Digital Media, New Tools, and Technology

In today’s digital learning landscape, instructional designers must go beyond content—they must engage learners through interactive media, emerging tools, and thoughtful use of technology. This course explores how to select, evaluate, and apply digital media to enhance learning experiences, improve retention, and support diverse learners.

We’ll dive into multimedia principles, examine the latest tools shaping digital instruction, and help you develop a practical, future-ready toolkit to elevate your course design.

Let’s get started transforming your instructional design with the power of digital media and innovation.

Digital Media Introduction 

Visual Design, Digital Text, & Audio

Digital Images 

Video Tools & Accessibility Requirements 

Screencast & Animation Videos 

Week 6: Storyboards

Authoring Tools

AI, IDD Updates, & Signature Assignment

Digital Media Introduction

Digital Media Checklist (documents)

OER Checklist - Blank

OER Checklist - Complete

My reflection on the Digital Media Evaluation Checklist:

Creating and using the Digital Media Evaluation Checklist was not only practical but also a truly enlightening experience! It inspired me to look beyond just finding “good-looking” resources and concentrate on what matters—licensing, accessibility, and ensuring everything aligns with our learning goals.

One of the biggest takeaways was how easy it is to overlook usage rights! Just because something is online doesn’t mean it is free, so checking the license type became an essential step. I also realized that accessibility isn’t just optional—it’s a true responsibility. Including a section for ADA compliance helped keep that at the forefront of my mind.

As I started using the checklist, I noticed some great opportunities for improvement! I focused on checking for content bias and determining whether the material is still relevant. Plus, adding space for notes and evaluator comments boosted the checklist's usefulness and flexibility, making it even better!

I plan to use the checklist or an alternative method outlined below as a primary tool for selecting digital media in course development. Completing a media evaluation is essential each time, but it becomes even more crucial when utilizing content commercially. It safeguards the creators and learners by ensuring the content is legal, ethical, and instructionally practical.

...

Strengths

Using a digital media evaluation checklist brings a wealth of advantages to the instructional design process! It creates a reliable and efficient method to evaluate content, focusing on quality, accessibility, licensing, and how well it aligns with learning objectives. This structured strategy helps clear everyday challenges, like confusing usage rights or formats that might be tricky to access, and makes the decision-making journey smoother. Plus, it encourages a more considerate and ethical approach to using digital content, especially for commercial projects or those aimed at the public.

Weaknesses

Even though the checklist is super helpful, it has some challenges. For instance, going through multiple resources can take quite some time, which can feel overwhelming. Plus, it depends on the evaluator’s judgment, which means that personal biases or less experience might lead to missing some critical details. Some criteria, like assessing instructional alignment or spotting potential content bias, can be more subjective and call for a deeper understanding of the course goals.

Despite these limitations, the checklist is still an excellent tool! When used with care, it boosts the quality and compliance of digital materials, helping designers stay organized and make even more thoughtful content choices.

Strengths and Weaknesses of Using a Digital Media Evaluation Checklist

Alternative and Complementary Methods to Digital Media Evaluation

A variety of alternatives and complementary methods are available besides just using a digital media evaluation checklist. Each one brings unique strengths that can shine based on factors like the project's scope, team size, and the type of media being reviewed:

1. Rubric-Based Evaluation

What it is: A scoring guide with defined levels of quality (e.g., excellent, satisfactory, needs improvement) across evaluation categories like accessibility, accuracy, engagement, and instructional alignment.
When to use: Useful when multiple reviewers are involved or when you want a more detailed, weighted assessment.
Strength: Promotes consistency and comparability across media.
Weakness: More complex to develop and use.

2. Peer Review or Team-Based Evaluation

What it is: Gathering feedback from colleagues or subject matter experts to assess the resource’s instructional value and appropriateness.
When to use: Best when working in a collaborative instructional design environment.
Strength: Brings diverse perspectives and reduces bias.
Weakness: Time-consuming and depends on team availability.

3. Automated Tools and Platforms

Examples: Web accessibility checkers (e.g., WAVE), copyright license databases (e.g., Creative Commons search), and media quality tools.
When to use: For quickly checking specific aspects like accessibility or licensing.
Strength: Fast and efficient.
Weakness: Not comprehensive—usually limited to one evaluation area.

4. Heuristic Evaluation

What it is: Informal expert review based on general principles or best practices, often used in user experience and media design.
When to use: When time is short and formal tools aren’t available.
Strength: Flexible and efficient.
Weakness: Highly subjective and less documented.

Final Thoughts:

These methods can definitely work on their own, but they shine even brighter when paired with a checklist that blends structure, efficiency, and expert judgment. From my perspective and experience, using a Rubric-Based Evaluation along with a little tweak to the checklist brings out the best results!

