Instructional Design

Instructional designers have a difficult task of designing materials, making suggestions, and providing training and instruction to others in order to create changes and foster innovation.  Over the course of our class, I learned that there are a number of theories put forth to describe the manner in which people learn, blogs can be used to teach and provide information to others, and instructors can incorporate motivational aspects into instruction.

The learning theories are useful to instructors and instructional designers because the theories allow educators the opportunity to examine the manner in which learners learn and receive information.  The theories have a place in educator’s efforts to teach students, but I would be against a strict following of any one theory because all learners learn differently.  I believe that a strict following of the theories will provide adequate instruction to some learners, while others may find it difficult to learn the material being taught.  It will not be easy to create instructional material that will be beneficial to all learners, but a blending of all learning theories in instruction has a better chance to address the variety of learner’s strengths and weaknesses.

I also learned that blogs can serve as a form of instruction and as a way in which learners can share information on a diverse range of topics.  Blogs enable users to give their opinions, ask and answer questions in a method that is conveient to users over the internet.  New blogs are added to the internet daily and each blog creator, user, and visitor adds their perspectives to the vast growing internet.

I was surprised to learn about the ARCS motivational process and how instructors and teachers can incorporate motivational aspects into instruction and course work.  I personally had never heard of the ARCS motivational process before we read about the process in week seven.  The ARCS motivational process is designed to aid instructors in their efforts to retain students in their classes and increase students desire to remain actively involved in their learning.  What I found most interesting about the ARCS process is that scholars around the world in some form contributed to the development of the process.  The contributions made by the other scholars also made me aware that the problems associated with motivating students in online learning environments was not a problem faced here in the United States, but motivating students is a problem educators all over are faced with.  Motivation exists in two forms intrinsic and extrinsic and students could benefit from motivation being supplied by instructors because intrinsic and extrinsic motivation would require the learner to be actively involved in their learning process.

As the class progressed through weeks and weeks of concepts and theories, I began to notice that technology plays a large part in the way in which we learn.  Technology enables learners to learn information in a variety of formats and provides information to the masses.  Today millions of people participate in some form of online learning, a class that incorporates technological aspects that aid learning, and provide learners with convience.  Technology allows educators the opportunity to provide learners with materials that possibly meet their strengths and weaknesses.

This course has allowed me the opportunity to closely examine the manner in which I learn.  I am still a person who learns from the environment I am in, visually, and by reading information.  I prefer to be in an environment that is quiet and temperate because this type of environment will enable me to focus strictly on the material I have to study.  This course will allow me to better understand how learners acquire information and the course gave me information on how to provide instruction to learners from a variety of backgrounds.  As a future instructional designer, it is important to know and understand how learners acquire information because it saves the designer time when creating materials and enables the instructional designer the opportunity to introduce changes people will want to take part in.  Instructional designers are to produce change and instruct others in more effective practices designed to make things more efficient.  The role instructional designer’s play in an organization is key to ensuring that the most efficient practices are in place and that people are used in a manner in which their effort emerges at the forefront.

In week 1 I was more aware of the environments that will not be useful to acquiring knowledge or learning.  The environment a learner is placed in plays an important role in how much information the learner receives.  In the theories and in some learning strategies, the role of the environment fluctuates, from being important to a contributing factor.  In my own learning, the environment I am in remains central to my acquisition of knowledge.  The theories helped me realize I also learn a great deal from the people I interact with.  Social learning theory states that the learner’s social interaction with knowledgeable members of society helps to facilitate learning.  In my personal experiences, I have always learned from people I have been around, but social learning theory makes me believe I have learned a great deal more than I anticipated.     

Technology plays a huge role in my learning.  I obtain most of my information from some form of technology mainly because my reading is limited to the books I am required to read for class.  Before I started my current degree program, about forty percent of information came from the internet or other technology driven sources, while sixty percent of my information came from reading books, magazines, or newspapers.  Online classes have changed the way I want to do research and obtain information because I have found new sources in which can supply information accurately and quick.  During this class I also came to understand how blogs can be used as a learning tool.  Prior to taking EDUC6115, I thought blogs were used by people to comment on news articles.  Blogs can be used to teach and provide instruction to others and blog benefit from the diverse opinions that people leave on blogs.  My use of technology will continue to increase because the usage of technology to provide instruction and learning will be on the increase.  The use of technology to provide instruction will increase because of the multiple uses of mobile devices and a growing market of competitors to create the next new application.