Examples Of Instructional Design Tools

If you've completed an instructional design course and are ready to get to work, you need a quality online instructional design portfolio to showcase your previous projects. Narcissistic inclinations aside, a well-balanced representation of your courses and projects can be very helpful in building your career.

The good news is building an instructional designer portfolio is pretty easy.

Between securing your domain name and hosting with a provider like Bluehost, installing WordPress with one click, and choosing a theme/template, you can be on your way to building your own eLearning portfolio in just minutes.

And if you need inspiration on how to create your own, we've pulled together a collection of great examples from other pros working in the industry right now.

Why Do I Need an Instruction Design Portfolio?

What's the use of an Instructional Designer portfolio?

It encompasses your past and present skills, domain knowledge, subject matter expertise, educational background, and more. It gives your peers, employers, and students a glimpse of your creative process, methodology, and teaching techniques.

It's always good to have a portfolio handy once an opportunity pops up.

By presenting your experience in a structured, tangible fashion, you get an edge over potential competitors who fail to submit any information at short notice.

Another argument in favor of an ample instructional design portfolio is volatility.

Today you are sweating over a complex long-term course, tomorrow the decision-makers cut the funding, and your valuable work is left behind. Keep your time and efforts well-documented, come hell or high water!

Portfolios facilitate recruiters' jobs and provide a great shortcut to the cherished interview, avoiding ordinary selection filters. Nice samples of your e-Learning courses and academic work will catch an employer's eye. Plus, potential clients may get a sneak peek into your pricing and terms.

That said, one of the common issues associated with portfolios is non-disclosure.

Sometimes, you have no right to share your accomplishments in proprietary work with the community at large or third-party organizations in particular. Try to find a workaround and describe a project from the perspective of your personal input, without dropping names or giving away classified information.

A well-made eLearning portfolio also reveals your soft skills and individuality to potential customers and employers.

Don't hesitate to throw in lively details, or an appropriate story regarding a specific instructional challenge. A personal slant will help you build a rapport with a broad audience and let people see the real author behind the courses.

Examples of Great Instructional Design Portfolios

Here are a few picks from tons of instructors' websites I found. With these examples below, I'm trying to demonstrate a multitude of styles, layouts, and approaches to building instructional design portfolios. I've included examples from both individuals from organizations.

1. Lila Azouz →

All works are conveniently grouped and labeled, drawing the line between e-Learning projects, games, performance interventions, and evaluations. This instructional design portfolio includes password-protected content available upon request. Viewers have access to additional resources in PDF nicely placed under the description.

2. Corinne Fisketjon →

This is an example of a simpler minimalistic layout, though neatly structured and logical. The content is split into multiple categories for better navigation. Embedded multimedia works fine with no broken links or outdated scripts.

3. Jackie Van Nice →

Jackie's website is a classy representation of an e-Learning professional. Every case includes the following elements: project background, course features, published sample, solution and role description. An approach worth taking on board. The site itself employs a cloud of tags to facilitate searching for specific topics.

4. Christy Tucker →

A well-written practical eLearning portfolio featuring this expert's stand-outs since 2004. A simple and clear WordPress layout ensures easy reading and neatly integrated multimedia. The content is granularly organized, with large thumbnails to give you a basic idea of the contents.

5. Cath Ellis →

This website is based on an eye-catching trendy theme. Each case study provides a project brief (type, date, customer) along with key attributes. Project previews lead to a Dropbox-based storage. This instructional design portfolio looks great on mobile devices thanks to responsive design at the core.

6. Michael Zielinskie →

This is a really clean, easy-to-navigate instructional designer portfolio that showcases Mike's work. It also showcases a good variety of projects to give visitors a solid overview of his capabilities.

7. Beth Myers →

Beth's website and portfolio are a whole lot of fun. Because she's both a game developer and learning products designer, she gave her website a video game aesthetic that's really unique and memorable. Additionally, her portfolio page doesn't just have pictures/screenshots of her work, it often also includes good descriptions and context to better explain the project.