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Digital Design, Digital Text, & Audio

My Mini-Course: Using AI to Obtain Supply Chain Operational Excellence

Target Audience

Mid-level supply chain professionals in the Plan, Source, Make, and Deliver functions who seek to identify and implement AI tools to enhance performance and drive operational excellence.

Course Overview

This course provides supply chain professionals with practical knowledge on how to implement artificial intelligence for operational improvement. Through real-world scenarios and data-driven analysis, learners will explore how AI improves forecasting, inventory management, and logistics.

Key technologies like machine learning, predictive analytics, and robotic process automation are explored in context, enabling learners to assess tools, pinpoint opportunities, and develop AI strategies customized for their operations. The course also highlights the importance of constructing a solid business case and effectively communicating AI insights across teams.

By the end of the course, learners will have a clear roadmap for integrating AI into their supply chain processes to drive measurable performance gains.

Learning Objectives (CO)

CO1. Identify essential supply chain functions where artificial intelligence can enhance performance and efficiency.
CO2. Explain the differences between traditional and AI-driven methods in forecasting, inventory optimization, and logistics decision-making.
CO3. Examine operational data sets to uncover inefficiencies and opportunities for AI implementation throughout the supply chain.
CO4. Evaluate various AI technologies (e.g., machine learning, predictive analytics, robotic process automation) for their applicability in specific supply chain scenarios.
CO5. Create a strategic roadmap for integrating AI tools into supply chain processes (e.g., demand planning, warehouse management).
CO6. Develop a business case demonstrating the ROI potential of AI applications in supply chain optimization.
CO7. Interpret key performance indicators (KPIs) such as forecast accuracy, inventory turnover, and service level to assess the impact of AI interventions.
CO8. Effectively communicate AI-driven insights and recommendations to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Cross Reference of Learning Objectives Action Verbs to Bloom's Taxonomy Levels

This is a Checklist Item for me.

Digital Document Examples

(Supports CO4), Created with ChatGPT

(Supports CO2), Created with ChatGPT

(Supports CO7), Created with ChatGPT

Visual Design Choices

Color Scheme:
- Background: Black (000000 Color Hex)
- Text: Off White (f1f1f1 color hex)
- I also use the opposite, which is also an 18:1 contract ratio
Fonts:
- Section Titles - Hammersmith One, 30 px
- Body -Open Sans, 18px
- Headers - Open Sans, 24px

Why these choices:

Why these choices?

Contrast Ratio: 18.5:1. (Great)

Compliance Levels WCAG: Level AA or higher)

Graphics Integration Thoughts

Comparison graphics of Traditional vs. AI Methods (created via ChapGPT)

Icons to represent AI Tools (created via ChapGPT)

Flowchat showing AI Flows (created via ChapGPT)

Audio File

Audio File tools used: Speechify Studio (voice-overs), and, Iframely (embed code generation).

Audio introduction to my eLearning Mini-Course (mp3 file, 58sec)

Key Takeaways of0end of Module 1 Summary (mp3 file, 53sec)

Creative Commons License

Use CC BY-NC 4.0. (This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

Digital Media Evaluation Checklist

Checklist updates include:

Confirm accessibility (alt text, color contrast)
Confirm clear learning alignment
Confirm legal use of media (e.g., icons, templates)
Export and save as PDF for upload

Reflection on Digital Document Design

This week challenged me to apply visual design principles and accessibility strategies to create meaningful learning assets. I developed three digital documents aligned with my micro-course: an infographic on how AI improves forecasting, inventory, and logistics (CO2); a job aid matching AI tools to SCM challenges (CO4); and a KPI reference sheet for measuring AI impact (CO7). Each document reinforced my understanding of visual hierarchy, alignment, and the importance of simplicity in instructional design.

A significant learning milestone was producing and embedding an audio description to support learners with visual impairments (CO8). This was my first experience working with embedded audio files, and it required effort to explore hosting options, configure widgets, and test accessibility across different browsers. It deepened my appreciation for Universal Design for Learning and inclusive course development.

Overall, this module broadened my skill set beyond instructional theory, encouraging me to think like a designer, a developer, and an advocate for learner access—all essential roles in today’s digital learning environment.

Additional Resources

Malamed, C. (n.d.). Using visual design for instructional success [TD at Work]. Association for Talent Development. Retrieved from https://www.td.org/td-at-work
Shank, P., & Tucker, C. (Presenters). (n.d.). Creating job aids and visual tools that work [Webcast]. Association for Talent Development. Retrieved from https://webcasts.td.org/
Bailey, B. (2013, April). Visual elements in e-learning. ATD Blog. Retrieved from https://www.td.org
Algalarrondo, R., & Hall, M. J. (2025, April). Simple drawings: Unleashing the power of visual thinking. ATD Blog. Retrieved from https://www.td.org