Learning Design (LD) is a multifaceted and quickly evolving discipline. Educational and training programs are incorporating online and blended delivery formats that are increasingly complex and depend on a variety of multimedia content.

The design process is complex as well, and requires a global vision of the project and project goals in order to ensure the curriculum, courses, and content are aligned to, and directly support the program’s desired outcomes.

Marc approaches the design, implementation, and assessment of programs with a broad, global vision, understanding how all of the components in the design process are designed in unison so they function in a mutually interactive and supportive manner.

Using a design framework that is founded on educational theory and has evolved through extensive practical application, Marc is vested in the evolution from traditional learning models to more student-centric models, which depend heavily on online course delivery, eLearning applications, and educational technology.

Staying current in “best” practices for education and educational technology, Marc blends the appropriate use of technology with practice to create effective, experiential educational or training programs.

Marc also includes in his design framework Backwards by Design principles, where the design process begins with the desired outcomes, and with that vision in mind, the design team works backwards to formulate the optimum design framework.

Marc’s framework includes five major components to designing effective, memorable programs:

• A comprehensive understanding how and why adults learn, and more importantly, what motivates them to learn. Motivated learners are much more effective learners.
• A design framework anchored in solid instructional design foundations and sound educational practice – how does one apply this understanding of adult learning to structure courses or programs that effectively achieve the objectives of the training or education program on a consistent basis.
• Designing an overall curriculum that contains all needed elements, can be seamlessly delivered to the trainers, educators, and learners in a seamless manner — and then delivering it.
• The complex and ever changing world of multimedia production on which content is so heavily dependent. How do you create professional, engaging, interactive, and experiential content?
• Assessment and evaluation – both of the learner skills or knowledge, the learner’s performance after completion, the program itself, and the trainers. This leads to future improvements.

A skilled designer crafts these components in a mutually supportive, interactive fashion, to create effective, engaging, and memorable training or educational programs.

Designing professional, engaging, high quality courses requires engaging, high quality content. Producing this content requires extensive knowledge, and a high degree of skill.

Marc’s “Toolbox” includes The Adobe Creative Suite, Adobe Captivate 9 Content Rapid Authoring System, Adobe Presenter 11 Rapid Video Creation Software, Camtasia Video Production Software, the Canvas Learning Management System, Microsoft 365, and various social media management systems.

As a veteran multimedia designer and of creating engaging content, Marc is able to not only design education curricula or training programs, but can develop effective, appropriate content for them as well.

It is important to remember the underlying goals of any successful educational or training programs are; to ensure the clear, effective transfer of information, and, to ensure information is presented in a manner that allows for retention and application of said information by the learner, whether that be ensuring that trained personnel are able perform their duties consistently up to, or beyond expectations in the field; or that graduates are able to apply and synthesize knowledge and skills to fulfill future societal roles. This requires carefully created, focused, engaging content.