Category: Avallain Magnet

eLearning Authoring Software: 4 Reasons Instructional Designers Love It

Posted on by Yerbol Adamov

eLearning authoring software is helping publishers, universities and corporations produce online courses and training programs at an unprecedented rate. In this post, we break down the top 4 reasons why.

eLearning authoring software is a creative tool used by instructional designers to create and deliver high-quality eLearning content.

There are two general types of authoring software:

  • Standalone software that offers advanced authoring capabilities. Standalone authoring tools also have publishing functionality, but they need a destination to deliver the content (learning platform, website, mobile or web application, etc). Standalone software can fully integrate with a learning management system as an all-in-one solution. 
  • Prebuilt authoring tools with limited authoring and publishing capabilities, included in learning management systems or all-in-one solutions.

In this blog, we’re focusing more on standalone eLearning authoring software.

While each type has unique specialisations, having dedicated authoring tools for creating learning content offers a number of benefits for publishers, univeirsities and businesses.

Reason #1: Better Learning Outcomes

The main benefit of eLearning authoring software is how easy it makes the process of creating customised learning content. Using advanced features and multimedia functionality, course designers can rapidly create more engaging and interactive content. And that can have a profound impact on learning outcomes.

In online courses, interactivity is defined as requiring students to engage with content through different senses, tools or actions. Courses with higher levels of interactivity tend to provide greater learning outcomes. 

For example, an exercise requiring students to read a passage, listen to audio and complete a question uses multiple touchpoints to reinforce a concept, producing a better learning result.

Reason #2: Content and Asset Management 

To create better learning outcomes with more engaging and interactive content, you need more than just a way to create said content. You need a way to manage it all in one place. This is where online authoring tools excel. 

eLearning authoring software provides full flexibility and overview of your assets when it comes to storing and structuring your content. This is helpful because you will likely reuse the same content for different learning products in order to stay as efficient as possible and get the most out of each created piece of content. 

Another component of content and asset management is version visibility. This allows you to identify which piece is the latest version so you can quickly update content or even restore an older version as needed. This also provides full control over all your media and other assets. You know exactly when it was uploaded, by who, as part of what content and learning product. Then, you can update or replace the asset with just one click everywhere. 

Lastly, content and asset management needs to be backed by high security and performance. Standalone authoring tools offer state-of-the-art shared or dedicated cloud-hosting solutions, providing instructional designers with the utmost security and performance of their data and assets. 

Reason #3: Production & Project Management

Another benefit of authoring software is that it offers robust production and project management capabilities alongside content creation.

In the same way that marketing teams or video developers use project management software to track their deadlines and resources, authoring software can serve as a production management tool to help instructional design teams.

eLearning authoring software allows designers to work with different stages and workflows to match editorial workflows, such as “in progress,” “final draft,” “approved” and “published.” Also, you can work with different user roles and rights to seamlessly get your offline team processes and responsibilities mirrored online. If wished, you can easily and safely work with outsourced capacities. 

This is particularly useful for design teams and publishers who have to work on concurrent projects, meet deadlines and track the performance of their work. With a more structured way to create and manage learning content, many teams find that their designers can work faster and more flexibly.

Reason #4: Integrations

A final benefit of authoring software is its ability to integrate with your learning management system (LMS) or learning experience platform (LXP) software or solution. Using industry standards such as xAPI or Scorm, most common authoring applications allow you to publish a course to a connected LMS or LXP for users to enjoy.

However, eLearning software integrations are most successful and beneficial to instructional designers when the standalone authoring tool integrates with an LMS or LXP from the same brand. To understand why, let’s look at all possible combinations:

Standalone Authoring Tool + Different Brand LMS/LXP

When you use a standalone authoring tool and an LMS or LXP from different vendors, complications may arise during publishing.

For example, content may not display precisely in the platform in the way it was initially authored, and publishing processes may require cumbersome manual import/export. Also, when it comes to updating your content, you may have to update the same content piece in each single course – instead of clicking once to update across everything. 

Prebuilt Authoring Tool Within LMS/LXP

Alternatively, you can opt for a prebuilt authoring tool within an LMS or LXP, making the publishing and updating process much smoother. However, you miss out on the benefits of standalone eLearning software—including engaging content with a lot of variety, powerful content and asset management features, production, workflow and project management features, and more.

Standalone Authoring Tool + Same Brand LMS/LXP (All-In-One) 

This leads us to an all-in-one solution that offers a standalone authoring tool and an LMS/LXP from the same brand, perfectly tuned to each other and seamlessly integrated. You get the benefits of both worlds: Full features of a standalone solution and smooth and quick publishing and updating processes. 

