BEST PRACTICES FOR USING LECTORA TO CREATE COURSES FOR ELEVATE

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Topic Page

GETTING STARTED WITH LECTORA

ADDING MULTIMEDIA TO YOUR COURSE. 4 PUBLISHING A COURSE TO SCORM FOR LOADING ONTO ELEVATE LMS. 6

LECTORA AND 508 COMPLIANCY. 12

GETTING STARTED WITH LECTORA

System Requirements for Using Lectora:
Be sure you meet the following minimum system requirements before installing Lectora:

Intel or AMD class processor 500MB RAM 1.1GB free hard disk space for the application Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 SP1 (required to install Flypaper)

Internet courses produced by Lectora require Internet Explorer 6.0 or newer or any version of Mozilla Firefox. CD-ROM courses produced by Lectora require one of the following operating systems and a CDROM drive:

Microsoft Windows NT Microsoft Windows XP Microsoft Windows Vista Microsoft Windows 7

Accessing Lectora Help:

The Lectora Information Center is a browser-based system that provides Help topics of the tasks you can complete using Lectora tools. To access the Help, click the Help button where available. You can also select Contents from the Help menu within Lectora or any of the Suite tools. Navigating the Information Center: To navigate the Information Center, click the plus sign (+) to the left of the section name to expand the section. Click the title of the topic to display the topic. Click the minus sign (-) to collapse a section. Click the Index tab to access the Information Center Index. To quickly navigate the Index, type a keyword into the keyword field at the top of the Index. Topics matching the Index words appear in the navigation pane. Click the title of the topic to display the topic. Click the Search tab to enter words or phrases to quickly find topics. Topics containing the search words or phrases appear in the navigation pane. Click the title of the topic to display the topic.

ADDING MULTIMEDIA TO YOUR COURSE

Adding Objects to Your Course Use any of the following methods to add objects to your course:

Select Add > Object from the menu bar and select the type of object you want to add. Click the corresponding toolbar graphic. Drag and drop the object to your work area. Right-click in the work area, select New > Object, and select the type of object you want to add. Insert the object from the Media Library Organizer.

Working with Images

Lectora supports the following image formats:

JPEG (.jpeg, .jpg) GIF (.gif) TIFF (.tif) Windows Bitmap (.bmp) Windows Enhanced Metafiles (.emf) Windows Metafiles (.wmf) Portable Network Graphics (.png)

Working with Audio

Lectora supports the following audio formats:

Flash Audio (.flv) Uncompressed Windows audio (.wav) Standard MIDI (.mid) MPEG, Audio layer 3 (.mp3) MPEG 4 Audio (.m4a) Advanced Systems Format (.asf) RealMedia streaming media (.rm) uLaw audio (.au) Windows Media audio (.wma)

All audio files must be compressed to run at a bit-rate of 56 or 64 kbps to avoid slow page loading times. Dimensions should be 320 x 240. When encoding the audio, please record all sound in mono.

Working with Video

Lectora supports the following video formats:

Apple QuickTime movie (.mov) Audio Video Interleave (.avi) Flash Video (.flv and .f4v) Moving Picture Experts Group (.mpg, .mpeg, .MPEG-4, mpg4, .M4V, .MP4) Real Media (.rm, .rmm) 4

Windows Media Video (.wmv) Flash, YouTube, Microsoft, and RealMedia streaming video formats

Essential Learnings Recommended Model for Using Audio/Video When it comes to e-learning, audio and video is most effective when used to enhance a course rather than as the primary way of delivering information. Why? Most of our customers either do not have access to speakers and/or sound cards or they take courses at their desk in an open area where they cannot play audio without using headphones. Additionally, audio increases bandwidth of courses which can significantly increase loading time for courses on slower computers. If you decide you would like to incorporate audio/video in your e-learning course, here are the recommended ways to use it: As an introduction to a topic/section As background narration for a vignette or scenario As a visual example (i.e. video clip of a role play between client and provider) To explain complicated graphics When you use audio/video: 1. Use no more than 30 second clips on a page 2. Use text for key teaching points and audio for enhancement 3. Never read what is already on the screen Remember: while audio can be used numerous ways, it is important to be selective when choosing when and how to use it so that it doesn't overwhelm the learner and diminish learning.

PUBLISHING A COURSE TO SCORM FOR LOADING ONTO ELEVATE LMS

What is SCORM?
The Shareable Content Object Reference Model (SCORM) is a set of inter-related technical specifications built upon the work of the AICC, IMS, and IEEE to create a unified content model for Web-based learning content. For the latest specifications, documents, and explanations of terms, see the official SCORM website: http://www.adlnet.gov/. Before loading your SCORM courses onto our system, we suggest that you first test your content using Rusticis test track at http://www.scorm.com/. Customers can sign up for a free account and the site gives information on how to use Test Track. By testing your courses using Test Track first, you can be sure that they can be successfully loaded onto our platform. If your course does not work on Test Track, you will be given very detailed information on how to fix the course. The Test Track application is designed to give course developers detailed information regarding SCORM compliance. This, in turn, will help you troubleshoot errors or areas where your SCORM compliance could be better.

Completed Action
On the last page of your course, you must put a completed action in order for the course to register as complete on the LMS. See screen shot below.

