Teaching Instructional Design: An Action Learning Approach

Many theorists and practitioners are calling for more authentically based teaching approaches in the preparation of instructional designers and performance technologists to address the complexity of the field's practice. Although many innovative methods have been incorporated into the study of instructional design and development and human performance technology, including case studies and applied experiences with collaborative groups, among others, the majority of teaching approaches are limited to the time constraints and format of the traditional university classroom setting. This paper discusses an alternative teaching approach that incorporates action learning principles along with authentic project‐based methods into the full‐time study of instructional design. The paper reviews action learning principles and highlights the commonalties between these principles and the application of the practice and teaching of the instructional design process in an authentic manner. Finally, the implementation of action learning principles within a graduate program in instructional technology is described. Action learning principles may be applied to many content areas; however, the highly complementary nature of this specific methodology to the teaching and practice of instructional design may have the potential to improve greatly our preparation of professionals in the complex work environments characteristic of this and related disciplines. As a valuable component of performance technology skills, training in instructional design methods based on an action learning approach may have broad implications for both the preparation of instructional designers and performance technologists.     

Preparing Instructional Designers for Game-Based Learning: Part 1

Like many rapidly growing industries, advances in video game technology are far outpacing research on its design and effectiveness. Relatively little is understood about how to apply what we know about teaching and learning to optimize game-based learning. For the most part, instructional designers know little about game development and video game developers may know little about training, education and instructional design. In this three part series of articles, four recognized and emerging experts in instructional game design discuss their perspectives on preparing instructional designers to optimize game-based learning. In Part I, we set the context for the series of articles and one of four faculty members who teach a graduate level course on game design discusses what he believes instructional designers should know about instructional game design based on his experiences. Part II will present alternative perspectives from two additional faculty members who teach courses in instructional game design, and Part III will present a fourth perspective along with conclusion that compares the four views.     

Teacher and technologist beliefs about educational technology

This study investigated perceptions of teachers and educational technologists about the following areas: instructional design, cooperative learning, learner control, school reform, computers and media, and implementation of a key practice in each area in their teaching. Subjects were 477 individuals representing four respondent groups: educational technology faculty, educational technology graduate students, K-8 teachers, and 9–12 teachers. Data were collected using a 30-item, five-choice Likert-type questionnaire containing five items per topic area. Significant differences between groups were found on 16 items, with an overall total of 32 significant between-group differences. Nineteen of the 32 differences were between K-8 teachers and either the educational technology faculty or the graduate students. K-8 teachers had significantly more positive perceptions than one or both of the educational technology groups on all five of the cooperative learning items and on three of the five learner control items. The results suggest approaches that educational technologists can use in teaching instructional design courses and in designing instructional programs for the schools. Deborah L. Lowther is Program Evaluator for the Phoenix Urban Systemic Initiative which is sponsored by the National Science Foundation and Maricopa Community Colleges. The authors wish to acknowledge the contributions of the following people to this study: Gayle Davidson, Thomas Duffy, Nick Eastmond, Donald Ely, Michael Hannafin, Simon Hooper, James Klein, Kyle Peck, Robert Reiser, Lloyd Rieber, and Steven Ross.     

Preparing Instructional Designers for Game-Based Learning: Part III. Game Design as a Collaborative Process

In this three part series, four professors who teach graduate level courses on the design of instructional video games discuss their perspectives on preparing instructional designers to optimize game-based learning. Part I set the context for the series and one of four panelists discussed what he believes instructional designers should know about instructional game design. In Part II, two faculty members who teach courses on instructional game design presented their perspectives on preparing instructional designers for game-based learning. Part III presents a fourth perspective along with conclusion that contrasts the four views posited in Parts I-III.     

移动学习资源和活动的综合模型设计研究

随着技术的可移植性增强,移动学习得到了更加广泛的应用,研究这种学习模式的教学方法和教学设计至关重要。该文回顾了当前移动学习在正式或非正式环境中的应用模式和移动学习的设计模型,探讨了移动学习的教学设计原则和步骤,包括材料、设备和方法。通过对移动学习资源和活动的设计提供一种新的综合模型,即地点、技术、文化和满意度模型(LTCS)。该模型克服了早期模型出现的问题,特别是为移动学习方案设计者提供多元文化支持的缺失。设计者可以使用这个模型所提供的方法将多学科的成果整合成一个启发式设计模式,最大化移动学习的教学能力。     

国际教学设计领域在关注什么——《教学设计中课程、规划和进程的国际观》深度解读

针对教学研究领域的三个主题：教学设计、课程设计、信息通信技术与媒体,国际教学设计研究领域的学者们主要关注如下研究热点：认知和学习心理学研究成果为教学设计模型提供了新的理论基础和创新途径,课程开发和信息通信技术需要进一步整合到教学设计模型中;课程开发及其对教学设计模型的影响;信息通信技术对教学设计和课程开发的影响,从更加整合和全面的视角来看待学习、教学、课程和技术之间的关系。《教学设计中课程、规划和进程的国际观》从以上三个方面展示了国际观点。当前教学设计研究和实践逐步形成以下发展趋势：一是教学设计研究越来越呈现出跨学科特点;二是运用技术创建有效学习环境成为教学设计研究的重要领域;三是欧美学者在教学设计研究领域既共享众多核心观点,又在研究角度、内容上各有不同,使得整体研究成果深度交融。     