Conclusion

Instructional designers are creating online courses and digital training experiences faster than ever thanks to eLearning authoring software. From better learning outcomes to project management functionality, authoring software offers a number of benefits for publishers, universities and businesses looking to level up their online courses.

Need eLearning tools for authoring, distributing and managing your content? Avallain can help. Tell us more about your needs today.

What Is eLearning Software?

Posted on by Yerbol Adamov

Demand for engaging and informative online courses has never been greater. But producing these types of content at scale is no easy task. In this post, we’ll break down what eLearning software is and how it helps organisations create better courses. 

eLearning software is a digital tool that a company, organisation or individual uses to create learning content and experiences online. In some ways, eLearning software is an umbrella term that comprises numerous subcategories of specialised learning software.

While researching eLearning software, you’re likely to come across dozens of synonyms for the term. These include, to name a few:

  • Learning management system
  • Online training system
  • Content authoring tools
  • Digital instructional design
  • Digital learning software
  • Instructional design tools
  • Online training platform for business
  • Learning experience platforms

Each subcategory of eLearning software provides unique specialisations or features. But one thing they all have in common is their ability to create or distribute content and learning experiences online.

Traditionally, learning software was delivered offline, but this is becoming less common every day. Now the industry-standard for learning is the software-as-a-service (SaaS) model, which offers a higher level of performance and flexibility.

How Does eLearning Software Work?

Producing an online course involves two steps: creation (or authoring) and distribution. eLearning software provides course designers a virtual environment for each.

The administration environment is where platform administrators will manage courses, products and the platform. The environment is also designed to provide the optimal user and learning management experience for the organisation operating the platform.

The frontend environment is where the end users, such as teachers, trainers, students and learners engage with the content and courses, as well as with each other. The design of this environment is focused on providing a positive user experience for the person taking – and the person grading – the course.

Types of eLearning Software

While there are dozens of providers of eLearning software – each with their own specialisation – they all fit into four general categories.

Comprehensive or All-in-One Software

Comprehensive eLearning software delivers both authoring and distribution functionalities in a single package.

This allows you to create, deliver and manage the entire learning experience, from inception to engagement with end users.

All-in-one software has become popular because you get the benefits of two platforms for the price of one, without losing functionality. 

Authoring functionality for all-in-one solutions is usually either built-in, which often limits their capabilities, or achieved through seamless integration with a more robust authoring tool that has better features and functionality.

Some providers also offer solutions that allow you to customise your learning platforms, such as adding your own branding. These solutions check all the boxes of comprehensive software, but allow for a greater degree of customisation and flexibility.

It’s worth noting that a cutting-edge all-in-one solution should offer the capabilities of both a learning management system (LMS) and a learning experience platform (LXP), depending on the individual requirements and demands of its users.

(More on that in a bit.)

Online Authoring Tools

Online authoring tools are solely dedicated to the creation of eLearning content. They cannot deliver the content to end users. However, they do have the capability to export content via API (such as xAPI and SCORM) or by publishing directly to a connected learning platform.

Authoring tools have three main use cases:

  • Publishers use them to both digitalise their educational content and create more interactive digital content
  • Corporates use them to create and maintain high quality training courses for their employees
  • Agencies use them to create content that they can then sell to publishers or corporates

Learning Management System

A learning management system (LMS) is a software application for the administration, and delivery of educational courses and training programs. Put simply, an LMS helps you manage every stage of delivering a learning experience to an audience.

There are standalone learning management systems on the market, but in many ways LMS represents a range of functionality that other applications provide. For example, an all-in-one solution might provide LMS features.

Learning Experience Platforms

A learning experience platform (LXP) is a new type of application that’s having a huge impact on the way the industry thinks about learning content. An LXP is essentially all-in-one publishing software but with a higher level of features and functionality that fosters a better user experience.

LXPs help you create personalised learning experiences through a number of innovative features, including:

  • Gamification
  • Personalised dashboards
  • Advanced reporting capabilities 
  • Artificial intelligence 

Conclusion

Engaging online learning experiences don’t happen by accident. eLearning software makes it easier than ever to create and deliver courses to users anywhere.

Need eLearning tools for authoring, distributing and managing your content? Tell us more about your needs today.

Introducing Avallain Magnet – the end-to-end learning management system

Posted on by Yerbol Adamov

For almost 20 years, Avallain has provided the world’s most ambitious publishing houses and companies with the unique experience they require. Not to mention, with the ground-breaking technology they need to implement highly successful digital education and e-learning projects.

