Personal Definition of Learning/Instructional Design and Technology

        

           Learning design can be defined as the process by which instructional materials are developed using theories of learning and instruction. There is an emphasis placed on the implementation as well as the quality of instruction and assessment of learners. Learning design should allow learners to demonstrate their learning in various ways to allow the learner to take ownership in their scholarship. A learning designer should take into account not only the content at hand in a project, but also the development of the learner’s personal soft skills. 

I believe that technology is an essential component of learning design. The world continues to become more technical and will not stop any time soon. Properly implementing technology in learning design not only develops the learner’s understanding and skills with the specified content, but it also prepares and trains them to interact with new and different forms of technology. Nearly every job will require a new employee to learn their way around unfamiliar technology, and if a learner has consistently been asked to navigate through tech they are not accustomed to, they are better prepared for the work force. There are increasingly fewer things in our modern world that you can do without the use of technology. Uplifting and demonstrating proper use of technology is a great way to prepare learners for their lives ahead. 

In order to understand my definition, there are a few critical phrases to note. Proper implementation of technology being the first one, Wagner said, “Instructional design is the science of creating detailed specifications for the development, implementation, evaluation, and maintenance of situations that facilitate…learning” (Wagner, 2021). Rather than creating a lesson and assuming that the instructor will be familiarized with the technology used, learning designers should ensure that there is a comprehensive guide to implementation. Another critical point to my definition is demonstrating proper use of technology, which I define as a balance between the use of technology and a conscious avoidance. It is important to teach learners that there should be a healthy balance in the use of technology, and there is value in being offline. With the use of technology comes many downsides, such as the lack of using critical thinking skills when you have every answer at your fingertips. It is important to nurture a learner’s technological knowledge, but it is equally important to grow their independent, personal problem solving skills. It is so vital that learners are still tasked with using their brain and being creative.

In Wagner’s essay, he states that, “Instructional design is the science of creating detailed specifications for the development, implementation, evaluation, and maintenance of situations that facilitate…learning” (Wagner, 2021).  This pushed me to include the implementation of materials and the evaluation of learners in my definition. Thinking about instructional design as a science is a new concept to me, but it makes so much sense. I have always focused on the fun part, designing and being creative, however there is so much more that goes into learning design. Being knowledgeable about learning theory and research concerning instructional strategies and their implementation is vital to the field.

While the study of instructional strategies is essential, it is equally important to recognize and reflect on the need to adapt those strategies to each unique learning design context. In the Reiber segment, he quotes Michael Streibel (1991, p.12), “I have begun to believe that the discrepancy between instructional design theories and instructional design practice will never be resolved because instructional design practice will always be a form of situated activity.” I found this quote impactful because the idea that theory and research will solve all instructional design questions is null. Streibel brings up the idea that there will always be discrepancies with instructional design in practice because it is dependent on the content being discussed. To go further, learning designers consider their learner and audience in their process, which is another variable factor in the actual implementation of instructional design rather than learning theory. There are many variables in learning design and if you use a one size fits all approach, learners will not be set up for success. Being able to adapt to each indivdual circumstance is a distinction of a good learning designer.

I really appreciated how the visual encompasses so many points of learning design. An important reflection of the visual is the emphasis on the teacher and their goals, beliefs, training and experience. This is a segment of learning design that I hadn’t really considered but the teacher is the single most important factor in a classroom and has so much impact on the learner and how the content is presented, regardless of how it is designed. Another part of the visual that resonated with me is the idea of interactive engagement of learners, I think this is a big miss in education as it stands. So many courses are lecture based and teacher centered, and I love how the visual represents the importance of learner engagement.

References    

Smith, J. E. (2005). Building a culture of learning design: Reconsidering the place of

online learning in the tertiary curriculum. Queensland University of Technology.