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60‑plus AI-generated courses, salvaged and redesigned into 200‑plus microlearnings through one scalable design system.

AI makes course production faster. It can also make instructional problems scale just as fast.

An Australian training provider had used AI to generate 60-plus courses, and the same problems ran through almost all of them. Instead of scrapping them, I audited the library and wrote a three-phase plan the business approved. Then I led Phase 1: a new course design, a video template and a system the development team used to scale the fix.

Lead Instructional Designer · 200+ microlearnings · 100+ videos · $10,500 a year saved on tools

See the before and after

A man taking an online course on a desktop computer, wearing headphones

At a glance

Client
An Australian registered training provider with two offers: formal qualifications, and a subscription library of microlearnings
Starting point
60-plus courses generated with AI before I joined, each mapped to an accredited unit
My role
Lead instructional designer. I audited the courses, wrote the plan, designed the new course structure and video template, and directed the development team that rolled it out.
Team
The provider's development team, trained by me and working from my templates. I reviewed their work against the template.
Tools
Coursebox (learning platform) · HeyGen (AI video) · Canva (design templates)

My Diagnosis

The courses looked complete. I audited them as a learner would. Because AI had generated them all the same way, the same four problems showed up in almost every one.

Weak instructional structure

Each course ran as one long block, with no consistent structure. Inside, lessons were long pages of unformatted AI-generated text with almost no interaction. They read like curated articles, not lessons designed to teach.

Poorly designed learning objectives

Objectives changed from page to page. They described topics, not what the learner should be able to do, and were not linked to any lesson.

Flat avatar videos

A still photo with moving lips filled the whole video, with nothing on screen to support what was being said.

Third-party media

Generic AI-generated images from older models, mixed with third-party images, and YouTube videos doing much of the teaching. Nothing felt like the provider's own, and the provider had no control over the third-party media.

The challenge

Fix 60-plus courses quickly, without rewriting them from scratch.

A tight budget, no video studio, the provider's own developers doing the build, and a new brand rolling out at the same time.

That raised three design questions:

How can each microlearning stand alone, and still fit the full course?

Splitting 60-plus courses into 200-plus microlearnings risked losing the progression between them. Each one needed its own clear purpose, and a clear place in a learning path that rebuilds the full course.

How do you keep quality consistent across 200-plus microlearnings?

A development team would build them, not one designer. Quality could not depend on me checking every page by hand.

What should be standardised, and what should flex?

Structure, openings and intro videos had to look and work the same in every course. The content still had to fit each course's own objectives.

AI had repeated the same problems in every course, so the fix had to reach every course too. Phase 1 fixed the first three in every course, without rewriting the content. The last one needed new media, so it was planned for Phase 2. And because every course was already mapped to an accredited unit, the smart move was to rebuild once, for both offers.

The design decisions

Four decisions answered those questions, within those limits.

1. Fix what exists now, then rebuild once for both offers

  • Phase 1: fix how every course is organised, and rebuild the lessons interactively, reusing the existing content
  • Phase 2: turn the accredited PDFs into interactive modules the provider owns, built once for both offers
  • Phase 3: keep improving, guided by learner data

Why this matters:

  • Fixing structure didn't need new content, so it could be done across the whole library quickly.
  • Turning PDFs into interactive modules takes real design time for each unit, so it came second, once the foundations were right.

2. Design every module to work two ways: alone, or as part of the full course

  • Standalone: each module became a microlearning of about 15 minutes, with its own goal, opening and intro video; the quiz and assignment were kept as they were
  • Connected: the microlearnings join into a learning path that rebuilds the full course
  • Clear goals: objectives rewritten to Bloom's taxonomy, with measurable action verbs, and each one mapped to a lesson
  • Better lessons: the content was kept, not rewritten. Each lesson was reorganised into short chunks, with Coursebox interactions matched to each content type

Why this matters:

  • For a subscription library, more focused courses means more value for subscribers and more to promote.
  • A module cut out of a longer course doesn't explain itself. The new opening is what makes it work alone.

3. Prove it on one course, then give the team a system

  • Prototype: I prototyped the new course structure on one course and the new intro video separately
  • Approval: stakeholders approved both before anything scaled
  • System: a course template, a step-by-step guide, writing prompts, a master video template and a thumbnail template
  • Rollout: I trained the developers and reviewed their work against the template

Why this matters:

  • Fixing a prototype is cheap. Fixing 200 courses is not.
  • Templates improved consistency, and my review stayed part of production.
  • When the brand changed, it was updated once and rolled out everywhere.

4. Choose the video tool on what was needed, not what was planned

The provider had planned to use an enterprise avatar tool. I compared what the intro videos actually needed with the pricing, and recommended HeyGen instead. Then I designed one video template to replace the flat ones: an expressive presenter, supporting footage and motion graphics.

Why this matters:

  • A tool is paid for every year, so the right choice was the most affordable one that did the job.
PlannedRecommendedResult
Enterprise avatar toolHeyGenAbout $10,500 a year saved, approved by stakeholders

See it in practice

The provider's courses are private, so the plan and the course changes below are recreated and anonymised. The two videos are shared with the provider's permission.

The three-phase plan

The plan I wrote after the audit. The provider approved it. Phase 1 was delivered, and Phase 2 was prototyped and approved before business priorities changed.