As industries evolve, so do their requirements, and we understand their need for an end-to-end learning management system (LMS) and learning experience platform (LXP) with top-rated e-learning features and immediate availability.

Enter: Avallain Magnet – Avallain’s new learning platform solution with powerful learning, product, and user management functions that can be implemented immediately. All in a fully intuitive user interface developed with cutting-edge features which seamlessly integrate with our leading e-learning authoring tool, Avallain Author. 

End-to-end LMS also means limitless content creation

Avallain’s new out-of-the-box learning platform works seamlessly integrated with Avallain Author. Together, they unlock an all-in-one solution with unlimited options for content creators, opening up a sharp and intuitive publishing process. This solution creates fully interactive, responsive, highly individualised and thoroughly engaging learning materials.

In addition, this connection between Avallain Author and Avallain Magnet provides greater security and stability to your content creation and management strategy:

  • Content is hosted and managed in a reliable, independent e-learning authoring tool.
  • Content can be re-used without limitations, organised into sophisticated structures, and published instantly to your learning platform powered by Avallain Magnet.  
  • Meanwhile, content creators are able to expand their possibilities to deliver intuitive and engaging learning materials.

This unlocks a straightforward, intelligent and agile publishing process that speeds up the creation, management and distribution of courses and products to teachers, trainers and learners.

What makes Avallain Magnet unique is that it understands the importance of keeping all stages of digital learning working together – without working in silos, but also without losing the most important capabilities which allow you to deliver top-quality learning experiences to your target audiences. 

Your comprehensive learning management system, ready to go!

Whether you are looking for a digital platform to:

  • complement or substitute your printed learning material, 
  • use a subscription-based model or one that combines different tiers of free and paid content,
  • establish a digital training academy,
  • or provide additional business continuity,

Avallain Magnet provides you with everything you need to meet your educational and business needs, regardless of the industry you are working in and with no time-to-market.​

Our new learning platform combines Avallain’s almost 20 years of experience in the digital education industry with proven and cutting-edge technologies. This way, you will be able to realise your very own learning management system and learning experience platforms, with no setup costs and no waiting times. 

With the option to easily set up separate portals with their own identity for each of your clients or end-user segments, businesses of any size and from any industry can provide their users with truly unique learning experiences.

Learning activity, created in Avallain Author and seamlessly published to Avallain Magnet

Built-in LMS and LXP features for teachers, trainers and learners

Teachers and trainers can use various built-in features of Avallain Magnet to create the best learning experiences possible, from automatically or manually marking interactive exercises, to live online teaching and mentoring through individual or group sessions. 

With intuitive Teacher Dashboards that display statistics on courses and learners, teachers and trainers can use Avallain Magnet’s advanced Gradebook feature to gain valuable information about how individual learners approach their exercises: Where did they seem to struggle and where did they excel? 

These statistics are a vital part of a fully individualised, responsive teaching style and Avallain Magnet is ready to measure and collate them, without complex interfaces to worry about. Of course, teachers and trainers will also be able to view the overall scores of their learners at all times. As a fully-fledged learning management system and learning experience platform, Avallain Magnet is built to accommodate various digital learning approaches.

From their intuitive dashboards, learners can efficiently work through the learning materials that are assigned to them either by teachers or after self-subscribing to the available courses and products. This enables learners to train specific skills while benefiting from the advanced mentoring functionalities that come with Avallain Magnet.

iMac Pro 2018 Mockup by Asylab

Teacher Dashboard. Course overview with learners’ average score

The best digital learning solution for your business

Another powerful feature of Avallain Magnet is its fully integrated token system, which makes it possible to operate different access and product strategies at the same time. It is also possible to launch different subscription models according to the individual requirements of your commercial strategy. This enables companies of any size and from any industry to have full control over the access and usage of their learning products. 

The process is as simple as organising content structures into courses, then courses into products, and distributing them via the built-in token system to your end-users. Also, with dedicated user roles for teachers and learners, the option to bulk-create end-users and groups as well as the ability to create separate portals with their respective logos for each customer, every organisation can launch their own learning management system and learning experience platform effectively and with full control over their business model. 

With an unlimited number of courses, products and tokens, Avallain Magnet opens the door to further business development and rapid business growth. We cater to companies of all sizes and Avallain Magnet works without any scalability issues. As Avallain Magnet works on our shared cloud-based hosting solution, there are no setup costs to obtain a robust, agile end-to-end solution for content creation and learning management – all in one, immediately available. Avallain Magnet. Digital Learning, solved.