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Learning Design

Learning Design

Start with the learner need, choose a suitable structure, use an established learning expression where appropriate, then select components or platform capabilities that realise the intent.

Intent to implementation

From intent to implementation

  1. 1What does the learner need?
  2. 2How should the experience be structured?
  3. 3Does an established learning expression fit?
  4. 4Which implementation suits the platform?
5 records

Learning purposes

These describe what the designer needs to support for the learner.

Learning purpose

Explain a concept

Help learners build a clear understanding of a concept they will later need to act on, judge or apply.

Learner need

Build the understanding needed for later action, judgement or application.

Use when

  • The learner needs core understanding before using a concept in practice.

Avoid when

  • Only one concise point needs to be retained; use Key message instead.
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Design guidance

  • Organise the explanation around the understanding the learner needs, with clear hierarchy and readable density.
  • Use supporting visuals only when they add meaning.

Possible implementations

  • Rise image and text native capability native capability

    Present a straightforward explanation using native Rise content.

  • Panel component component

    Group related explanatory content when a visible boundary helps comprehension.

  • Pair explanatory content with an image that adds meaning.

Platform guidance

Rise: Prefer native image-and-text for straightforward explanations; use Split Card only where the image adds real meaning.

Maturity: Candidate

Learning purpose

Key message

Help the learner identify and retain one critical point.

Learner need

Recognise and retain the single point that matters most in the current context.

Use when

  • One legal threshold, definition or critical reminder needs deliberate emphasis.

Avoid when

  • The content is routine supporting detail or contains more than one message.
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Design guidance

  • Keep the message focused and concise, normally one to three sentences.
  • Use the Key message recipe when deliberate emphasis is useful. It combines Callout and typography.

Possible implementations

  • Key message recipe recipe

    Compose a focused message from Callout and typography.

    Combine Callout and typography for this treatment.

  • Callout component component

    Provide emphasis within the Key message recipe.

  • Rise text native capability native capability

    Present a light-touch key message with a subheading and ordinary body text.

Platform guidance

Rise: Use ordinary body text with a subheading when a separate visual treatment is unnecessary.

Maturity: Candidate

Learning purpose

Explanatory feedback

Help learners understand the reasoning and consequences behind a response and what to consider next.

Learner need

Understand why a response is or is not appropriate, its likely consequences and how to improve the next judgement or action.

Use when

  • A learner response creates an opportunity to explain reasoning, consequences or a misconception.

Avoid when

  • The response would only state correct or incorrect without useful reasoning.
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Design guidance

  • Connect feedback directly to the learner's response and reveal it close to the action that caused it.
  • Explain consequences, address likely misconceptions and identify what the learner should consider next.
  • Choose an implementation suited to the activity; explanatory feedback is not limited to Decision Point.

Possible implementations

  • Rise feedback native capability native capability

    Provide explanatory feedback within a suitable native interaction.

  • Reveal explanatory feedback after a professional decision when that interaction is warranted.

    Decision Point is one implementation, not the boundary of this purpose.

  • Callout component component

    Present feedback revealed by a lightweight custom interaction.

Platform guidance

Rise: Use the feedback capability of the chosen interaction and ensure dynamically revealed feedback is announced appropriately.

Maturity: Candidate

Learning purpose

Reflection

Help learners consider how learning relates to their own practice, experience or next action.

Learner need

Connect learning to personal practice or experience and consider an appropriate future action.

Use when

  • A short reflective prompt or self-assessment genuinely helps transfer learning into practice.

Avoid when

  • The prompt adds interaction or visual weight without supporting considered application.
  • A legacy Editorial Reflection treatment would be required.
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Design guidance

  • Prefer native or lightweight reflection when a prompt alone provides sufficient support.
  • Use structured self-assessment only when ratings or criteria materially help the learner reflect.
  • Editorial Reflection is legacy and must not be recommended for new work.

Possible implementations

  • Rise statement or text native capability native capability

    Present a concise reflection prompt with minimal interaction.

  • Panel component component

    Give a lightweight reflection prompt an appropriate visual boundary.

  • Self assessment platform implementation platform implementation

    Support a course-specific structured reflection using ratings or criteria.

