Connecting education and practice in an instructional design graduate program

This paper reports on a curriculum project in which principles of instructional design are integrated with real-world experiences in a corporate environment. Working in design teams, graduate students served as instructional developers in a corporate environment. The course instructor acted as project leader. Initially, both the client organization and design teams expressed confusion concerning their roles in relation to the course instructor. Design teams initially used technical language not readily understood by the client. The lack of guidance in instructional models on the development of appropriate instructional strategies was noted by all teams. Design teams concluded that knowledge of instructional design principles is a necessary but not sufficient preparation for professional activity as instructional developers. By the end of the three-month project, both the client organization and the design teams expressed strong satisfaction with the process and the outcome.     

Lessons from team work: towards a systematic scheme for course development

Differences in practice and culture between distance and face to face universities are examined in the light of course design and production. This paper then proposes that a team approach which has been developed and refined for the production of distance teaching courses, and more particularly for the management of the production process, be used as a starting point for the development of a systematic scheme capable of being used in a conventional university setting not only by teams but also by individuals. Examples of ways in which this scheme might be used are given, and the benefits pointed out; these include improvements in the efficacy of course production and in the integration and cohesiveness of the resulting courses. There are also indirect gains to be made, in educational development and in increased professionalism, as well as in the enrichment of academic life.     

Strategic Curriculum Design: An Engineering Case Study

The development of the integrated Bachelor of Engineering course at the University of Ballarat represents a strategic approach to curriculum design. This approach has been adopted for the development of a completely new course to address the desired attributes of the twenty-first century engineering graduates and to ensure that the content of the course encourages deep rather than surface approaches to learning. The objectives of the new course involve the development of graduates who are independent learners (lifelong learners) and are able to operate autonomously and in teams in tomorrow's world, coping with challenges and opportunities vastly different from those currently practising engineers have faced in their professional lives. The conceptual framework of this course is based on the integration of engineering disciplines with engineering design and systems as integrating themes.     

Being in the users' shoes: Anticipating experience while designing online courses

While user‐centred design and user experience are given much attention in the e‐learning design field, no research has been found on how users are actually represented in the discussions during the design of online courses. In this paper we identify how and when end‐users' experience—be they students or tutors—emerges in designers' discussions during their meetings in well‐established open universities. More precisely, we observed 15 design meetings of two design teams during the development of specific online courses. Designers' discourse was analysed on the basis of six dimensions regarding relevant actors, contents and strategies (purposes) of user experience anticipation. Results show the emergence of a solution‐oriented anticipatory discourse in form of scenarios regarding how learners and tutors will react to the course and the proposed activities. Moreover, this discourse is related to an emergent type of users‐based expertise, translated as the capacity of some designers to empathise with the end‐users more than other designers do. The participation of designers with this type of expertise in e‐learning design teams emerges as relevant for the decisions related to the course activities, interface or overall experience. Further research is invited towards this direction. Further discussion on this article can be found in “Being in the users' shoes: Is there maybe another way?” (DOI: 10.1111/bjet.12104 ).     

Data teams for school improvement

The use of data for educational decision making has never been more prevalent. However, teachers and school leaders need support in data use. Support can be provided by means of professional development in the form of “data teams”. This study followed the functioning of 4 data teams over a period of 2 years, applying a qualitative case study design. The findings show that data use is not a linear process, and that teams go through different feedback loops to reach higher levels of depth of inquiry. The data team procedure is a promising way of enhancing data-based decision making in schools.     

Course teams: myth and actuality

This article argues for the development of group intervention techniques to improve the efficacy of course teams in the preparation of distance education materials. A review of recent commentaries on course teams is presented along with an initial selection and discussion of course team issues. These are presented in the refreshingly frank domestic context of actual interactions. The irritations generated by these will be familiar to practitioners. The author concludes with a series of recommendations to enrich the quality of course team life and output. It is hoped that this provocative analysis of the course team method of producing distance education materials will generate a lively response.     

