There’s something special about a ‘choose your own adventure’ story. The feeling of deciding where you want to go next, how you want to get there, and the obstacles you face along the way, create an experience that is difficult to match within a set, linear narrative.ontrack - choose your own adventure interactive video game

The willingness of Netflix viewers to view ‘Black Mirror: Bandersnatch’, a story of a young programmer who is adapting a fantasy choose-your-own-adventure novel into a video game in 1984, highlights that the demand for the medium is still high.

The key to the success of interactive media is the knowledge that everyone is different. Giving someone the choice to decide their experience will lead to more investment, and higher levels of engagement.

As global leaders in the delivery of learning and development solutions, we’ve applied this technology into our learning content mix. Either to be used on our own platform or our clients’ learning management system (LMS) – with OnTrack you can provide your people with award-winning learning content, an innovative education platform and live learning experiences to meet your business challenges head on.

 

How do interactive learning videos work?

ontrack interactive video choices

While interactivity within video isn’t new, with elements being used on platforms such as YouTube and Vimeo for some time, the technology is now becoming more accessible – giving way to programmes such as ‘Black Mirror: Bandersnatch’ and BBC’s 1,000th edition of ‘Click’.

Like these new types of TV content, OnTrack’s interactive video content is essentially a virtual tree. The trunk of which provides a central video, with clickable elements that provide options for the user, creating branches of new video that support the overarching learning goal.

This creates a cohesive video experience that empowers each member of your team to learn within the environment that best suits their individual needs.

However, at OnTrack we’ve taken the interactivity a step further. The system is able to integrate interactive questions for the user and recommend other content based on user navigational choices and question responses.

Not only does this provide an immersive learning experience, but interactive video also creates a cyclical environment, with different elements of the subject available within the learning journey for future consumption.

This empowers user engagement and creates a much more holistic approach to learning, with training less about regurgitating information and more about open-ended exploration within the subject.

 

The benefits of interactive video for learning

There are multiple advantages to providing your people with a learning experience that includes interactive video:

1) Tailored learning experiences

Ask any teacher across the globe and they will highlight the challenges of ensuring every pupil in their class understands and engages with the learning content in front of them – this is especially challenging when a one-size-fits-all approach is required and is exactly why personal development consultancies deliver through a number of learning mediums.

Interactive video creates an environment from which students can engage with the learning content in the best way for them. It combines audio and visual techniques with more kinaesthetic and traditional guides and e-books.

2) Greater flexibility

As with all good learning content, interactive video allows for greater flexibility for your team, allowing them to learn through engaging content at a time and place that best suits them.

However, by providing greater choice within more traditional e-learning content, an interactive video also provides greater flexibility when it comes to how video is used. Whether you want to take your people on a journey through the ‘perfect’ scenario with opportunities to learn more within the same video; or provide a safe space to hone their coaching or management skills with different reactions from the various team members depending on the decision made, the options are a creative dream for consultants and filmmakers.

3) Improved engagement

As part of his session at Harvard University’s “Confessions of a Converted Lecturer”, Eric Mazur, Balkanski Professor of Physics and Applied Physics at the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences highlighted the core benefit of interactive learning techniques; “Active learning, not passive [learning] makes it impossible to sleep through a class”.

It removes the ‘passive bystander’ from the situation by encouraging (or requiring) greater interaction and fosters an increased investment in their own learning.

4) Value for money

Gamification, VR, HTML5 are all new and innovative means by which content can be delivered to your people, and all come with varying levels of investment required to create and maintain that content. Interactive video sits within that return on investment sweet spot between the different options, providing a dynamic learning experience that doesn’t break the bank.

About OnTrack International

OnTrack International are a global learning and development consultancy working with some of the most successful organisations in the world. With a focus on developing learning solutions to meet precise business needs, we combine multiple methods of learning to deliver optimum business value. Our approach is to work in partnership with a client, forming a relationship where there is a deep level of understanding of what will work best to achieve the desired results.

To learn more about our learning and development solutions, speak to a consultant today.