    Use only when a structured rating genuinely helps.

Platform guidance

Rise: Prefer native statement or text blocks, or a compact Panel. Self-assessment is course-specific. Editorial Reflection remains legacy and is not recommended.

Maturity: Candidate

Learning purpose

Contextualise a resource

Help learners understand why a resource is relevant, where it leads and what they should do with it.

Learner need

Understand the relevance, destination and intended action associated with a supplementary resource.

Use when

  • A supplementary document or external guidance needs context before the learner opens it.

Avoid when

  • Essential learning would be available only through the linked resource.
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Design guidance

  • Name the resource, explain its relevance and identify the intended learner action.
  • Set clear expectations about the destination and what will happen when it opens.
  • Bring essential learning into the course rather than relying on an external destination.

Possible implementations

  • Present a resource with context and a clear action.

  • Rise attachment or link native capability native capability

    Provide a lighter implementation when a card is unnecessary.

Platform guidance

Rise: Use a native attachment or contextual text link for lighter cases; never rely on the link alone to provide essential learning.

Maturity: Candidate

5 records

Experience structures

These describe repeatable ways to organise sequence, grouping, transition or flow.

Experience structure

Section opener

Orient learners and support the transition into a meaningful new section.

Structure

A distinct transition that introduces and orients the learner to a major section before its learning content begins.

Use when

  • A major section genuinely begins and the learner needs orientation to its focus or purpose.

Avoid when

  • Every heading or minor subtopic change is treated as a major transition.
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Design guidance

  • Signal a meaningful structural transition and establish what the learner is moving into.
  • Keep orientation proportional to the importance of the section.

Possible implementations

  • Rise banner native capability native capability

    Mark and orient a section transition using native Rise content.

  • Provide a designed section transition when stronger orientation is warranted.

    The component is one possible implementation of the structure.

Platform guidance

Rise: Choose a native banner or Section Opener component according to the strength of transition required.

Maturity: Candidate

Experience structure

Scenario stage

Organise a continuing scenario into meaningful stages that preserve perspective, evidence and progression.

Structure

A sequence of connected scenario stages in which context or evidence develops from a consistent perspective and supports progression through the situation.

Use when

  • A running scenario introduces a discrete context, update, observation or piece of evidence.

Avoid when

  • The content is general explanation with no continuing scenario relationship.
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Design guidance

  • Maintain a stable learner or decision-maker perspective across the scenario.
  • Make the relationship between each stage, new evidence and later progression clear.
  • Preserve continuity of the setting and situation while introducing only the evidence needed at that stage.

Possible implementations

  • Present a discrete stage while maintaining visual and narrative continuity.

  • Rise content sequence native capability native capability

    Arrange a lightweight continuing scenario using native content blocks.

Platform guidance

Rise: Keep one stable visual environment and decision-maker perspective across the scenario, whether native blocks or the component are used.

Maturity: Candidate

Experience structure

Ordered sequence

Organise actions or stages where genuine order, dependencies or progression matter to understanding or outcome.

Structure

An ordered organisation of actions or stages whose sequence, dependencies or progression are significant.

Use when

  • Actions, dependencies, stages or progression have a meaningful order.

Avoid when

  • Items are not truly sequential and a list or grid would communicate them more honestly.
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Design guidance

  • Make the reason for the order clear, including dependencies or changes between stages.
  • Use numbering only where the number carries meaning.

Possible implementations

  • Rise ordered content native capability native capability

    Present a straightforward ordered sequence using native content.

  • Present a designed sequence where its stages benefit from stronger visual organisation.

Platform guidance

Rise: Use native ordered content when it is sufficient; use Process when stronger staged organisation supports comprehension.

Maturity: Candidate

Experience structure

Comparison structure

Organise related roles, responses or alternatives so learners can identify straightforward similarities and differences.

Structure

A parallel organisation of a manageable set of related items under consistent categories to make simple similarities and differences clear.

Use when

  • A small number of related items can be compared through clear, parallel categories.

Avoid when

  • The content is too extensive for a clear comparison or the activity requires a more sophisticated evaluate-and-decide experience.
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Design guidance

  • Keep comparison categories parallel and make important differences explicit.
  • Choose an organisation suited to the content volume and the number of alternatives.
  • More sophisticated compare–evaluate–decide learning activity requires additional learning design and is not defined by this structure alone.