Strategy documentApproved

Three-phase plan for the course library

  1. Phase 1

    Restructure into microlearnings

    Split long courses into standalone microlearnings of about 15 minutes, reusing the existing content, and rebuild the lessons interactively.

    Delivered
  2. Phase 2

    Turn accredited PDFs into interactive modules

    Accredited units were just PDFs. Build them as interactive Coursebox modules with the provider's own media, so the same modules run in the subscription library and, with accredited assessment added, as an accredited unit.

    Prototyped and approved
  3. Phase 3

    Keep improving

    AI tutoring, gamification, scenarios, simulations and smarter feedback, guided by learner data.

    Direction set
Open the full planClose the full plan

Phase 1: Restructure into microlearnings

Goal: turn each long course into standalone microlearnings, using the content already built.

Key actions

  • Split each course into 3 to 5 microlearnings, one per module
  • Give each one its own title, description, goal, introduction and welcome video
  • Add four opening tabs: what you'll achieve, what you'll learn, how you'll apply it, and who it's for
  • Keep the existing lesson content, quizzes, assignments and certification steps
  • Rebuild the lessons interactively: better formatting, Coursebox interactions matched to each content type, content organised and broken into chunks

Result

60-plus courses became 200-plus microlearnings without writing new lesson content.

Phase 2: Turn accredited PDFs into interactive modules

Starting point: the accredited units were just PDFs.

Goal: build the accredited content as interactive modules that work in both offers, with the provider's own media.

Key actions

  • Build each accredited unit as interactive Coursebox modules: one unit breaks into modules, and each module is one standalone microlearning
  • Use the same modules in the subscription library, and combined as a learning path with accredited assessment for the accredited unit
  • Replace third-party YouTube videos and images with the provider's own media content
  • Add the accredited extras on top for the formal channel: case studies, a study guide, formal assessment, trainer feedback, certification

One build, two offers

Subscription libraryFormal qualifications
Standalone microlearnings, each module on its own The same modules as a learning path, plus:
  • Case studies
  • A study guide
  • Formal assessments
  • Trainer feedback
  • An accredited certificate

Why

  • Most learners are in the subscription library. A great experience there could make them more likely to move on to a paid qualification.
  • Building once for both offers reduces duplicated development work, and every update happens once.
  • A learner can start on the subscription and upgrade to the accredited unit, so the same modules create an upselling opportunity. This upgrade path was part of the approved plan.

Proof: a prototype of the one-build approach was built for one accredited unit, and approved by stakeholders.

Phase 3: Keep improving

Direction: more personalised and immersive learning, such as AI tutoring, gamification, scenario-based practice and simulations, improved from learner feedback and data.

Deliberately flexible, so the tools and timing can follow what's available and what the data shows.

What changed in every microlearning

Phase 1 kept the content and redesigned everything around it, including the lessons.

BeforeAfter Phase 1
Course structure
BeforeOne long course covering a whole unit
After3 to 5 microlearnings of about 15 minutes, each with the same structure: opening, lessons, assessment, what's next
Learning objectives
BeforeVague and inconsistent, like "gain a comprehensive understanding", with different lists on different pages
AfterWritten to Bloom's taxonomy with measurable action verbs, and each one mapped to a lesson
Course opening
BeforeLong overview pages with repetitive and overlapping content
AfterOne clear opening: what you'll achieve, what you'll learn, how you'll apply it, and who it's for
Lessons
BeforeLong pages of article-style text, with little interaction
AfterContent kept, not rewritten. Reformatted, organised and broken into chunks, with Coursebox interactions matched to each content type.
Intro video
BeforeA still photo with moving lips
AfterAn expressive presenter, supporting footage and motion graphics, from one template
Brand
BeforeMixed styles, on the old brand
AfterNew brand and one visual style across videos, thumbnails, banners and quizzes

The intro video, before and after

The original presenter video next to one built from the new template.

Before

Before: the original presenter video

  • A still photo with moving lips
  • The presenter fills the whole screen
  • Nothing on screen supports what's being said
After

After: built from the new template

  • An expressive presenter
  • Supporting footage and motion graphics
  • One template used across the whole library

What the project delivered

200-plus microlearnings from 60-plus

Focused courses of about 15 minutes across Project Management, IT and Cyber Security, each working on its own or as part of a learning path.

Clear courses, without rewriting the content

Every microlearning now has measurable objectives mapped to its lessons, a clear structure, chunked interactive lessons and a designed intro video.

A system the team could run

Template, guide, prompts and video templates. The same system carried the new brand across videos, thumbnails, banners, quizzes and the learning platform, plus a new promotional video.

100-plus branded intro videos and lower tool costs

The team built 100-plus intro videos on the approved template. Choosing HeyGen over the planned enterprise video tool saved about $10,500 a year.

Got a course library that isn't teaching the way it should?

If AI helped you build your course library quickly, it may have repeated the same instructional problems across dozens of courses. Older libraries can develop similar issues. You may not need to start again. Send me a course link, sample or brief description of the problem. I'll suggest where I'd start, what could be improved at scale and what it might take.

Email me about your library

taimoor.bajwa@outlook.com

Hiring? See my experience on LinkedIn