Tips to Overcome Expertise Reversal Effect for Elearning Course Design

Normally, you would assume that a certain elearning online course design would work well for everyone and that all you have to change is the content. But did you know that a course should be designed differently for novices than for experts? After all, if you think about it, you can’t expect a novice student to learn a new skill or technique as fast and as effectively as an expert. If you reverse the situation by treating advanced students as novices, it may have a detrimental effect on their learning level. This is known as the expertise reversal effect.

The expertise reversal effect is when a person’s level of prior knowledge greatly affects or influences the effectiveness of learning materials and their content. This implies that instructional approaches that are meant for beginners will be ineffective or even detrimental for advanced students. This is based on the theory of cognitive load which states that the limitations of a functional memory emphasize the need to avoid overloading it. However, the thing is that whatever induces cognitive load in an expert is different for a novice.


elearning development

How does it happen? If an advanced learner is fed redundant information given to beginners, it could induce unnecessary cognitive load. This would distract the learner from learning new material effectively.

Here are some elearning online design strategies to overcome or avoid the expertise reversal effect:
• Allow skipping of extra steps and detailed guidance
• Use a design model that encourages independent exploration
• Provide support for informal methods of learning
• Allow students to choose the level they want to enter
• Let the student perform a specific task to determine their strengths and weaknesses

There is no one size fits all in every situation; just like there is no one perfect course or curriculum for everybody. In creating elearning online material, there has to be a set rule for more advance students so they can move and learn at their own pace.

My Life as an Elearning Open University Student

I am really thankful that Open Universities are making it more convenient for working professionals like me to finish a degree. Because it’s elearning, I am not obliged to spend so much time attending classes. Instead, professors provide modules and videos for me to learn the lesson. It is so convenient because I learn on my own pace and I’m not forced to learn in the same manner as others. If I don’t get the lesson, I can always go through the materials they have provided. If there are some points that are hard for me to grasp, I can always email my professor or contact my OU classmates on Twitter for support. In my years of studying, this OU program is definitely the best I have taken.


elearning online

I only need to finish a few more modules to finally get my management degree and honestly, I would not mind enrolling in another program at OU. If given the chance, time, and resources, I would like to take a teaching program since it is offered as one of their elearning courses. It’s a good degree that I can put to use in the future. When I suddenly feel tired and jaded of managing my business, I would want to teach and share what I have learned through my stay at OU. Aside from that, teaching is also a marketable skill that I can use to earn extra dollars.

On the other hand, being an OU student is not always easy. Although, we don’t have to go to school physically every day like others in the mainstream programs do, we still have hurdles to overcome. Poor motivation is one. I have always believed that being in this program requires determination and intrinsic motivation. It would be almost impossible to finish a degree or achieve qualifications if you are not driven to finish reading the modules and working on the drills, especially that you are the one monitoring yourself. That’s why I am pretty proud of myself for having gone this far. I know that when I finally receive my diploma, the fruit of my labor, I would be more motivated to reach for higher goals and more elearning courses.