Randall Polliard
Instructional Designer
As a follower of Michael Allen, creator of the SAM rapid development model, I fully agree that successful instructional events must always be meaningful, memorable and motivational. So whether I am designing a Minecraft curriculum for a K-12 learner, or an interactive case scenario for a surgical nursing student, my approach to instruction remains the same. Engagement must precede content delivery, content must set in motion ever-widening context for the student, and learning objectives must always inform which tools of technology should be employed. A well-designed course is like effective game design. It should captivate at the outset, create meaning and connection for the user by leveraging familiar cognitive constructs, then challenge those recognizable patterns with something unique and unfamiliar. In gaming terms, a player builds confidence and competency to face the “Big Boss” by conquering “Mini Bosses.” By mastering small, essential skills, and leveling up in a strategic sequence, your learner has generated an entirely new capability in any given subject.
Project Portfolio Samples
Lippincott CoursePoint
Wolters Kluwer, a leading organization in medical education, wanted to update their existing interactive training for surgical nursing students. Each module of an interactive case study focused on a specific disease, requiring the learner to practice patient care choices via a progressive question and answer format. The training was electronic and responsive, with a majority of users accessing the content via mobile device.
My Role
At the project outset, I was contracted to help brainstorm a new training interface for existing case study content. Once the new interface was approved, I migrated current case studies into the newly designed format, reusing existing assessments where appropriate, but creating new assessments as needed. In total, I authored 85 of the 180 modules in this curriculum. Throughout the project, I partnered with two subject matter experts, a professsional nurse and a medical librarian, to ensure the accuracy of the content.
The final interface utilized a tabbed approach, categorized by patient specific information and mirroring a doctor’s chart, with case study medical data readily available throughout the learning module. Previously, a learner had to backtrack to find relevant data. Additionally, general disease information, which had been buried within the original case study content, was moved to the beginning of the module where learners could see the transition from general to specific diagnosis.
Enjoy Captain Onboarding
Enjoy, a retailer specializing in at-home consumer technology sales, needed help creating an instructor-led onboarding training for newly hired employees. The weeklong onboarding experience for the position of Captain (regional sales manager) included role playing activities, job responsibility information and corporate expectations.
My Role
As this was a full week onboarding event, I was responsible for planning two days of the training. Working with subject matter experts representing various positions at Enjoy, I was provided the topics to be covered and corporate style guide templates. It was my role to design the pacing, the activities and the instructor guidance materials for my assigned days of training. Training topics included “Feedback for Leaders” , “Communication for Leaders” and “Getting Better Every Day.”
Sexual Orientation/Gender Identity Training
The San Francisco Department of Public Health needed to train medical professionals throughout their system about the legal and ethical responsibilities of admitting and treating patients with self-identified sexual orientation and gender identity status. This web-based eLearning project included medical data, terminology and best practices. Branched by medical role, patient practice scenarios were followed by a mandatory, graded assessment.
My Role
The client provided a rough slide deck that served as the initial storyboard. I was contracted to organize the content into a cohesive learning module, polish the overall approach and sketch ideas for graphics or interactive modules. After the visuals were approved, I revised the provided audio script for clarity and engagement, and rebuilt the mandatory assessment to reflect new content.
ASU Reach Institute – New Beginnings
Arizona State University’s Reach Institute needed to adapt an existing instructor-led training (ILT) series teaching parenting skills after divorce into a rich media eLearning session. The original ILT scripts and slide presentations were to be modified and reorganized to leverage the versatility and distance capability of an eLearning experience.
My Role
The client provided current ILT scripts via Google Docs and offered access to a small library of video content from previous programs. I was contracted to identify which videos could be repurposed, build a visual asset list and propose where a more immersive approach would improve learner retention. Additional responsibilities included editing and customizing the existing narration scripts without compromising essential components of the training. As this project was an ILT workshop training and an eLearning effort, the project required that both the participant guide and the instructor guide be edited in concert.
Stanford University Donor Training
Stanford University needed a short eLearning module to educate professors and university executives about proper protocol for accepting gifts from potential donors.
My Role
The procedural guidance for Stanford University faculty and staff accepting donations and gifts existed as a highly detailed, technical text-based document. I was contracted to simplify the language and storyboard the training cadence using Microsoft Powerpoint. I also suggested where to add visual reinforcement and supplementary graphics.
Game Plan LMS
iD Tech wanted a Learning Management System (LMS) that could provide online tutorials for K-12 learners at camp. Envisioned as the eLearning component of a blended learning environment, Game Plan was designed and developed internally when a commercial LMS with a targeted feature set could not be found. The released version of Game Plan included course navigation, interactive tutorials, gamification assets such as badges, achievement levels, custom avatars and a virtual avatar store where earned points could be cashed in for avatar costumes. Instructor assets included a drag-and-drop custom course builder and student progress indicators.
My Role
Serving as the Director of Curriculum at the time, I was tasked with the project management of GamePlan V2.0. Under my direction, GamePlan added interactive tutorial functionality, a revised course navigation experience, deeper gamification and student management tools for instructional staff. I designed the initial UI/UX (via sketches and visual comps) and was responsible for day to day project management, iterative user testing during development, final Beta testing and camp launch troubleshooting.
Testimonials
“Randy is able to contribute to a wide range of tasks including instructional writing, interaction design, and conceptualizing UX and GUI. He also adds value to a team effort because of his great collaboration skills. He knows how to ask questions and gain clarity from SMEs and technical teammates alike. He brings new ideas to the table and returns work that is of exceptional quality. Given the opportunity, I would certainly choose to work with him again!”
“Randy led the UX design and project management of Game Plan, our internal and proprietary Learning Management System (LMS). Having found a deficit in third party tools that would suit our needs, we looked inward. Randy was integral in helping us leverage these assets. The ensuing result was a tool that has revolutionized how we do business.”
“Randall takes his work seriously, stays abreast of Seattle current events, hits every deadline, communicates well and is open to my ideas and constructive criticism. All are critical attributes I look for when I hire, and I’ve been a hiring manager for more than 30 years. “
Bio
I have been a storyteller, educator or instructional developer in one form or another for over two decades.
After beginning my professional career in the marketing department of a marine electronics manufacturer, I leveraged my self-taught animation skills to transition to the children’s computer game industry. As a game industry Art Director, I have supervised art and animation for numerous high-end franchise CD-ROM titles, including Magic School Bus, Rugrats and Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. My complete game credit database on Moby Games can be found here.
Not long after a short stint writing course curriculum for 2D game development, I began managing camps as a Regional Manager for iD Tech Camps, the nation’s largest K-12 technology camp provider. Advancing to Curriculum Director, I managed an internal team of curriculum developers and copy editors in a remote capacity. As project manager of iD Tech’s internal LMS, Game Plan, I led the drive for more intuitive interactivity and deeper gamification.
My full Linkedin profile can be found here.