Let’s start with some good news:

Most digital courses don’t fail because the content is bad.

They fail because the learner gets lost.

• Lost in why the lesson matters.

• Lost in how to think about the information.

• Lost when they’re asked to do something before they feel ready.

• Lost when a quiz shows up… with no real support leading up to it.

What we often label as “engagement problems” are usually design problems in disguise.

And here’s the thing: this isn’t a mystery.

Robert Gagné mapped this out decades ago. His Nine Events of Instruction describe the key mental moments the brain needs to move from:

attention → understanding → action → real-world use.

In Edovo’s world of self-paced learning, no external internet, constant distractions, and a lot of academic trauma, those moments matter even more. Skip them, and even great content can fall flat.

So in this article, we’re not talking theory for theory’s sake. We’re breaking down each of the nine events as practical, doable design moves you can build into every digital course, without making it longer, heavier, or more complicated.

Note: For a high-level overview of Gagne’s 9 Events, check out this article.

What you’ll walk away with

By the end, you’ll have:

• A clear mental model for how learning unfolds

• Concrete ways to design each event on Edovo

• Tools to replace the instructor that learners don’t have access to

• A structure that supports autonomy, confidence, and follow-through
  

Gagne's 9 Events

Gagné’s Event 1. Gain attention

Signal: “This matters to you.”

This is where you earn the learner’s focus before you teach anything.

Gaining attention is not about being flashy. It’s about helping the learner’s brain answer one question immediately:

Why should I care right now?

Use attention-getters to:

• Anchor the lesson in real life

• Surface a relatable problem or tension

• Signal usefulness, not theory
  
  

Two concrete ways to gain attention on Edovo

Real-life dilemmas
Start with a situation the learner recognizes instantly. For example: 

Example: “What would you do if you had $60 left for the week—and no idea where it went?”

“Have you ever…?” prompts

Invite learners to mentally step into the topic.

Example: “Have you ever made a plan that didn’t last past day two?”

These moments don’t teach yet. They prepare the brain to learn.

Gagné’s Event 2. State objectives

Signal: “Here’s where we’re going.”

This step isn’t about sounding academic. It’s about orientation.

When learners know what’s coming, their brains relax. Cognitive load drops. Motivation rises. In trauma-impacted environments especially, clarity creates safety.

Stating objectives tells learners:

• What they’ll gain

• What’s expected of them

• Why the time they’re investing is worth it
  
  

In other words, you’re answering the unspoken question every adult learner asks the moment a lesson begins: “What am I going to get out of this?”

Why this matters (especially in corrections)

Research in cognitive psychology and adult learning theory shows that clear goals:

• Reduce uncertainty and anxiety

• Improve attention and persistence

• Increase transfer to real-life application
  
  

For incarcerated learners, many of whom have experienced disrupted education or school-based trauma, this step is not optional. It’s foundational.

What good objectives look like

Strong learning objectives are not long lists or jargon-heavy promises. They are:

• Short: One to three outcomes max. Easy to hold in working memory.

• Practical: Focused on real skills, decisions, or behaviors—not abstract knowledge.

• Worth the effort: They clearly connect to life outside the lesson: relationships, reentry, work, self-control, confidence.
  
  

The plain-language test

If your objective sounds like something a learner would actually say about themselves, you’re doing it right.

            Instead of:

“Understand effective communication strategies”

Try:

“By the end of this lesson, you’ll be able to spot what shuts down a conversation—and choose a better response.”

Instructional designer pro tip

On Edovo, objectives work best when they feel like a promise, not a syllabus.

Frame them as:

• “By the end of this lesson, you’ll be able to…”

• “After this, you’ll know how to…”

• “You’ll walk away with tools to…”
  
  

When learners see the destination, they’re far more willing to take the journey.

Gagné’s Event 3. Stimulate recall

Signal: “You already know something about this.”

Learning doesn’t start from zero. It starts from memory.

Before introducing anything new, effective instruction helps learners reach back to experiences, emotions, mistakes, and wins they already carry with them. When you do this, learning sticks faster and lasts longer.

From a science-of-learning perspective, this step activates prior knowledge, which:

• Reduces cognitive load

• Improves comprehension

• Increases transfer to real-life situations
  
  

For adult learners, and especially for those who have been told they’re “bad at school,” this step also rebuilds confidence.