技术促进下的课程设计与学习评价——访国际远程教育知名学者罗宾·梅森教授

e-Learning的繁荣发展推动了新技术在远程教育课程设计与开发中的应用,促进了远程教育课程设计与开发从理念到方法上的变革。作为资深的课程设计专家,同时也是在线教学与学习的专家,罗宾.梅森(Robin Mason)教授在本次访谈中结合英国开放大学课程设计的经验和她的研究,在e-Learning和Web2.0背景下介绍了"以学生为中心"的教育理念指导下课程设计与学习评价的最新方法和技术。梅森教授是早期探讨远程教育领域计算机会议技术的先驱之一,是享有国际威望的英国开放大学"在线与远程教育"专业课程的主管,多年从事的在线课程设计、辅导和评价工作使其成为国际上课程设计领域和在线教学的知名专家,相关的研究论文和学术专著成果颇丰。近期,她所提出的基于学习对象的远程教育课程设计方法受到业界的普遍关注,在学习评价和电子学习档案袋、e-Learning的基本概念和理论等方面也都有独到建树。     

Rethinking Learner Support: The challenge of collaborative online learning

The use of computer-mediated communication (CMC) as an integral part of the design of distance taught courses raises interesting challenges to our thinking about course design and learner support. These have typically been conceptualised as two complementary but distinct systems in distance education, characterised by different practices often carried out by different groups of staff. Where CMC is designed as an integral part of the course, with collaborative learning as essential to assessment and study, this separation breaks down. The design of online activities is integral to both learner support and the course content, with new possibilities for open and distance learning as a result. Where the learning group itself is a resource for study and personal development, it also becomes feasible to orientate courses and programmes towards local teams and communities. Online tutors play a key role and need to develop 'the technology of conversation' and expertise in the design of activities, as part of their facilitator role.     

Teacher design teams as a strategy for professional development: the role of the facilitator

ABSTRACT

The goal of the current study was to explore the role and importance of the facilitator in teacher design teams. The study took place in the context of a pre-service teacher education institution in Belgium, where teacher design teams were set up to facilitate the professional development of teacher educators. The findings from focus-group discussions with team members and semi-structured interviews with facilitators confirm that the perceived importance of a facilitator depends on several factors, such as team characteristics and the design phase. Moreover, we found that a facilitator can fulfil three roles in a dynamic way: (a) providing logistic support, (b) scaffolding the design process, and (c) monitoring the design process. The discussion centres on how these results can be used to support facilitators for successful Teacher Design Teams.     

网络精品课程建设的标准要求与开发策略

评价网络教育课程质量不能只看网上资源,而应全面衡量课程的教学设计、教学资源、教学过程和教学效果.网络课程的基本要求突出表现在:适于学生自主学习、准确呈现学习内容、便于开展师生交互、设计有效学习活动等四个方面;开发与设计网络精品课程,要掌握课程设计和教学分析方法,精心设计课程内容和表现形式,运用教学策略激发学生的学习兴趣,重视导学、助学与促学的设计,规范设计程序和发挥课程组作用.     

网络课程开发的参与式教学设计策略

目前网络课程开发更多涉及微观层面的教学设计流程。而参与式设计作为宏观教学系统设计动态特征的一大表现,是从交互式设计的观点出发,运用工程和产品设计的过程观点来认识教学设计的一种方法, 是一种用户为中心的教学设计方法。该方法在今后的教学资源及网络课程的系统开发中将会得到广泛应用。     

Introductory Biology Courses: A Framework To Support Active Learning in Large Enrollment Introductory Science Courses

Active learning and research-oriented activities have been increasingly used in smaller, specialized science courses. Application of this type of scientific teaching to large enrollment introductory courses has been, however, a major challenge. The general microbiology lecture/laboratory course described has been designed to incorporate published active-learning methods. Three major case studies are used as platforms for active learning. Themes from case studies are integrated into lectures and laboratory experiments, and in class and online discussions and assignments. Students are stimulated to apply facts to problem-solving and to learn research skills such as data analysis, writing, and working in teams. This course is feasible only because of its organizational framework that makes use of teaching teams (made up of faculty, graduate assistants, and undergraduate assistants) and Web-based technology. Technology is a mode of communication, but also a system of course management. The relevance of this model to other biology courses led to assessment and evaluation, including an analysis of student responses to the new course, class performance, a university course evaluation, and retention of course learning. The results are indicative of an increase in student engagement in research-oriented activities and an appreciation of real-world context by students.     