高校师生对CAT技术主观认知的调查分析

在翻译专业本科到硕士层次的教育中,计算机辅助翻译技术(CAT)已成为翻译教育不可或缺的重要手段。本文通过对港台、大陆相关文献的分析和网络问卷调查,研究了全国范围内翻译专业教师与学生对于CAT技术的认知态度、学习难度、接受倾向、教学方法偏好等主观认知,以期对于翻译教育技术策略调整和改革提供有价值的参考意见。     

Design lessons about participatory self-directed online learning in a graduate-level instructional technology course

This article reports on a case of participatory self-directed online learning within the context of a graduate-level instructional technology course. The course was about online learning environments and relied on both asynchronous and synchronous technologies. In this case, the instructor and students engaged in collaborative course design through one of the assignments where student teams and the instructor led one week’s worth of course activities and discussions. This article begins with a discussion of the literature on participatory self-directed online learning. Then, the article presents an overview of the course design, detailed discussion of the assignment that framed student participatory self-directed learning and two examples of student assignments. The framing question for organising this case was as follows: What lessons can a team of graduate students and the instructor learn about self-directed participatory online learning from a collaborative design project? The article ends with the overall lessons learned from the case and implications to future design of online activities.     

Self-processes and learning environment as influences in the development of expertise in instructional design

A major challenge for learning theories is to illuminate how particular kinds of learning experiences and environments promote the development of expertise. Research has been conducted into novice-expert differences in various domains, but few studies have examined the processes involved in learners’ expertise development. In an attempt to understand the development of expertise in instructional design (ID) among graduate students, this study aimed to investigate (1) the patterns of expertise development among ID learners over an extended period; (2) the roles of expert modelling, peer feedback, self-reflection and participation in a supportive learning community in learners’ expertise development; and (3) the interactions of individual differences and the learning environment in learners’ expertise development. A qualitative design was used to investigate students’ expertise development across a range of dimensions. The participants were two cohorts of 11 graduate students in a program on instructional psychology and design. Data, including observations, interviews, design documents, metacognitive essays and peer feedback, were collected for triangulation and in-depth analysis. The results showed that the two cohorts exhibited similar patterns in their ID expertise development. These development processes were influenced by both self-processes and social influences. Self-processes are determined by the perceptions, motivation and prior knowledge that students bring into the learning environment. Social influences are characterised by a learning community that encourages peer interactions and feedback and is supported by expert modelling and scaffolding.     

Collaborative knowledge building: A case study

What learning conditions are necessary to effectively support the knowledge-building enterprise in a learning community? To answer this question, the case-study method was employed to investigate collaborative knowledge building in a graduate level course designed to incorporate specific constructivist learning principles. These principles included (a) having a collective and authentic community goal to facilitate collaboration and engagement in the community, (b) using cooperative groups to provide for social negotiation and to promote multiple perspectives, (c) personally selecting of course readings and group decision-making to encourage ownership in learning, and (d) employing an integrated set of technology tools to archive the work of the community and facilitate communication. Results indicated that the instructional strategies designed into the course promoted collaborative knowledge building and the acquisition of key concepts through self-directed learning strategies. Results also pointed out the types of technological support required to implement an effective community of learners. A proposed set of guidelines is discussed to assist instructional designers in the design and development of collaborative, knowledge-building environments.     

教学设计课程的教学和学习现状调查报告

近年来,教学设计发展迅速,为了解该课程教与学的现状,笔者对湖北、河南、福建和上海等地部分师范院校中教育技术学专业本科生进行问卷调查。该文基于此次调查,详细分析了教学设计课程的教与学现状,并围绕如何改进教学设计课程的教学展开了相关讨论,提出了一些建议。     

基于混合学习的教育技术公共课的教学设计

分析了教育技术公共课的现状,提出混合学习能解决当前存在的问题,可以较好地实现该课程的教学目标,并详细地从学习者分析、环境分析、教学目标分析、教学策略和资源的设计、学习评价的设计5个方面阐述了如何在该课程中进行混合学习的设计。     

Creativity in the training and practice of instructional designers: the Design/Creativity Loops model

This article presents a discussion of research and theoretical perspectives on creativity and instructional design, offering a conceptual model of the connection between these two constructs that was originally proposed in the dissertation work of the first author (Clinton, Creativity and design: A study of the learning experience of instructional design and development graduate students, Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Georgia, Athens, 2007) and that we call the Design/Creativity Loops (DCL) model. Central to the model is a representation of the iterative, looping problem-solving cycle that can include established stages of creative thinking. As an instructional designer is routinely confronted with the next task or design problem in a project, these tasks or problems spawn iterative mental excursions that are opportunities for creative thinking. This article also explores ways that the design and development process can benefit from an emphasis on creativity and offers suggested directions for future research.     