8. Shalini Mathias →

This portfolio was performed in Prezi, a visual non-linear presentation service. It's a great way to showcase one's experience as a multi-dimensional story with a wealth of user-friendly tools. Prezi maps all key accomplishments and projects of interest, preserving timeline and logical ties. A format well worthy of attention!

9. Britt Arechiga →

A collection of e-Learning courses, storyboards, and videos, this portfolio provides a smooth browsing experience and quick access to the projects. Some works are presented as screenshots, others are packed into multimedia formats. The author uses Dropbox as cloud storage.

10. Tom Washam →

This gallery features Instructional Design, Project Management, and Gamification categories. All case studies provide a project description, customer name, and details on technology used. More information is available in .swf format.

11. Kristin Anthony →

Kristin's eLearning portfolio fits into a single page with minimum scrolling. The projects include customer details, tools employed, and time in development. All cases link to pop-up demos or embedded presentations.

12. Chris Friend →

This is another ID portfolio that is both clean and includes great descriptive content. Chris does a really excellent job of showcasing his skillset across a diverse range of projects.

13. Candice Bowes →

This is another no-frills portfolio providing access to projects in PDF and PowerPoint format. Simple, clear, to the point.

14. Jackie Throngard →

Jackie's page displays samples of instructional designs developed for a host of educational, business and non-profit organizations. The formula here is a basic test description plus a PDF to learn more. At the bottom of the page, you can find the author's latest publications, separate CVs for academia and business, as well as links to social networks.

15. Bruce Richards →

The portfolio section on this website comes with education, technical expertise, skills, work history, and awards. Prominent works are filtered by category: instructional design, graphic & web design, instructional presentations, video and instructional guides, writing samples, presentations, and tutorials. The content opens in an embedded Flash player, or in a PDF file.

16. Ginger Nichols →

Ginger's portfolio is a mix of e-Learning, instructor-led training, job aids, etc. What's peculiar in this project gallery is a category dubbed "Clicky-clicky bling-bling" where the author places experimental and incomplete jobs. For all projects, Ginger indicates the date and the technology used. The full content opens up as HTML5. Some case studies are password-protected for confidentiality purposes.

17. Devlin Peck →

This instructional design portfolio features an easy-to-navigate page that describes the designer's experience in developing several types of eLearning resources. For each project, viewers simply hover over an image on the page to find a brief description. Clicking on a description leads to detailed information and access to the full project. Peck's specialties include interactive courseware and xAPI implementation and consulting.

18. Camille Larepe →

Camille's website has a simple design that allows the viewer to scroll and view samples of eLearning projects. Animation, educational games, digital textbooks, and mobile learning are some of the concepts the designer introduces in this portfolio. The designer's approaches to instructional design and multimedia design are discussed in detail.

19. Nyla Spooner →

Nyla's eLearning portfolio is presented in a list format, almost like an article or blog post. What we love is that she shares a lot of details and insight into the design process, giving visitors a better understanding into who she is and how she works.

20. Chackras Lee Smith →

Upon entering this site, the viewer is introduced to Smith's many roles: education specialist, freelance designer, instructional designer, and curriculum developer. The designer includes a resume that summarizes his experience and educational background. The portfolio includes examples and excerpts of learning objects that Smith has developed and references from colleagues. The unique feature of this site is that each time viewers click on an image to view a sample, they are taken back to Smith's introduction, then they must scroll down to see the samples.

21. Stellar Instructional Design →

This portfolio is well organized and has some nifty icons that catch the eye and guide the visitor to the types of projects they want to see.

22. Blue Jay Learning →

This site showcases Houra Amin's competencies through a sampling of short courses. The developer indicates that she is a skilled pedagogical practitioner with experience in analysis, design, educational technology, evaluation, and media. Upon clicking on links in images that represent the designer's projects, viewers see courses and other learning objects in action. Amin shares the course authoring tools and other resources she uses in the design process. An archive of blog posts is available on each portfolio sample page.

23. Stylelearn.com →

Clicking on this site brings a different result than some other portfolio sites. The site does not appear at first to be a portfolio. The "about" tab takes the viewer to information about Alexander Salas, a designer with experience in the healthcare and IT industries. The home page features a learning game, a demo, and a training course that viewers can experience. The "sample" tab leads to several short demos created in Articulate Storyline and Rise. The demos are colorful, interactive, and a good representation of the designer's skills.