Why this matters in corrections-based learning

Many incarcerated adults doubt their academic ability, even when they have deep life experience. Stimulating recall quietly reframes the learning environment by letting them know:

You’re not starting behind. You’re starting from experience.

This matters in trauma-informed design. When learners feel competent and recognized, their nervous systems are calmer and learning becomes possible.

What stimulating recall actually looks like

This is not a quiz.
It’s not a pop test.
And it’s definitely not about “checking what they remember.”

Stimulating recall means inviting learners to reflect on something they’ve already lived. For example:

“Think about a time when your money ran out, but the week wasn’t over. What choices did you have to make?”

That single question does powerful instructional work:

• It activates existing mental models

• It creates emotional relevance

• It prepares the brain to receive new strategies
  
  

Design principles for strong recall prompts

Effective recall prompts are:

• Experience-based: Draw from everyday life, not school memories.

• Low-pressure: No right or wrong answers. Reflection, not evaluation. 

• Directly connected to what’s next: The learner should feel, “Oh, this is about that.”
  
  

Instructional designer pro tip

On Edovo, recall works best when it’s woven gently into the experience, not framed like a test. This is a great place to:

• Invite a low-pressure reflection question learners can answer in their head or on screen, with no “right” response

• Use a brief think-back prompt paired with an image, short video, or scenario that helps learners visualize a familiar moment

• Offer an optional open-ended response, clearly framed as “for your own reflection,” so learners can engage at their comfort level

• These small design choices signal safety, autonomy, and relevance—while still doing the heavy lifting of activating prior knowledge.

You’re not asking learners to prove what they know. You’re reminding them that they already know something, and that’s enough to begin.

Gagné’s Event 4: Present the Content

Signal to learners: “Here’s the core idea.”

This is the moment where new information actually enters the lesson but how it’s presented matters just as much as what you present.

Presenting content isn’t about delivering everything you know. It’s about offering the right amount of information, in the right order, so learners can make sense of it without overload.

From a learning science perspective, this step:

• Manages intrinsic and extraneous cognitive load

• Helps learners build accurate mental models

• Sets up successful practice later
  
  

In corrections-based, self-paced learning, clarity here is non-negotiable. When content is dense, abstract, or poorly sequenced, learners disengage—not because they don’t care, but because their working memory is overwhelmed.

What effective content presentation looks like on Edovo

Strong content presentation is:

• Focused: Teach one main idea or decision at a time. Avoid bundling multiple skills into a single lesson.

• Plain-language: Use everyday words, short sentences, and concrete examples. If it sounds like a textbook, it’s too heavy.

• Purposefully multimodal: Pair text with visuals, audio, or examples—but only when each element adds clarity, not decoration.
  
  

• Explicit about what matters: Call out the key takeaway directly. Don’t make learners guess what to remember.
  
  

Instructional designer pro tip

If learners can’t explain the idea in their own words, they won’t be able to use it later.

On Edovo, effective content presentation sets up everything that follows, guidance, practice, feedback, and transfer. When this step is clear and intentional, the rest of the learning flow becomes dramatically easier.

Gagné’s Event 5. Provide learning guidance

Signal: “Replace the instructor learners don’t have access to.”

This is where you coach, not just inform.

This step fills the gap where a teacher would normally step in to clarify thinking, prevent mistakes, or model judgment, before frustration sets in.

From a learning science perspective, this step:

• Reduces extraneous cognitive load

• Supports novice learners who don’t yet know what to focus on

• Builds confidence by making expert thinking visible
  
  

In corrections-based digital learning, this step is critical. Learners can’t raise a hand. They can’t ask, “Am I doing this right?” Guidance fills that gap.

What learning guidance actually does

Strong guidance helps learners:

• Notice what matters and ignore what doesn’t

• Avoid common traps that derail progress

• Learn how to think, not just what to do
  
  

This is especially important for adults who have learned skills informally but were never taught the underlying decision-making process.

Two high-impact ways to provide learning guidance on Edovo

1. “Common mistakes” guidance

Signal: “You’re not alone, people often get stuck here.”

