15 eLearning Websites Everyone Should Bookmark
Thanks to the boom in eLearning resources, we no longer need to try to solve every eLearning challenge from scratch. There are hundreds of eLearning experts online who’ve been there, tried that, and even worn the t-shirt!
In fact, there are so many potentially useful eLearning websites available that it can be hard to keep up, week to week and month to month. So here are the names of the sites to check in with, no matter how busy your day is. Bookmark these tried and tested websites to give your eLearning an extra kick any time you need it.
1. Elucidat & their eLearning Superstars
Who should read: Instructional Designers and course developers keen to speed up their processes
Check-in: Twice a week
First up, Elucidat provide a HTML5 authoring tool that we like a lot at LearnUpon. The tool’s USP is also the inspiration behind many of Elucidat’s articles: how to create eLearning courses as quickly and efficiently as possible.
While there are quite a few authoring tools that help create responsive courses, Elucidat is laser-focused on helping users to deliver projects an impressive 50% faster than usual. Most of Elucidat’s extremely practical content is written by Customer Success Director Steve Penfold, who’s passionate about making the lives of learning and training managers easier.
Sign up for Elucidat’s weekly email to get practical tips for every phase of the eLearning planning and production process. And bonus points for Elucidat’s Elearning Superstars, a website that draws on the best eLearning examples from top companies like Virgin, Toyota, the BBC and Tesco to email three2. pieces of inspiration every Tuesday.
2. Craig Weiss
Who should read: If you’re in the market for an LMS or have an active interest in the industry
Check-in: Once a week
You can’t afford to miss Craig Weiss’s take on the LMS industry because no-one else does. His recent title win of the most influential person in corporate eLearning for 2016 is just one of many similar accolades he’s been honored with.
The strapline of Weiss’s influential E-Learning 24/7 blog — “the truth and realities of eLearning” — gives you an accurate idea of what to expect. With his blog now read in 154 countries, this eLearning analyst, consultant, and adviser calls the LMS market as he sees it. And Weiss knows the international market better than most. You’re as likely to bump into him at a conference in Berlin as Boston.
His post-conference wrap-ups are a highlight, especially his unique take on the facilities and refreshments details that really matter to attendees. You’ll soon need to keep up with Weiss offline too. His book, “a How To Guide for an LMS” will be published under ATD’s imprint.
3. Tin Can API
Who should read: Course developers interested in the tech side of things
Check-in: When you’re working with Tin Can
The ability of the Tin Can (xAPI) to handle all kinds of mobile learning has seen its popularity grow rapidly over the past few years. This entry on our list is the place to get to grips with it.
Bookmark the website and check in when you need a little extra help with the course content format, from understanding how it works to actually writing code and other resources for eLearning developers.
The easiest way to keep up with the movement is to sign up for their monthly newsletter, which delivers all kinds of useful info on the Tin Can API, from spec updates to dates for educational webinars. Bonus tip: read a guide by Lisa, one of our Senior Customer Support Reps, on how to publish to Tin Can API with Articulate Storyline 2.
Recommended by CTO Des Anderson: Another good website for developers is the Rustici GitHub repos where you can download sample code for various projects related to TinCan.
4. Aurion Learning
Who should read: Course developers with an eye for design
Check-in: Once a month
Aurion Learning is home to all kinds of eLearning experts who use unusually creative techniques to help the company’s clients find a solution for L&D challenges. And keeping all of those experts around is very handy when you need to create guides for everything from course content to planning and strategy.
We try to catch an Aurion masterclass whenever they’re in town to get a behind-the-scenes look at the most recent tips and tricks the extended team has tested. It also gives us a chance to catch up with eLearning friends and learn from Aurion’s masterful presentations.
John Curran, Chairman of the eLearningNetwork kicked off the most recent session with a whistlestop tour of what’s happening now and what’s coming next in eLearning. Aurion’s SlideShare presentations are one of the best examples of how the team draws on deep internal expertise to showcase some of their most impressive projects.