24. Dr. Jennifer Lynn Wagner →

While this instructional design portfolio is pretty simple and plain, it gets the job done. I particularly like the category buttons at the top you can click to take you to specific types of her work.

25. Heather Willis →

Willis's YouTube portfolio begins with upbeat music and simple visual elements that introduce her as an instructional designer with skills in Storyline, Captivate, Camtasia, Premiere, and Edge. Willis works with animation, develops presentations, and creates videos. Here, she shares demo snippets of pieces she has created. The portfolio includes statements from clients regarding Willis's work. The video concludes with her social media contact information.

26. Tim Slade →

Tim's portfolio is really great. Not only does it feature some big name clients, but when you click on the projects, there are supporting videos walking you through the work and lots of useful info.

27. Andre Syzmanowicz →

Syzmanowicz shares a YouTube video portfolio that highlights a training course for healthcare professionals to help patients understand the benefits of colorectal cancer screening. The video is just over two minutes, and demonstrates how learners move through a module and assessment quiz.

28. Liberate eLearning →

This portfolio is a virtual tour of the eLearning resources developed by Liberate eLearning. Set to music, the portfolio is fast-moving and technically savvy. It is evident that this custom eLearning developer has performed work for all types of companies, including major corporations. Interested parties can visit the company's website for more information.

29. Taylor Tomanio →

This simple but cool site introduces Taylor Tomanio, an instructional designer, learning developer, and LX designer. Her portfolio features courses created for clients. along with learning resources of interest to experienced and aspiring instructional designers.

30. The Eductech Diva →

Tonya V. Thomas's Eductech Diva website describes her work in several areas, including educational technology, design, project management, and multimedia communication. Thomas's portfolio includes a collection of work samples where the viewer can click on links to see interactive presentations.

31. The University of Hawaii →

This is how colleges display their distance learning programs and course portfolios. All programs feature an instructor, method of delivery and description. No frills, pure information.

32. The Elearning Laboratory →

The company's website offers streamlined graphic design and structure. Every case study includes demos, external links, and customer quotes. All projects are presented in bulk, with no separate categories.

33. Hemeon Learning Inc. →

Just a bunch of sample screenshots. However, this portfolio page has a disclaimer: more information will be available after registration. The projects here fall into the following categories: Health and Safety, Human Resources, Information Technology, Policy.

34. Your eLearning World →

Seven case studies encompassing challenge, solution, screenshots and an agreeable design.

Instructional Designer Portfolio Checklist

Here are some things you'll want to make sure to include in your own portfolio:

• Various techniques. Do you only have linear slide-by-slide courses under your belt, or are there any interactive instructional design samples? If yes, make sure to add them to the list.
• Nice looks. Although this may not directly define you as Instructional Designer, the look and feel of the portfolio page makes a crucial impression on your viewers. Elegant imagery and a smart layout will surely earn you a few extra points.
• Content diversity. Make sure you showcase versatile courses ranging widely by content, style, approach, year of publication, etc.
• Clear descriptions. Keep your logic impeccable, guide the viewer from challenges and requirements through the solution and up to business/academic impact.
• Employed tools/software. Don't forget to mention your favorite e-Learning tools, LMS, and authoring software to give the portfolio a professional flavor.
• Project roles and positions. Describe responsibilities within every project, accentuate your personal input.
• Confidentiality and IP. See to it that exposure of your work does not breach your previous employers' confidentiality policies. By the same token, protect your own intellectual property from misuse – provide screenshots or safe links rather than original files.
• Academic/business paper samples. Supplement your portfolio with examples of your writing. This can be scripts, papers, publications, etc.
• Personal details. Your mission, interests, and hobbies are an integral part of your professional brand.

