mayer, which forms the basis of all his work. As per this assumption, most humans only have two-three channels of information that they can focus on. So, they can’t watch all the news channels at the same time, rather just one or two.

Similarly, they can’t understand five or seven actions at the same time in a module, rather their attention must be put to two or three. Hence, the important information must be highlighted in a module so that they understand everything because their cognitive load must be limited. 

  • Active-processing information:

Humans have to be made to understand, rather than expecting them to absorb everything which is fed/transmitted to them. This can cause problems for the learners.

So, to tap into their cognitive load, it’s better to organize knowledge into visual and auditory chunks. This knowledge can also be supplemented with the introductory session so that users can correlate it.

The learners must be able to build up knowledge by linking together auditory and visual pieces of information.

Hence, keeping these assumptions in mind and following the above-listed principles, an instructional video must be prepared. 

23 Aug 2023
Technical training advantages
Blogpost, eLearning creativ technologies 0 comment

What are the uses of technical training?

Technical training has made its way into our lives due to the rapid proliferation of technology. Now, everybody is using software to streamline tasks, whether it’s marketing professionals or other people. With technical skills, anyone can finish daily tasks faster. Companies want to find employees who have the requisite skills for the job. Every organization is using software for data entry these days, and it’s imperative that the professionals are accustomed to using it.

Knowledge means power. When an employee does not have the needed skills, it can also endanger a company’s operations.

What is technical training?

Technical training is not the same thing as IT training, which involves just learning IT-based software.

It means learning that software that is just required for routine tasks. By knowing how to use such software, the employees can follow the processes competently, and lead to better results for the company.

Examples of requirements for technical training:

An employee who does not have the knowledge of how to set the temperature of a refrigeration unit in an inventory can cause the perishable goods to be destroyed, leading to losses. The company can lose its goods meant for sale.

Also, the same happens when an employee is not able to convert a lead because no prior information was stored about the former in a CRM. The employee does not attend to him in time because he is not aware that the person is interested in buying. Today, theoretical knowledge is not enough for employees, and they must have skills-based technical training to deal with the practical duties of a job.

Importance in the manufacturing industry:

In industries such as manufacturing and construction, technical training can’t be taken lightly. The employees must have a complete understanding of how to operate the machines, otherwise, it can cause accidents. For example, there is software that lets employees know about the maintenance schedule of the machines.

But for being able to leverage such software, technical training is important. When a machine is not taken care of in time, it can lead to a lot of downtime for the company. Furthermore, when an employee is not given technical training on machines, he can produce a lot of defective output in trying to learn the functioning.

Moreover, the employees must be trained on how to use simple software for filing reports. This is important in the case of hospitals as well, where any wrong information entered in the system can prove to be hazardous. When the employees don’t know how to enter a patient’s information correctly, it can cause problems like a wrong diagnosis, inability to connect to his insurer, etc.

Also, it can prove to be problematic when the information gets wrong hands because the protocols of how to keep data safe have not been followed like locking the PCs when leaving the desk etc.

Needed in every industry:

Technical training is now needed in every aspect of the business.

It is needed in project management, communications, social media marketing, and customer servicing. So, no employee of the company can be deprived of such training. In fact, every industry is now using such software to get ahead, so this kind of training is needed everywhere. With the lack of technical skills, it’s impossible to hire the right candidates for the job. The requirement for technical training can’t be ignored because such developments have become so rampant. There is a need for knowing such software in every other profession now.

When the employees are not trained, customer satisfaction gets adversely affected. For example, just imagine an employee not knowing how to access data through customer relationship management software, which can make him pester an uninterested customer with calls. This can hamper a business’s growth because its reputation is affected.

For example, even HR employees need to be trained in using human capital management software. This software ensures that the HR is able to conduct their operations properly which involves interviewing employees, onboarding them, and handling their compensation matters. With the use of this software, HR can streamline its operations and store employee data in one place. When HR uses this software, it can ensure that the return on its investment in human resources is maximized.

Moreover, employees also need to be acquainted with SaaS company software because when they can’t assist customers on how to use the same, the sales can decline. Customers are able to use the product and just start using options; hence, companies can get a better return with more knowledgeable CSR employees. Such employees can walk customers through the product, enabling them to learn it faster.