This approach warns learners about predictable trouble spots before they hit them. It’s preventative, not corrective.

You can build this directly into Edovo courses using:

• Optional quiz feedback that explains why an answer doesn’t work

• Flashcards where the front names the mistake and the back shows a short example

• Call-out boxes or short audio moments titled:

• “A common mistake is…”

• “Watch out for this…”
  
  

Example (budgeting):

“A common mistake is forgetting small daily costs like snacks or phone time. They don’t feel big—but over a week, they add up fast.”

Why this works:

• Normalizes mistakes without blame

• Reduces frustration and self-doubt

• Gives learners a mental warning sign they can recognize later
  
  

2. “Expert thinking” walkthroughs

Signal: “Here’s how I approach this.”

This is where you make invisible thinking visible. Use a short video, audio clip, or text box that begins with: “Here’s how I’m thinking about this step…”

Then walk learners through:

• What to notice first

• What to ignore for now

• How to decide between options
  
  

Example:

“When I look at my expenses, I don’t start by cutting everything. I ask, ‘What do I need to get through the week?’ Then I look at wants.”

This is guidance—not practice.

Learners observe expert reasoning before they’re asked to apply it themselves.

Instructional designer pro tip

If practice answers the question “Can I do this?” guidance answers the more important one: “How should I think about this?”

On Edovo, the strongest courses bake guidance into the content itself so learners feel supported even when they’re learning alone.

Gagné’s Event 6. Elicit performance

Signal: “Now you try.”

This is the first moment learners actively use the skill.

Eliciting performance is the first time learners use the skill themselves not to prove mastery, but to try it out. From a learning science perspective, this is where understanding begins to consolidate into usable knowledge.

Practice at this stage:

• Strengthens memory through retrieval

• Reveals gaps in understanding without penalty

• Builds confidence through action
  
  

For adult learners in corrections, this step works best when it feels safe, focused, and achievable.

What eliciting performance actually means

• This is not a final test.

• It’s not a “gotcha.”
  And it’s not about doing everything perfectly.

Eliciting performance means giving learners a chance to apply one idea or make one decision using the guidance they just received.

Four High-Impact Ways to Elicit Performance on Edovo

At this stage, learners are ready to try but only if practice feels safe, relevant, and doable. The strategies below are designed to help learners apply a skill for the first time without pressure, overload, or fear of failure.

1. Spot the Better Choice (With Guidance Built In)

Signal to learners: “Both options are realistic. One supports the skill more.”

This strategy works best when learners are clearly told what kind of thinking they’re being asked to do. The goal isn’t to catch mistakes, it’s to practice judgment.

How to design it on Edovo

• Tell learners up front that both options are common responses

• Ask them to choose the option that better supports the skill, not the “right” answer
  
  

• Include brief feedback explaining why one option works better
  
  

Example (communication):

Both of these responses are things people actually say. Which one is more likely to keep the conversation calm?
A. “You never listen to me.”

Feedback: This response shows real frustration, which makes sense. But using blame often causes the other person to get defensive, making it harder to keep the conversation calm.

B. “I’m frustrated and want to explain what I need.”

Feedback (preferred answer): This response names the feeling and the need without blame. That approach helps lower tension and makes it easier for the conversation to stay calm and productive.

Why this works

• Reduces fear of being tricked

• Keeps practice low-stakes

• Coaches thinking through feedback, not correction
  
  

2. Finish the Thought

Signal to learners: “You’re almost there, complete this step.”

Learners are given part of a response or plan and asked to finish it. This scaffolds performance while keeping effort manageable.

How it works on Edovo

• Use sentence starters or incomplete decisions

• Ask learners to supply the next step

• Provide feedback
  
  

Example (budgeting):
“I’ve covered my rent and food. The next expense I should think about is _____.”

Feedback: When deciding what comes next, it helps to check whether any 

essential needs are still uncovered—like transportation, phone time, hygiene 

items, or medication. Focusing on what you need to get through the rest of the 

week can make the rest of your spending choices easier and less stressful.

Why this works

• Supports learners with low confidence

• Reinforces structure and sequencing

• Keeps practice focused and achievable

3. What Would You Do First?

Signal to learners: “Choose a starting point.”