Basic Tips for Creating Your eLearning Portfolio

1. When sharing your experience as an Instructional Designer, focus on the practical value of your activities, as well as your capabilities for problem solving and executing complex projects from scratch. Go beyond your skills as a course author and throw strategy into the mix, matching employers' potentials needs with your battle-hardened optimization scenarios.
2. A perfect portfolio shows your prime accomplishments and the links between them – not the whole story with all its ups and downs. Choose carefully, and see if the projects on the list still comply with your active skillset.
3. The target audience is another aspect worthy of consideration. You may need to come up with a couple or more portfolios to cater to different verticals. Is this a traditional school project or an e-Learning design opportunity that you have in mind? Do you need to highlight your business coaching activities? Factor this in for your portfolio.
4. If you are thinking of a platform for deploying a personal website, try WordPress. It's a market-tested engine used by millions of people, so you can't go wrong. WordPress encompasses a host of free and paid plugins for every taste and budget, with decent customization options. Check out this nice guide to building up a WordPress site.
5. Last but not least, always keep it up to date. Make regular updates to the description and review the portfolio based on new experience, certificates, or challenges. Besides, educational technology evolves all the time, so you don't want to appear out of touch mentioning obsolete tools.

Crafting an Instructional Design portfolio may take up a good deal of time, but it pays off well in the long run.

If you are looking to enhance your clientele, unlock new work opportunities, and grow your salary, it's definitely the way to go.

Useful Videos

In this video, Tom Kuhlmann defines and discusses the importance of having a professional portfolio and outlines the essential elements to include. Viewers learn that portfolios should have personal and professional value, as well as demonstrate technological expertise. The video also suggests using a portfolio for branding and for sharing work samples.

Katrina Baker discusses what makes a good portfolio and how to use a portfolio during an interview. She recommends taking hard copies of sample projects to the interview because this allows the interviewer to have something in hand as the designer presents information about the projects. Those who view this video will find many helpful recommendations, including the importance of creating a unique portfolio for each job interview.

How to Create Your Own Instructional Design Portfolio

There are a lot of ready-to-go website constructors like Wix, Weebly. However, I do not recommend you to use them, because they will limit your capabilities. The problem is that you cannot embed your courses to the website via HTML5 using such constructors, and there is no point in your portfolio without "live" samples.

So what can you do?

I recommend building your portfolio with WordPress – the full-powered CMS (Content Management System).

One of WordPress' greatest strengths is that it is easy to use and doesn't require prior training to set it up.

You can easily add your HTML5 code to embed your courses via WordPress plug-ins. Your website with WordPress is based on your hosting, so you don't need any other payments to maintain your website. By the way, my blog is also built on WordPress.

Here are the steps to create your Portfolio website using WordPress:

1. Create a domain. A domain is your website name, so choose it wisely. It is better to use your real name as the domain.
2. Choose the right hosting. You need hosting to store data on your website, so it is an essential part of your portfolio site. As for me, I highly recommend Bluehost. You can easily check your domain name on their website. You don't even need to link a domain and hosting manually – Bluehost takes care of it for you.
3. Perform a one-click WordPress setup on your website.Again, Bluehost makes installing and setting up WordPress super fast and easy.
4. Select a WordPress theme. It will define what your website will look like. You can use free themes or make your custom theme on your own but this is a time-consuming process. Choose one of the beautiful and not quite expensive ready-made themes that WordPress offers. Click here to select the ready-to-go theme.
5. Install and activate a plug-in for embedding your course to your portfolio website. See the guide on how to do this here.

Now all that's left is adding your courses, their descriptions, and your bio. Well, now you are all set. Congrats!

In conclusion

I'm looking forward to your nominees for the 'truly outstanding portfolio' award. Found a great sample? Give me a shout in the comments, and I'll add it to the list!

If you are on the list of award-winning portfolio authors, feel free to embed this badge on your website! To do so, just copy and paste this code in an HTML editor:

<a href="https://myelearningworld.com/instructional-design-portfolio-samples/"> <img src="https://myelearningworld.com/gold-badge.png" style="max-width: 100%;"/> </a>

I'd be honored!

• Author
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Hi, I'm Scott Winstead, an e-Learning technology geek with 20 years of experience. Follow this blog for opinions on blended learning and flipped classroom techniques, reviews of home studio equipment, and tips for voice-over actors and digital audio content makers, technology how-tos, and more!

Examples Of Instructional Design Tools

Source: https://myelearningworld.com/instructional-design-portfolio-samples/

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