Chicago eLearning & Technology Showcase 2026

Most elearning courses look polished and interactive, yet learners forget them quickly and struggle to apply them on the job. This session explores why many courses fail to improve performance and introduces a practical redesign method built on five brain-based learning mechanisms: attention, prior knowledge activation, active engagement, reinforcement, and contextual application.

You will examine a failure case and identify why certain screens and interactions are easily forgotten. Using real examples, the session demonstrates how cognitive science principles translate into concrete design decisions inside tools such as Articulate Storyline 360, Articulate Rise 360, and Adobe Captivate.

Through live redesign activities, you will see how to replace passive interactions with decision-making, integrate spaced retrieval throughout lessons, and embed application opportunities directly into learning experiences.

You will leave with a practical evaluation checklist and a repeatable process for improving retention and performance without increasing seat time or development complexity.

By the end of this session, you will be able to

• Diagnose why an elearning module fails to produce retention or behavior change.
• Apply five brain-based design moves to redesign an existing elearning lesson.
• Evaluate an elearning course using a predictive checklist for attention, memory, and transfer.

Many learning teams struggle to support audiences who value education but lack time for long courses or crowded LMS environments. These audiences need fast access to credible, practical learning that fits demanding schedules. This session explores how the American Academy of Dermatology uses instructional technology to make digital learning more accessible and easier to consume.

You will examine a real-world case study of using a customized LMS interface and a focused mobile app experience to surface high-value learning resources. The session will explore learner behavior, content prioritization, discoverability, and low-friction engagement strategies for busy professionals. You will also see how podcasts, quick-hit questions, and chunked learning experiences can work together within a connected learning ecosystem rather than as isolated resources.

Designed for instructional designers, LMS administrators, content managers, and learning leaders, this session provides a practical framework for improving content visibility and using existing resources more effectively to create learner-centered digital experiences.

By the end of this session, you will be able to

• Identify barriers that prevent busy professionals from engaging with digital learning, especially on mobile devices.

• Evaluate ways to organize and surface high-value content so learners can quickly find the most relevant resources.

• Apply a more intentional digital learning experience, especially if you have the benefits of AI curation.

You’ve taken the course a million times...maybe even developed it: Title slide. Click next. Stock photo with text. Click next. AI-generated video. Click next. Tabs. Click next. Drag and drop. Click next. The clicking and dragging and dropping quickly become rote. The course feels like a content dump chunked into clever, but mindless, activities. Your brain turns off. You pass the test with flying colors because the answers are obvious even without viewing the previous few dozen slides.

But what if the activities in the course weren’t technology-driven? What if they were carefully designed to give you practice?

Join this hands-on session to design activities that give learners opportunities to discover, critically think, solve problems, and practice. To fuel these activities, you will use an instructional story in ways you may not expect.

You will also see some great story-based courses produced by instructional designers from around the globe, and some mind-blowing elearning activities.

By the end of this session, you will be able to

• Construct a list of observable actions.

• Flex the power of an instructional story to self-discover and solve problems.

• Design activities that give learners opportunities to practice, using the Instructional Story Design framework.

Even the most well-designed elearning program can fail if the delivery falls flat. Too many virtual trainings, webinars, and digital learning experiences suffer from disengaged audiences, information overload, and presenters who struggle to translate instructional design into compelling delivery.

In this highly interactive session, Bridgett McGowen will diagnose the most common problems that derail virtual learning experiences and show you how to fix them.

You will learn how to transform typical slide-based training into dynamic learning experiences that increase engagement, retention, and application. Through real-world examples, live demonstrations, and audience participation, you will discover practical strategies to strengthen delivery, leverage technology intentionally, and design presentations that actually support learning outcomes.

You will leave with actionable techniques that you can immediately apply to webinars, virtual classrooms, and digital training environments.

By the end of this session, you will be able to

• Identify the most common presentation mistakes that undermine virtual learning.

• Transform static slide decks into an engaging instructional experience.

• Use interactive features in common elearning platforms to drive participation and retention.

• Apply delivery techniques that reinforce instructional design goals.

• Fix common webinar and virtual training breakdowns in real time.

Ever built a course where the content was solid—but learners still struggled to get through it?

Digital learning often fails not because content is wrong, but because design creates friction. In this session, you will explore a practical, 3-part framework for reducing cognitive friction across working memory, attention, and task initiation. Through real-world examples, you will identify common issues like split attention, unnecessary complexity, and unclear navigation.

Using your own device (no software required), you will complete short, guided activities to analyze screens and make design decisions. You will also review before-and-after redesigns and leave with practical UX strategies that you can immediately apply to improve learner performance.

By the end of this session, you will be able to

• Identify sources of cognitive friction related to working memory, attention, and task initiation in elearning design.

• Evaluate how visual hierarchy, interaction design, and navigation impact learner usability and performance.

• Apply practical UX and instructional design patterns to reduce cognitive friction in your own courses.

Your design toolkit is about to get a microlearning upgrade. You already apply design principles to your elearning, so what happens when you add principles built specifically for microlearning? Microlearning-specific design principles are a valuable complement to the elearning design knowledge you already have.

This session unpacks the seven microlearning design principles and the learning science behind them. You will see each principle come to life through a microlearning development tool, examining designs in real time and discerning the application and need for each element.

Whether brand new to microlearning or looking to sharpen an existing practice, you will challenge and validate your design thinking through guided discussion and collaborative activities. A practical takeaway handout will support continued application long after the session ends.

By the end of this session, you will be able to

• Define the role of cognitive load theory in microlearning design.

• Identify the seven microlearning design principles.

• Evaluate the application of microlearning design principles using a microlearning development tool.