This strategy focuses practice on prioritization rather than execution, helping learners build momentum instead of freezing.

How it works on Edovo

• Present a situation with multiple demands

• Ask learners to identify the first action they’d take

• Provide feedback
  
  

Example (reentry planning):
You’re thinking about work, family, and stress management. What’s the first step you’d take this week?

Feedback: When everything feels important, starting with one small, realistic step 

can make progress feel possible. Choosing something you can act on this 

Week, like making a call, setting a plan, or creating a routine, helps build momentum and reduces overwhelm.

Why this works

• Reflects real-life decision-making

• Reduces overwhelm

• Reinforces agency and forward motion
  
  

4. Step Into the Scenario

Signal to learners: “Imagine you’re in this situation.”

Scenario-based activities place learners inside a realistic moment and ask them to apply the skill in context. This is where knowledge begins to transfer beyond the screen.

How it works on Edovo

• Present a short, familiar scenario

• Ask learners to respond, choose, or reflect using one skill at a time

• Keep the scope narrow and the stakes low

• Provide feedback

Example (anger management):
It’s the end of the day, and someone says something that irritates you. You feel your body tense up and your thoughts start racing. What choice best supports your goal of keeping the situation from escalating?

Feedback: When emotions rise, choices that slow things down tend to work best. Pausing, creating space, or shifting your attention can help your body settle before responding—making it easier to stay in control of what happens next.

Why this works

• Increases relevance and emotional engagement

• Helps learners rehearse real-life decisions

• Builds confidence through safe experimentation
  
  

Instructional designer pro tip

If guidance answers “How should I think about this?” practice answers “Can I try this safely?”

On Edovo, the most effective courses treat this step as a rehearsal, not a performance. For my fellow instructional design nerds out there, think “formative assessment” vs “summative assessment”. When learners feel safe to try, they’re far more willing to try again. Remember, this step is about trying, not proving mastery

Gagné’s Event 7. Provide feedback

Signal: “Here’s how this is going and how to adjust.”

Feedback is not about scoring performance. It’s about shaping confidence and guiding the next attempt.

In learning science, timely feedback helps learners:

• Correct misunderstandings before they stick

• Strengthen accurate mental models

• Stay motivated to keep trying
  
  

In Edovo’s asynchronous environment, feedback incorporated in the course replaces the nod, the clarification, and the quiet coaching a learner would normally get from an instructor.

What effective feedback does on Edovo

As the examples above show, strong feedback is designed to support learning—not evaluate worth. It is:

• Immediate: Learners don’t have to wait or guess whether they’re on the right track.

• Explanatory: It explains why something works or doesn’t, not just whether it’s correct.

• Gentle and non-shaming: It normalizes mistakes and frames them as part of learning.
  
  

Creative Ways to Provide Feedback in Asynchronous Courses

In asynchronous learning, feedback doesn’t have to only live in an “incorrect” box. On Edovo, the most effective feedback is often woven into the experience in ways that feel human, supportive, and intentional.

Here are a few high-impact options:

• Built-in question feedback: Use the feedback space in quizzes and reflections to explain why a choice works, offer a decision rule, or suggest a small adjustment. This keeps feedback immediate and tied directly to the learner’s thinking.
  
  

• Short feedback videos or audio clips: A brief video or voice note after an activity can model expert thinking, normalize mistakes, or reinforce a key takeaway. Hearing a calm, encouraging voice can go a long way in trauma-impacted environments.
  
  

• “If you chose this…” follow-ups: Design feedback that speaks directly to different choices learners might make. This makes feedback feel personalized, even when it’s automated.
  
  

• Call-out boxes or reflection pauses: Use labeled moments like “What to remember,” “Try this next time,” or “A common mistake to watch for” to offer guidance without framing it as correction.
  
  

• Loop-back feedback: Refer learners back to an earlier idea or strategy: “This connects to the decision rule you saw earlier…” Looping reinforces retention and helps learners see learning as connected, not fragmented.
  
  

The goal isn’t to correct every misstep. It’s to help learners feel supported, oriented, and willing to keep going, even when learning happens alone.

Gagné’s Event 8: Assess Performance

Signal to learners: “Let’s check understanding.”

