Home: eLearning Toolkit

Text and graphics are the minimum requirements for your e-learning course. You may decide to add an audio dimension to complement and reinforce those elements, especially if you are using Articulate. If you choose to employ audio, the voiceover element (a.k.a. audioscript or narration) should display in the slide notes area (in Articulate font, 14 pt). The use of audio can work extremely well with Articulate content, giving it a pleasant informality that suits some learning preferences and enhances accessibility. It is up to you to decide if you want to use it but you may wish to consider that:

• There is a learning curve associated with developing audio content for the first time so you will need to practice. 
• It’s not as easy or quick to update/edit audio content as it is with text.
• You can choose to either narrate the slide notes verbatim, or with minor variation.
• You'll need a good quality headset with a built-in, adjustable microphone.  These are widely available and inexpensive. You don't have to choose a particular model but you should make sure the one you use has a noise cancellation feature. 
• The space that you record in is even more important than the equipment -- a quiet, small room is best.  
• Some users love audio, others hate it! For accessibility, you should always provide a transcript with your audio-based content. 

If you'd like to know more about creating audio for eLearning, the following resources may be helpful:

• Audio Writing Tips  Listen to these 8 top tips for writing an audio script (Click the Download tab to access the audio version). A transcript of this audio file is also available.  
• Podcast Script Writing Excellent range of tips for podcasting, specifically 
• Get Great Sound  Although this document was written for Camtasia, most of the tips on pages 4-5 are relevant to anyone seeking to record audio.