Possible implementations

  • Compare two related roles or positions through parallel categories.

  • Rise table native capability native capability

    Present a compact comparison in rows and columns.

  • Organise alternatives as cards when side-by-side scanning is useful.

  • Rise category navigation native capability native capability

    Separate comparison categories when the content benefits from guided navigation.

Platform guidance

Rise: Select Role Split, a table, Card Grid or category navigation according to the content; the structure does not prescribe one treatment.

Maturity: Candidate

Experience structure

Section summary

Provide meaningful closure to a major section and reinforce the learning before transition.

Structure

A deliberate closing segment that consolidates a major section's learning and marks the transition away from it.

Use when

  • A major section ends and the learner benefits from deliberate closure and reinforcement.

Avoid when

  • Every subtopic is followed by a summary regardless of its significance.
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Design guidance

  • Reinforce the most important learning in a concise set of points.
  • Use the summary to close the section and prepare the learner for a genuine transition.

Possible implementations

  • Rise summary content native capability native capability

    Close a section with concise native text or list content.

  • Give a major section a strong visual close when warranted.

    Footer Band is one possible implementation, not a requirement.

Platform guidance

Rise: Use three to five concise points where appropriate. Choose Footer Band only when a deliberate visual close is useful.

Maturity: Candidate

2 records

Learning expressions

These are established approaches for recurring learning situations.

Learning expression

Legislation or authority

Express authoritative material so learners can distinguish the source from explanation and understand its implications for action.

Defining features

  • An accurately identified authority or source.
  • Clear separation between authoritative material and explanation.
  • Plain-language interpretation where appropriate.
  • An explicit learner implication or action.
  • Careful, contextual use of extracts and citations.

Use when

  • A specific Act, regulation, section or other authority underpins a requirement.

Avoid when

  • A general policy statement has no identified authoritative source.
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Design guidance

  • Identify the authority precisely and keep authoritative material visibly separate from explanation.
  • Use plain-language interpretation where appropriate and make the learner implication or action explicit.
  • Use extracts and citations carefully, retaining enough context for accurate interpretation.
  • Use the Legislation or authority recipe with Split Card and typography when a stronger treatment is useful.

Possible implementations

  • Legislation or authority recipe recipe

    Compose authoritative source material, explanation and learner implications using Split Card and typography.

    Combine Split Card and typography for this treatment.

  • Support visible separation between the authority and its explanation.

  • Rise text native capability native capability

    Present a lighter expression when typography and clear source labelling are sufficient.

Platform guidance

Rise: Use Split Card or native text according to content needs while preserving source accuracy, separation and learner implications.

Maturity: Candidate

Learning expression

Professional decision point

Give learners credible practice in making a meaningful professional choice or judgement and understanding its reasoning or consequences.

Defining features

  • A credible professional situation.
  • A meaningful choice or judgement.
  • Plausible alternatives.
  • Reasoning or consequence connected to the choice.
  • Explanatory feedback.
  • Practice rather than simple recall.

Use when

  • A credible professional situation presents plausible alternatives and the learner benefits from practising judgement.

Avoid when

  • The learner problem is only recall or confirmation, or alternatives would be obviously implausible.
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Design guidance

  • Ground the decision in a credible professional situation and present a meaningful choice or judgement.
  • Use plausible alternatives that reflect realistic reasoning, not superficial distractors.
  • Explain the reasoning or consequence and provide explanatory feedback after the choice.
  • Use the expression for practice rather than simple recall.

Possible implementations

  • Provide an interactive professional choice with revealed reasoning and feedback.

    Decision Point is one possible interactive implementation.

  • Rise knowledge check native capability native capability

    Handle recall or confirmation when a professional decision expression is not needed.

    This is an alternative for a simpler learner problem, not an implementation of professional judgement.

Platform guidance

Rise: Use Decision Point for credible professional judgement. Use a native knowledge check when the learner problem is only recall or confirmation.

Maturity: Candidate

For migration reference, see the current Learning Patterns page.