Assessment isn’t about catching errors. It’s about confirming that the core idea landed.

At this stage, assessment helps learners:

• Notice what they understand

• Strengthen accurate recall

• Prepare to use the skill again
  
  

On Edovo, effective assessment feels more like reinforcement than judgment.

A quick note on when to assess

Not every piece of content needs a question. Over-assessing can actually weaken learning by turning meaningful reflection into constant testing. Assessment should be used intentionally, when there’s a clear skill, decision, or concept worth checking.

Formative vs. summative assessment 

• Formative assessment: Short, low-stakes check-ins throughout a course. These help learners calibrate their understanding and help the content do more teaching. Most questions should live here and should include feedback (see above).
  
  

• Summative assessment: A slightly longer assessment at the end of a lesson or course that checks overall understanding across multiple ideas/lessons. This is where you look at the whole picture, not individual moments.

Best practices for formative assessment on Edovo

Formative assessments are short, low-stakes check-ins that support learning as it’s happening. 

They work best when they are:

• Brief: Limit to 2–4 questions to check understanding without creating fatigue.

• ContextualL Use real-life situations learners recognize, not abstract or academic phrasing.

• Directly aligned: Assess the core skill or decision taught in the lesson—nothing extra.

When formative assessment reflects what learners were actually taught, it reinforces learning and builds confidence instead of anxiety.

Best practices for summative assessment on Edovo

Summative assessments check how well learners can bring ideas together at the end of a lesson or course. Effective summative assessments are:

• Focused, not excessive: Use a small set of questions (typically 5–8) that reflect the most important learning goals.

• Integrated: Each question should assess a different aspect of the skill, not repeat the same idea.

• Application-driven: Prioritize scenario-based questions that require learners to apply what they’ve learned.
  
  

A strong summative assessment feels like a final rehearsal, not a final judgment, and helps learners leave with clarity they can use beyond the screen.

Gagné’s Event 9: Enhance Retention and Transfer

Signal to learners: “Take this with you.”

This is where learning becomes life.

Retention and transfer happen when learners are given simple, flexible ways to carry a skill into real life. The goal isn’t compliance—it’s follow-through.

Here are three effective approaches:

1. Reflection-based transfer: Invite learners to process the skill internally. This could include journaling, thinking through a past experience, or imagining how the skill might change an upcoming situation.
   
   

2. Social or verbal rehearsal: Encourage learners to talk the idea through with a peer, mentor, or trusted person. Saying the skill out loud helps solidify understanding and increases the likelihood of use.
   
   

3. Mental simulation:  Ask learners to visualize themselves using the skill in the next few days. Walking through a realistic scenario mentally strengthens recall and prepares the brain for action.
   
   

Same learning goal. Multiple pathways.

Choice honors learners’ energy, capacity, and context and dramatically increases the chance that learning transfers beyond the screen.

How to use the 9 Events in practice

The 9 Events aren’t something you apply once at the course level or once at the lesson level—they work at both scales.

• Within a single lesson, the events guide the learner through a complete learning cycle: orient, connect, practice, adjust, and apply. Not every lesson needs all nine in equal weight, but the flow still matters.

• Across a full course, the events repeat and reinforce each other. Early lessons may spend more time on attention, guidance, and low-stakes practice. Later lessons emphasize performance, assessment, and transfer as learners build confidence.
  
  

Think of the 9 Events like a rhythm, not a checklist. They shape how learning unfolds moment by moment—whether that moment lasts five minutes or an entire course.

On Edovo, designing with this rhythm isn’t extra work. It’s how learning thrives without a live instructor, and how skills move from the screen into real life.

TL;DR

Most digital courses don’t fail because the content is bad. They fail because learners get lost.

Gagné’s 9 Events map the mental moments learners need to move from 

attention → understanding → action → real-world use

What to remember:

• Learning happens in moments, not modules

• The 9 Events work within lessons and across a course

• Structure reduces cognitive load
  
  

• Guidance replaces missing instructors

• Low-stakes practice builds confidence

• Assessment should reinforce, not judge

• Choice drives real-world transfer
  
  

On Edovo, this isn’t theory, it’s how learning works. Design for the mental process, and learners don’t just finish your course. They use it.