In Title Explorer, you must assign an Assignable Unit Name (see screen shot below):

Publishing to SCORM
To publish your title to a SCORM system, follow these steps (see screen shot below): 1. Save your course. 2. From the Publish menu, select Publish to SCORM/Web-Based. Lectora performs an error check and displays the results in the Publish Title to SCORM Compliant Web Content window. 3. Resolve any errors within your title. If necessary, click Cancel and repeat steps 1 and 2 until your title is free of errors. 4. Click Publish when you are satisfied with the results of the error check. The Publish SCORM Location window opens. 5. Once you have completed configuring all of the publishing options (see below for more information about setting up these options), click OK. Your title is published to your local directory. 6. Click the Done button to close the publishing window. When available, you can also click the Preview button to launch the published title. Note: When you make changes to your title, you will need to republish it so the new changes are reflected in the published title. Repeat these steps as necessary to republish your title.

PUBLISHING SET UP OPTIONS Use the following tabs to specify publishing options.

SCORM OPTIONS TAB

Use the SCORM Options tab within the Publish SCORM Location window to specify publishing options pertaining to the SCORM system. Course Is Course Creator Select SCORM 1.2 Conformant Specify the name you want the SCORM system to display as the creator of the published course Specify the ID of the course Specify the title of the course as you want it to be displayed within the SCORM system Leave blank Leave blank Leave blank Do NOT select this option

Course ID Course Title

URL of Course Folder Course Description Additional Keywords The published course will be presented in a separate window other than the LMS The published course will report Test/Survey

Select this to record interaction of contained in the graded test being submitted to LMS

The published course will prompt to restore the last viewed location within the LMS

Select this to enable the automatic bookmarking feature

OPTIONS TAB
When you publish your title, you have a number of different publishing options. After selecting to publish to the desired format, use the controls on the Options tab to specify the following (see screen shot below): Destination Folder Specify the directory in which you want to save the resulting files of the published title. Click the Choose Folder button to navigate and select a location Select this option

Publish Only Updated Pages/Resources Use JavaScript Title Manager Store Published Title in a Zip File

Select this option Select this option

Create ALT Tags

Select this option if you want your course to be Section 508 compliant. This will create ALT tags for all images Select this option

Include Title Manager Frame

Use Web 2.0 Style Pop Ups

Select this option to display Web 2.0/AJAX-based pop-up windows. This option is enabled by default Do not select this option Do not select this option unless you want to debug course within its published format

Protect Published Content Debug Published Content

When publishing your course to SCORM for Elevate LMS, you do not need to worry about the following four tabs: 1. FTP Options Tab: only use this tab if you want to FTP your course to a server. 2. Proxies Tab: only use this tab if you need to connect to your Web server through a proxy or if you are required to go through a firewall. 10

3. Compression Tab: only use this tab to select the Audio, Video, or Images check boxes to compress the multimedia types within your title. Use the sliders to select from ten different levels of compression.

When your compression settings are low, the quality of the audio, video, and images will be maximized. When your compression settings are high, the quality of the audio, video, and images will be minimized

4. Languages Tab: only use this tab to if you have translated your course into multiple languages.

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LECTORA AND 508 COMPLIANCY

You can use Lectora to create titles published to a Web-based format (HTML, SCORM/Web-based, AICC/Web-based) that comply with the standards set in Section 508 - 1194.22 of the Rehabilitation Act. These standards govern the requirements that must be met to enable Web-based content to be accessible to individuals with disabilities. View information about the Section 508 Standards at: http://www.section508.gov.

Working with ALT Tags

Text equivalents in the form of ALT tags can be provided for buttons, images, and animations in Lectora. The 508 requirement not only necessitates that text equivalents must be provided, but also implies that the alternative text must be properly implemented. Follow these guidelines when providing alternative text: Alternative text provided for buttons or other navigational components should inform the user where he or she will be taken. Alternative text for images or animations that convey additional information should describe the conveyed meaning. Alternative text used within ALT tags should be as succinct as possible (less than 156 characters), while also conveying the meaning behind the object. Objects that require a description that cannot be succinctly described in less than 156 characters must be accompanied by a full textual description. Media used for decoration or simply for page layout should omit alternative text or use empty ALT tags so that a screen reader does not present unnecessary information to the user.

Using Hyperlinks, Buttons, and Other Clickable Objects

You can use hyperlinked text, buttons, and other objects to execute actions when clicked. Section 508 requires that such objects must be accessible with the use of a keyboard only. Objects, like buttons, that have an On Mouse Click action attached to them will be able to receive focus when a user presses the Tab key. When the button, hyperlink, or other clickable object is in focus, the user can then press the Enter key to execute its actions. You must ensure that these objects are properly labeled or have a proper ALT tag so the user is aware of what will happen when the button or object is clicked. Hyperlinks should be logical and able to stand alone, out of context. Links should always be linked to information that is relevant to the content. When hyperlinking text, do not use hyperlinks such as Click here to access the Learning Portal. Instead, use descriptive hyperlinks such as Access the Learning Portal.

Using Audio and Video

Section 508 requires that multimedia presentations have synchronized captions that are presented with the audio, video, or animation. Along with this requirement, you must take additional steps to ensure that audio, on its own or as part of a video or animation, does not conflict with a screen readers verbal identification of objects. For more about how to create 508 compliance courses using Lectora, contact the Customer Support Department at Essential Learning. 12