5. eLearningIndustry.com
Who should read: eLearning professionals and Instructional Designers who want to be part of the eLearning industry’s largest online community
Check-in: 2–3 times a week
eLearning Industry has no less than 8 sites dedicated to all things eLearning. Their primary site, eLearningIndustry.com, features articles, free resources, information on upcoming eLearning events (both online and offline) and even has comprehensive directories for authoring tools, LMSs, and content providers.
With authors like Christopher Pappas, Jay Cross and Li Whybrow, the site features articles on every aspect of eLearning so there’s something for everyone. Everyone in eLearning should have this website in their bookmarks. And given their 90,000 followers on Twitter, everyone probably does! It’s worth subscribing to their newsletter to get all the top posts delivered straight to your inbox.
Marketing Manager Caroline Lawless says: There’s an unreal amount of content on the site so it’s probably best choosing your area of interest from the drop-down menu in the Articles link. If you’re feeling really brave you may even consider publishing one of your own articles.
6. Jeff Cobb & Tagoras.com
Who should read: If you want to deliver better eLearning for associations and professional bodies
Check-in: Once a week
The eLearning needs of associations and professional bodies differ a lot from other organizations and as a result, good resources can be tougher to track down. Jeff Cobb’s Tagoras website is essential if you’re on the hunt for an LMS that can really manage an association’s requirements. It’s worth subscribing to the RSS feed of the blog alone for the regular research and reviews Cobb publishes on association-specific news in the LMS market.
7. E-Learning Heroes and The Rapid E-Learning blog
Who should read: Course developers in search of help and inspiration
Check-in: Twice a week
These two eLearning websites are run by the team behind Articulate’s authoring software. If you use Articulate’s Storyline tool already, both websites are a must bookmark. If you don’t, you’ll still find lots here to help with course development and design.
Community Manager David Anderson oversees E-Learning Heroes, the home of the Articulate community. The website is packed with crowd-sourced learnings that will inspire lots of new ideas and save hours of tricky production time. When you start to really feel at home, you might tackle a weekly e‑Learning challenge and test your skills against some fierce but friendly competitors. Tom Kuhlmann’s Rapid E-Learning website claims to be of the best instructional design blogs in the industry. Every week, Tom dishes up incredibly practical tutorials and templates that promise to turn us all into eLearning heroes.
8. Talented Learning
Who should read: If you want to stay up-to-date with LMS industry news
Check-in: Once a week
Have you been researching the international LMS market for 15 years? Well, Talented Learning’s John Leh has and that’s reason enough to bookmark this website. After working in LMS sales for over 10 years, John put his knowledge to public use when he became lead learning technology analyst at Talented Learning.
With a focus on enterprise and association learning, John’s research, reports, and webinars are particularly useful if your LMS buying cycle is long and involved. But it’s also a great place to check for news, reviews, and trends across the learning technology industry.
Full disclosure: LearnUpon’s Caoimhín was named one of Talented Learning’s top 10 LMS demonstrators in the world in 2015.
9. Learning Solutions Magazine
Who should read: Anyone who makes critical decisions about eLearning management and design
Check-in: Twice a week
Learning Solutions Magazine is a handy place to catch up on what the main eLearning thought leaders have to say. Published by The eLearning Guild since 2002, it’s one of the industry’s oldest resources for practical information on everything from strategies, tools, technologies, to best practices for the management and design of eLearning.
The quality of contributors alone is a reason to add Learning Solutions to your bookmarks. Hundreds of the industry’s biggest names tackle cutting-edge issues in what I’m guessing once was an actual magazine. Today it’s an all but encyclopedic online repository of all kinds of great content, including case studies, reviews, interviews, tips, and news.
Note: Bill Brandon, Editor of Learning Solutions Magazine, has let us know that, in keeping with its interests in innovation, Learning Solutions Magazine has always been an online magazine, there never was a print version.
