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AECT Standard 1: Design

“Design is the process of specifying conditions for learning” (Seels & Richey, 1994, p. 30). Design is the most critical step because you need to determine the need for instruction, what is to be taught, how it is to be taught, to whom it is to be taught, and determine how you will know if the instruction is successful. The domain of design includes four subdomains: Instructional Systems Design (ISD), Message Design, Instructional Strategies, and Learner Characteristics.

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Reflection

When I started my career as an instructional designer, I know now that I didn’t spend nearly enough time in the design phase. I was too ready to jump to the development phase because that was the fun part. I would combine the design and the development phase and figure out what I was going to teach as I was developing it. This caught up to me because I didn’t think through all the possible paths and this led to a lot of rework.

 

During my course work in the ITMA program, I learned to appreciate the design phase and why I should be spending a lot more time in it. Not only do I spend a lot more time in the design phase now, I look at creating training a completely different way. The biggest difference in my past practices and my current practices is that I used to focus so much on what I was training that I didn’t consider enough if what I was training was getting through to the end user. Can they apply it to their job after the training is over? Is the training going to influence a needed change in a positive way? Or is the information that I just told them going to go through one ear and out the other? If so, why did I just waste my time and everyone else’s time creating the training that was created. Does the target audience have the prerequisite skills to learn the new information in the first place? If they don’t and the learner starts out lost from the beginning, training is going to be unsuccessful. Because of what I have learned through the ITMA program, I now design training that is learner centered. The training lets the learners know up front what is expected of them and how they will be assessed. I think these artifacts display my new appreciation for the design phase.

 

In the future, I look forward to using my new knowledge and appreciation of the design phase to create more effective training and to also teach others around me how to create effective training. 

1.1 Instructional Systems Design (ISD)

“Instructional Design (ISD) is an organized procedure that includes the steps of analyzing, designing, developing, implementing, and evaluating instruction” (Seels & Richey, 1994, p.31). Within the application of this definition, ‘design’ is interpreted both a macro- and micro-level in that it describes the systems approach and is a step within the systems approach. The importance of process, as opposed to product, is emphasized in ISD. 

Artifacts

  • ID Project Final Report (word document) Demonstrates competency in the above sub-domain through my use of Instructional Analysis, Learner Analysis, and Context Analysis. (Refer to those sections)

 

  • Multimedia Deisgn Document (word document) Demonstrates competency in the above sub-domain through my use of Instructional Analysis, Learner Analysis, and Context Analysis. (Refer to those sections)

 

 

 

 

  • Instructional Message Design (word document) Demonstrates competency in the above sub-domain by giving a brief history of message design and principles.

 

 

 

Artifacts

“Message design involves planning the manipulation of the physical form of the message” (Seels & Richey, 1994, p.31.). Message design is embedded within learning theories (cognitive, psychomotor, behavioral, perceptual, affective, constructivist) in the application of known principles of attention, perception, and retention which are intended to communicate with the learner. This subdomain is specific to both the medium selected and the learning task. 

1.2 Message Design 

  • Multimedia Design Document (word document) Demonstrates competency in the above sub-domain through my use of Objectives and Assessment Items. (Refer to those sections)

 

  • ID Project Final Report (word document) Demonstrates competency in the above sub-domain through my use of Objectives and Assessment Items. (Refer to those sections)

 

 

 

Artifacts

“Instructional Strategies are specifications for selecting and sequencing events and activities within a lesson” (Seels & Richey, 1994, p. 31). In practice, instructional strategies interact with learning solutions. The results of these interactions are often described by instructional models. The appropriate selection of instructional strategies and instructional models depends upon the learning situation (including learner characteristics), the nature of the content, and the type of leaner objective. 

1.3 Instructional Strategies

  • Multimedia Design Document (word document) Demonstrates competency in the above sub-domain through my use of Learner Analysis. (Refer to that section)

 

  • ID Project Final Report (word document) Demonstrates competency in the above sub-domain through my use of Learner Analysis. (Refer to that section)

 

 

 

Artifacts

“Learner characteristics are those facets of the learner’s experiential background that impact the effectiveness of a learning process” (Seels & Richey, 1994, p. 32). Learner characteristics impact specific components of instruction during the selection and the implementation of instructional strategies. For example, motivation research influences the selection and implementation of instructional strategies based upon identified learner characteristics. Learner characteristics interact with instructional strategies, the learning situation, and the nature of the content.  

1.4 Learner Characteristics

References 

Seels, B.B., & Richey, R.C. (1994). Instructional technology: The definition and domains of the field. 

Washington, DC: Association for Educational Communications and Technology.

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