With all the complexities related to developing academic content today — from moving it online to formatting it in novel ways like games and interactive experiences — it’s easy to lose focus and produce less-than-optimal materials.

Here are reminders — rather than tips — for creating superior academic content that resonates with educators and learners and helps students achieve their classroom goals. (We’re presenting these as reminders because we know you understand this stuff. It’s just easy to forget in today’s complex content creation environment.)

Ensure Content is Relevant to the Learner

Relevancy to the student seems obvious, but it’s an important enough issue to address at the current time.

When creating content in complex or multimedia formats, it’s easy to forget that it has to be exactly right for the level of learner. Math for a third grader is clearly different than that for an eighth grader. That’s relatively easy to define and present in a textbook.

However, is the math learning experience delivered through a game entirely appropriate for a third or eighth-grader? That’s harder to know for sure.

• Is it presented in too juvenile or mature a way?
• Are all concepts able to be absorbed?
• Is the content accessible to everyone in the grade level who could encounter it?

In today’s complex times, it’s essential to go back to the basics and consistently review your content through the eyes of learners and educators.

Maintain a Consistent Voice and Tone

It’s easy enough for multiple voices and messaging styles to enter into a textbook written by numerous authors. When it happens, learners can fall out of the zone, lose focus, and get lost.

Imagine the possible messaging disconnects when you create materials in multiple media with various authors, designers, developers, and more. It’s easy for educational experiences to turn into jumbled messes.

When you start a complex — or any type of — content development process, always lay out clear messaging and visual guidelines. Ensure everyone involved uses and follows them. Have an editor check that all parts of a piece meets them. As a final step, test your materials with people in the appropriate grade level to ensure no unintentional disconnects could disrupt learning.

Insert Unexpected, Delightful Elements

While it’s true that there’s pretty much nothing that hasn’t been done before in educational content creation, it’s still important to think outside the box and surprise and delight learners.

It’s easy for educational content to become dull. (We all remember those old textbooks.) Students today, with an unlimited amount of content and entertaining experiences readily available to them, are less likely to engage with anything they consider b-o-r-i-n-g than previous generations.

Of course, it’s necessary to present the learning-related information clearly so students can follow, understand, and absorb it. But why not consider adding-in compelling videos, diagrams, illustrations, games, and other things that support the academic objectives and provide unexpected breaks in rote learning? Not only will it keep students moving ahead, they’ll also WANT to power through.

Format Content in User-Friendly Ways

As already covered, it’s easy to lose control over complex material-development projects. This is especially true when elements are presented in multiple media, where it’s easy to lose control over consistent formatting and intuitive navigation.

Consider this when you create messaging and design guidelines for your projects. Make sure they address elements across and between different media and content sections. You won’t achieve user-friendliness unless you define what it looks and sounds like going in.

As a final step, commit to user experience testing of all materials to identify issues and disconnects. Test them with all types and abilities of learners to ensure they’re friendly for everyone.

Enrich Your Content with Value-Added Experiences

Of course, you must develop materials that meet curriculum requirements. However, that’s typically not enough for today’s learners.

For those interested in a topic, it’s essential to include links to other content and experiences adventurous learners will want to explore.

For people who may find the content challenging or who approach learning in unique ways, provide alternate paths through the material. Everyone deserves to be able to approach education in their own way.

How to Create Top-Tier Educational Content: The Bottom Line

Of course, you know how to create superior materials. The issue is that it’s often easy to forget the fundamentals in today’s complex educational environment. Leverage the information in this checklist to keep the basics top-of-mind when you develop materials in novel or multiple mediums.