10. ATD
Who should read: Talent development pros on the hunt for data-driven research
Check-in: 2–3 times a week
If you’re really serious about professional development, you’re probably already a member of an association or professional body that works hard to keep your knowledge and certifications fresh.
You might even already be a member of ATD, which prides itself on being the biggest association for professionals working in Talent Development. ATD do all the usual things you’d expect from an association that helps members to become eLearning experts. Their annual conference is a must-visit. It’s one of the biggest in the industry, as you might guess from their 30,000 Twitter followers. But the reason you really should check in with them is for their research, or what their email newsletter calls the “Science of Learning”.
Although you need to be a member to benefit from the full catalog of resources, there’s still a lot of good stuff available to casual visitors through ATD’s Community of Practice.
11. TrainingZone
Who should read: Training Managers and Training Developers will get the most from this one
Check-in: Twice a week
Our favorite area of TrainingZone is the Community, which is updated almost daily with thought-provoking questions and innovative ideas.
Having recently updated the website with a bold new design, it’s all change at TrainingZone. The team is also set to launch their own podcast in early 2016. TrainingZone’s Twitter account already boasts 10,000 followers and is the best way to keep up with the extensive original and curated content the team pushes every day.
12. Patti Shank
Who should read: Readers keen to improve how their organization does learning
Check-in: Once a fortnight
Patti Shank’s PhD is only the first sign that she takes learning very seriously.
An expert in instructional design and technology, AND organizational learning, Patti’s analytical posts go deep and wide, covering very different topics with equally impressive expertise. So it’s no surprise that Patti regularly features on annual top 10 eLearning movers and shakers lists.
Once a Research Director of The eLearning Guild, Patti draws on her knowledge to show readers how their learning environments could work better. You’ll find Patti’s content on a number of websites already mentioned here, including ATD’s Science of Learning blog and Learning Solutions Magazine.
The best place to (try to) keep up with her is on Twitter, where she regularly moderates the #chat2lrn tweetchat. You’ll also catch Patti on LinkedIn Pulse, where she publishes and curates her top eLearning content.
13. eLearning Brothers
Who should read: Designers who can’t get enough Adobe Captivate and Articulate Storyline templates
Check-in: Twice a week
You’ll know the eLearning Brothers as soon as you see them. In the sea of shirts and dresses at any given eLearning conference, you’ll spot a bunch of high-energy guys and gals in bright orange t-shirts, probably holding megaphones and distributing goodies to excited fans.
You’ll see from the company’s backstory that these real-life brothers do things a little bit differently. That includes their content which is anything but boring. Lucky for course designers and developers, the eLearning Brothers are also on a mission: to build the world’s largest library of templates for online training programs.
Customers pay an annual membership fee to access over 25,000 eLearning templates, including quizzes, interactions, layouts, and much more. There’s also plenty of free inspiration to help visitors avoid boring learners with dull course content.
14. eLearningCoach
Who should read: Smart designers who are serious about designing great learning experiences
Check-in: Once a fortnight
Instructional Designer and eLearning Specialist Connie Malamed is probably better known as the eLearning Coach. An early adopter of innovative formats, Connie has already developed both an app for iPhone and Android and a podcast.
The eLearning Coach podcast interviews authors and experts with interesting things to say about creating and delivering courses today. Connie even has an interesting take on the blog format, describing it as a “blogazine” in typically trailblazing style.
This website’s also a must-bookmark for designers in search of excellent resources on subjects like storyboarding, testing and UI/UX.
15. David Kelly
Who should read: eLearning pros disappointed they can’t make that unmissable conference
Check-in: Before and after eLearning events
Although David’s background is as a Training, Learning, and Performance Consultant, he’s also an eLearning Twitter pioneer.
A frequent speaker at heavyweight industry events like Learning Solutions and DevLearn, one of David’s big ideas is “backchannel learning.” Because you can’t make it to every conference, avoid FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) with David’s curated lists of conference and chat resources. It’s the next best thing to being there and definitely worth a bookmark.