Benefits for employees:

  • Better engagement: When a company invests in technical training, not only it gets a better workforce, but it also leads to enhanced confidence. They are more invested in their jobs because they know all the software. They are not hindered by their lack of knowledge in anything.
  • Satisfied employees: Skilled employees are more satisfied in their jobs because they don’t have the fear of termination. They also know how to reach their goals easily. For example, an employee who knows how to use the CRM software better knows what a customer wants to buy and can adapt his sales pitch accordingly. With this software, he wastes no time trying to sell products to the uninterested people.
11 Aug 2023
implementation of skill development
Blogpost, eLearning creativ technologies 0 comment

How to create a skill development program? 

Skill development is an important term for every individual now. Although the company might implement such programs for employees, problems can occur when employees are reluctant to accept them. The employees are not so eager to pursue such programs because they have their growth trajectory already planned in their minds. They might have planned to join a bigger company. Also, the company might implement a skill development program, but the employees might refuse to participate in it. 

The employees might also decide to do upskilling on their own terms without getting any contribution from the company. This happens when the employee is completely acquainted with his skill development. But this is often not the case because he is not aware of his goals.

The company can guide him on how to attain such goals through upskilling. So, a company can support an employee in his skill development initiatives by ensuring that he knows what to learn to fulfill his career-related aspirations.

The L&D group has experience in suggesting the right training strategy for upskilling an employee. The employees must also have an interest in upskilling themselves because if they don’t then the company is just wasting money on them. They might not be willing to learn any new skills. A company can make sure its skill development programs are successful by following these steps:

  • Ensure mistakes of the past are not repeated:

The L&D team must ensure that it has done considerable research on what employees did for their upskilling in the past. It can reveal a wealth of information to the team because it can cover why such programs didn’t strike a chord with the employees. The L&D team gains a complete idea of what was wrong in the prior skill development program, whether it was not using the right technique or whether the material was outdated.

So, in the new program, they can avoid all such loopholes. The L&D team can check the need analyses on which such older programs were based and detect what such programs did not contain. It’s because the programs didn’t follow the needs analysis correctly. If they had, they might not have missed the employees’ needs.

  • Use mentoring:

Mentoring can aid a company in uncovering an employee’s skill development needs. When an employee approaches a mentor, he has a guide who knows how to solve his troubles. The mentee can resolve his/her problems through the mentor by utilizing his knowledge and experience.

Mentoring is useful for a company in discovering what kind of skill development is needed by an employee. Mentors can help him forge a plan for growth and development in his career. The employee can hence be soon on the right skill development path and get promoted within his company.

  • Such development must happen on a company-wide scale

The L&D teams also need to understand that upskilling must happen on a large scale. It should not be restricted to a specific department. When the company understands such initiatives need to happen throughout the organization, they tend to encourage growth-based psychology.

Companies have to understand that they can’t ignore any department when it comes to upskilling because all the employees need to be agile. When the company has focussed well on skill development, it can handle any changes in the business environment involving technologies. It can make sure that it does not lose out to competitors because of a delayed response to changes in market conditions. 

The skill development programs need to take into account an entire organization because then the trained employees can have better skills and be more adept at handling challenges. They can easily understand the jobs of other departments which leads to a better collaboration with them.

Skill development is necessary for both junior-level employees so that they don’t resign from their jobs. On the other hand, it’s also important for top-level employees so they can be trained for future leadership.

Advantages of skill development:

  • Compliance training:

Companies can’t ignore the need for skill development in different departments because compliance regulations need to be taken care of.

The employees can’t be expected to commit mistakes when they have been trained properly in the latest rules.

  • Better image:

Companies that focus on skill development often create a positive image for themselves in the eyes of investors and clients. With their better trustworthiness, they are likely to create a better name for themselves in the market. When a company focuses on a bigger skill development program, then it can ensure that there are no problems at any level of the organization.

  • Technical changes:

It’s because all the employees are competent enough to do their jobs after training. In today’s times, the older ways of an organization’s functioning are changing due to technology taking over. Hence, skill development needs to happen in sales, marketing, finance, and HR to update employees.

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He was a German psychologist who is known for discovering the forgetting curve. According to this curve, the biggest decline in memory happens within 20 minutes, and then 1 hour.