What's Happening in Instructional Design

Online classes are no longer a far-fetched idea for the future.  Learning on the go is a current phenomenon that is growing, morphing, changing on a daily basis to meet the needs of students that are on the go and tech savvy.  The modern instructional designer must be as adaptable as the medium through which they work, a nearly insurmountable task considering that technology becomes outdated as quickly as it is released for public use!

There are some basics that assist the educator/designer, however.  Online instructional design is not "mission impossible."  The body of literature available for the modern education designer provides a wealth of guidelines and practices that carry forth as the technology continues to morph.

There are many trends and implications for the ever growing field of online and mobile learning. I will take a brief amount of time to focus on mobile learning, incorporating various methods of instructional design, and adaptability and individuality. 

Current Trends:

Mobile Learning: More and more students are learning on the go.  No longer is there a need to sit stationary at a desktop computer to do classwork.  With the introduction of Smartphones and tablets, students are able to study and learn virtually anywhere: at work, on the bus, in a coffee shop.  You name the place, and you will notice people on handheld devices playing and working.  

With the availability and widespread use of these devices, educators/designers must carefully design courses to include content that is compatible with the smaller screen on the handheld device.  Assignments and instruction must be adapted to meet the needs of on-the-go students who frequently have a device in their hand.  This can be tricky as devices vary widely and availability of internet can also vary.  Mobile devices tend to be less expensive that the typical laptop or desktop, meaning more students may have access to mobile devices, so their importance for the online classroom cannot be overestimated.

Incorporating various methods of instructional design: With online/mobile learning, the "one trick pony" is not an effective method of instruction.  Incorporating a variety of pedagogies into the online course is imperative.  Students in the online environment learn very differently than in the traditional classroom setting.  ADDIE, Merrill's First Principles, Universal Design for Learning, and others: these can all be effectively utilized to develop an effective online classroom.  One need not fully implement all of these models, but can easily pick and choose the elements that work best with the subject matter, the designer, and the anticipated students for the course.  Just as the technology for online learning morphs, so too do the methods for developing effective, and efficient, courses.

Implications for Educators/Designers:

Adaptability and Individuality: Online/mobile learning must frequently be adapted to new technologies.  Whereas the traditional classroom frequently relied on lecture, the online class steers clear of long-winded teacher talks.  This leaves an open arena in which to create a unique experience for all students.  It also allows the educator to put his/her unique spin on the subject matter.  This ability to individualize and adapt the learning experience increases not only student success but student retention as well.  

Recommendations:

Know your stuff: Educators/designers must be well-versed in their subject matter as well as current technologies and best practices for online/mobile instruction.   Being an expert in Chemistry only may lend itself well to the traditional classroom, but in the online environment, there must be adaptability to the medium through which he/she is teaching.

Take an online class: Take several!  Experienced educators may not

have had the opportunity (or desire) to experience an online class.  There's no time like the present!  The availability of online courses grows daily.  The availability of MOOC (Massive Open Online Courses) gives you the opportunity to take online course free.  If you are going to teach an online class, you might as well experience one!

Feedback: Feedback (a key component of the ADDIE model) from multiple sources is key to a successful online course.  Colleagues and students alike are valuable resources to developing and maintaining excellence for online courses. As mentioned above, with designing online courses, educators can pick components of various models, this one is essential for success for you and your students!

Conclusion:

 Online learning will continue to grow as a viable option for many learners.  As educators, we become designers for the online classroom.  No longer are we simply subject matter experts, but we must learn to adapt to the online environment in order to effectively teach our students.  It is no longer just about the material, but about the presentation as well.  Students are able to learn at and on multiple levels using the online platform.

The adaptability of the online classroom allows for a tremendous amount of individuality for the educator and the student.  Allowing students a multitude of avenues for assignment submission gives them a chance to shine in their own unique way.  Educators have that same opportunity, as a the online platform is wide open for interpretation for developing material.

Even with the individuality of the online environment, learning and development do not exist in a bubble of isolation.  Feedback is crucial on both the educator's and the learner's side of the classroom.  Just as the traditional classroom teacher relies on the raised hand, the online instructor relies on the email or the chat to gain insight into the what is going on in the student's progress.  Feedback is a necessity in any learning environment!

Online learning provides limitless opportunities for both educators and learners.  As one who has been on both sides of the online learning experience, I feel that these are some of the key things for consideration for teaching online.  This post is, of course, not exhaustive, but these components provide a great starting point for learning to design an effective online course!

Recommended Readings (just a few of many!):

Ashbaugh. "Expert Instructional Designer Voices: Leadership Competencies Critical to Global

Practice and Quality Online Learning Design." The Quarterly Review of Distance Education. 2013.

Elias. "Universal Instructional Design Principles for Mobile Learning." International Review of Research  in Open and Distance Learning. 2011.

Gardner. "Applying Merrill's First Principles of Instruction: Practical Methods Based on a Review of the Literature."

Shibley, Amaral, Shank, and Shibley. "DEsigning a Blended Course: Using ADDIE to Guide Instructional Design." Journal of College and Science Teaching. 2011.

Tobin. "Increase Online Student Retention with Universal Design for Learning." The Quarterly Review of Distance Education. 2014.

 

Tracey, Hutchinson, and Grzebyk. "Instructional Designers as reflective practitioners: developing professional identity through reflection." Association for Educational Communications and Technology. 2014.