英国开放大学的课程开发及对我国的启示

课程的质量保证是整个远程教育质量保证体系的核心内容之一,因此英国开放大学的质量保证从课程开发开始。他们开发的课程质量非常高,因为他们的开发团队结构科学,开发过程严密,资金投入力度大,而且适应企业需求,可为我国远程教育的课程开发提供借鉴。     

Utilization of design principles for hybrid learning configurations by interprofessional design teams

Educational design research yields design knowledge, often in the form of design principles or guidelines that provide the rationale or ‘know-why’ for the design of educational interventions. As such, design principles can be utilized by designers in contexts other than the research context in which they were generated. Although research has shown that quality support is important for design success, less is known about processes that promote utilization of design principles as the rationale for instructional design. In this study we therefore explored an intervention for promoting the utilization of a set of research-based design principles in educational practice. This intervention aimed to promote utilization through enhancing perceived usefulness of the design principles by design teams in various contexts. The set of design principles that was utilized by the design teams in this study underpins the design of so-called hybrid learning configurations that are situated at the interface between school and workplace. The intervention was developed from the perspective of boundary crossing theory and was conducted with four different design teams. It was evaluated by way of a questionnaire and a dialogue with members of the design teams. This boundary crossing intervention appeared to bring about the desired outcomes. Most of the design team members considered the set of design principles useful in several different ways and they expected that utilization of the principles would lead to an improved learning configuration.     

Collaborative learning online

The decision to offer a course by online delivery involves a range of issues relating to teaching/learning methodology, instructional design, and delivery software. This article describes the development of a Masters course that uses collaborative learning as the teaching/ learning method. The theoretical basis for collaborative learning is explained and related to instructional design for online delivery. Evaluation data from the first three subjects are included. These are based on questionnaires and content analysis of computer conferences. Evaluation data reveal issues that are important to successful outcomes using this way of teaching.     

Enhanced learning through design problems – teaching a components-based course through design

This paper describes a teaching method used in an electrical machines course, where the students learn about electrical machines by designing them. The aim of the course is not to teach design, albeit this is a side product, but rather to teach the fundamentals and the function of electrical machines through design. The teaching method is evaluated by a student questionnaire, designed to measure the quality and effectiveness of the teaching method. The results of the questionnaire conclusively show that this method labelled ‘learning through design’ is a very effective way of teaching a components-based course. This teaching method can easily be generalised and used in other courses.     

Curriculum change: a study of the implementation of General National Vocational Qualifications

This article focuses on curriculum change, in particular on course team responses to the introduction of a new curriculum and on the implications of empirical findings for our understanding of curriculum implementation and change. The case discussed is that of the second version of GNVQ. The discussion is based on an analysis of data collected across twenty-two course teams in ten schools and colleges over a two-year period as part of an ESRC-funded project. The model of comprehensive assessment of the second version of the GNVQ is one in which the curriculum reinforcement role of assessment related to the coverage and standards of the qualification but not to the design of courses. Theoretically, significant scope was accorded to course teams to develop and provide courses that responded to local contexts. The article explores how patterns of difference and similarity in course team responses to the introduction of this curriculum might be explained and indicates three broad approaches: implementation, adaptation and assimilation, relating these responses to the existing experience and expertise of members of the various course teams. The article draws on concepts from the field of linguistics to put forward the notions of ‘curricular fields’ and ‘sub-curricular fields’ and suggests that curriculum implementation needs to take greater account of the sub-curricular fields of course teams.     

Teacher design in teams as a professional development arrangement for developing technology integration knowledge and skills of science teachers in Tanzania

This study investigated the impact of teacher design teams as a professional development arrangement for developing technology integration knowledge and skills among in-service science teachers. The study was conducted at a secondary school in Tanzania, where 12 in-service science teachers participated in a workshop about technology integration in science teaching and worked in design teams to prepare technology-enhanced biology, chemistry and physics lessons. Through collaboration in design teams, teachers were able to make science animations using PowerPoint and record videos to use in their teaching. The designed lessons were taught in the classroom and reflected upon thereafter by all teachers. In order to determine the change in teachers’ technology integration knowledge and skills, data were collected before and after the professional development arrangement by using questionnaire, interview and observation data. Focus group discussion and reflection questionnaire data were used to assess teachers’ experience of working in design teams at the end of the professional development arrangement. Findings showed an increase in teachers’ technology integration knowledge and skills between pre- and post-measurements. Collaboration in design teams had the potential for teachers to share knowledge, skills, experience and challenges related to technology-enhanced teaching.