A Faculty Development Program for Nurse Educators Learning to Teach Online

As the College of Nursing at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville prepared to move their graduate programs online, a nursing faculty grass-roots movement led to the implementation of a faculty development program. This instructional design portfolio describes the design, development, implementation, and evaluation of this program, with the goal of identifying best practices in the design of programs for learning to teach online.     

New Model,New Strategies: Instructional design for building online wisdom communities

We discuss the development of an instructional design model, WisCom (Wisdom Communities), based on socio‐constructivist and sociocultural learning philosophies and distance education principles for the development of online wisdom communities, and the application and evaluation of the model in an online graduate course in the USA. The WisCom model aims to facilitate transformational learning by fostering the development of a wisdom community, knowledge innovation, and mentoring and learner support in an online learning environment, based on a “Cycle of Inquiry” module design, and a “Spiral of Inquiry” program design. Extending beyond current instructional design practice, WisCom provides both a new model for teaching that builds upon the inherent capacity of networked communication to support the growth and intellectual development of communities of practice, and a new model of learning where learners engage in the process of scholarly inquiry that supports individual and collective learning. Evaluation and research data support the WisCom model's ability to design a learning community engaged in the collaborative construction of knowledge.     

Evaluating Peer Review in an Introductory Instructional Design Course

A peer review process, in which students reviewed other students' projects in a graduate introductory instructional design course, was evaluated. Peer review was experienced by these students as a learning activity about the process of instructional design (ID). The role of traditional ID models in representing ID as overly procedural‐ized was mitigated, and the value, inter‐personal processes, and affective aspects of formative evaluation were recognized. The effectiveness of peer review was influenced by the culture of the course in which it was embedded and by the structure of the process itself. Peer review is proposed as an authentic and efficient means to introduce graduate students to the strategic knowledge needed to apply ID skills. Recommendations are made to increase the effectiveness of peer review.     

A technological pedagogical content knowledge based instructional design model: a third version implementation study in a technology integration course

This paper presents the third version of a technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) based instructional design model that incorporates the distinctive, transformative, and integrative views of TPACK into a comprehensive actionable framework. Strategies of relating TPACK domains to real-life learning experiences, role-playing, and teachers as designers were developed based on the three views and integrated into the third version of the model. The model was then applied in a teacher education undergraduate course on technology integration. A case study approach was used. Data were collected from the participants’ discussion worksheets, lesson designs, and the researchers’ field observation notes. Data analysis results suggest that the strategies integrated into the model helped the participants deepen their understanding of student-centered technology applications and practice TPACK. Findings, implications, and future research possibilities are discussed.     

未来课堂教学设计特性：具身认知视角

随着信息技术的飞速发展,传统课堂逐渐趋向于一个充满技术和更加人本化的泛在学习空间,未来课堂概念应运而生。目前对于未来课堂的研究主要侧重于对未来课堂的空间设计、技术应用、特点特性等方面的研究,还缺乏与未来课堂特性相应的教与学方式及教学模式的系统研究。开展具有前瞻性的未来课堂教学设计有利于推动未来课堂实践。教学设计中隐含着关于认知和学习的理论。虽然传统认知观对教师主导的,以传授客观知识为主要目的的传统课堂教学设计做出了重要贡献,但是其作为面向学习者主动建构知识和实现意义理解的教学设计的理论基础不再是充分的。当代认知理论研究已完成了由离身到具身的范式转型。具身认知理论强调身体在认知过程中的关键作用及认知、身体与环境交互的重要性。基于具身认知的视角,未来课堂的教学设计不再仅仅是提供具体的可操作性步骤,而是为在教学中产生更多的可能性而做好准备,其具有学习内容的情境性、学习环境的无意识性、教学目标的生成性、教学过程的动态性以及学习活动的体验性等特性。     

Knowledge constructing through hypermedia authoring

According to prominent learning theorists, learning is much more than gathering information in a well-designed, teacher-centered environment; learning is promoted when students pursue individual interests, when they build on prior knowledge, and when they engage in hands-on and authentic activity. Although a great deal of literature exists describing ideals such as these, research examining the implementation of these ideals in classrooms is scarce, and using technology for more than information giving is even scarcer. The purpose of this study was to examine a graduate course at a large, Midwestern university to discern how educational theory translates into classroom practice. In the course, students learned about educational theory by designing and creating a hypermedia chapter for a World Wide Web-based book. Qualitative data were collected across a 16-week semester and revealed both student and teacher perspectives regarding the course, including the strengths and limitations of a student-as-multimedia-author approach. The findings indicated that most all students were highly satisfied with the course, that some transferred learning, and that students developed skills and knowledge with instructional design, educational theory, and technology.