Six Strategies for Designing Instruction Fast

I have been designing training and instruction for several years, now. Over the years, I have learned a few strategies that have helped me to design instruction faster while still maintaining quality.

Six Strategies for Designing Outstanding Instruction

1. Build it Now - Just start storyboarding, prototyping, and building your instruction. Getting the design out there quickly will allow your creative mind to start piecing things together. Building now helps you discover future obstacles, and because the development tools available are easier and easier to use, a "rapid prototyping" approach can yield some great benefits.
2. Focus on the Goals - Make sure you are focusing your energy on the goals of the organization you work for and the goals of the instruction. It can be easy to get distracted by the "coolness factor" and start creating "ultra-shiny stuff." Some of this is probably okay, but it will probably not have much influence on learning. Keep your eyes on the goal and don't get distracted!
3. Use Your Intuition - As you continue to design, you start to develop patterns for designing instruction. Just like every quality house has the same foundational components, good instruction also has foundational components. Trust your intuitive mind to help you frame those components and piece things together for you.
4. Follow the Research - Be sure to balance your intuitive design with what the research confirms really works in instruction. There is a lot of great research out there that can enhance your ability to design effectively, so sharpen your design knowledge with current research, theories and models. Merrill's First Principles of Instruction is one model that is research-based and provides clear direction on how to design instruction.

Previous Post: Applying Merrill's First Principles of Instruction

1. Get Feedback Early and Often - Make sure you get feedback from many people as you design. Feedback can help you break off the rough parts and begin to smooth out your design quickly and effectively. Talk with other designers, students, peers, family, friends until you feel like your instruction is of a sufficient quality.
2. Be Happy With Good Enough  - If you are and instructional designer, you probably love what you do and often find yourself working to create a perfect product. Unfortunately, you probably find that you often do not have enough time and resources to really build the perfect piece of instruction. To be successful, you have to learn to be happy with instruction that is good enough. Instruction must be quality enough to reach its goals. The Pareto Principle (80/20) applies - if you focus on the essentials in your design, you will produce an effective product without wasting energy.

Previous Post: The Problem of Perfection in Instructional Design

I hope this list is helpful. Feel free to share it with your colleagues and friends!

Instructional Design Tips for Working with Faculty Members

Sometimes working as an instructional designer with a faculty member to create an online course can be very difficult. It can also be very rewarding, and some of the greatest design challenges can produce excellent opportunities to develop and improve your abilities as an instructional designer.

Previous Post: What is Instructional Design?

Working with Tough Faculty Members
Some faculty members can be difficult to work with. Faculty can be extremely confident, overworked, cantankerous, flaky, and outright rude. Although I have been fortunate to work with many amiable faculty members over the years, I have worked with some difficult faculty. Based on my own failures and successes working with these difficult faculty members, I have distilled the following tips and strategies:

1. Acknowledge faculty control - Remember that in many higher education design situations, the faculty member has the final say on the design of his or her course. Be mindful of this fact and be sure to acknowledge it to the faculty member to help put him or her at ease.
2. Show respect for expertise and experience - Faculty members often want respect for their expertise and their experiences as instructors. (Note that this applies even when the instructor actually doesn't do a great job as an instructor!) Be sure to show respect for the faculty member's expertise.
3. Listen to the faculty member - The old adage states, "Seek first to understand, then to be understood." In instructional design, listen closely to what your faculty member's goals are and how he or she proposes to reach those goals. I have found that most of the time, a faculty member has good goals and many good methods for reaching those goals, though sometimes sometimes the proposed methods are not sound. Still, it is vital that you listen and restate what those goals and methods are until you understand and the faculty member feels understood.
4. Build on the faculty member's ideas - Whenever possible, build on the faculty member's ideas. Do what you can to align what you do with the instructor's fundamental pedagogical beliefs and strategies, as long as those strategies are sound. Do what you can to shape the strategy to align more closely with research-based best practices. The following sentences can be helpful:
1. I like your idea to (insert faculty member's idea here), and one thing we have noticed is that when we do (insert a best practice related to the idea) it tends to work out better.
2. I think your idea to (insert faculty member's idea here) can work really well, and the research shows that if we (insert a research-based principle or practice here), it can really help the students improve their learning.
5. Offer to take some of the difficult workload - Faculty are busy, so do what you can to reduce their workload by taking some of the difficult or time-consuming tasks. This will make the working relationship more positive and will give you a greater ability to influence the quality the finished product.

 Previous Post: 5 Fundamental Strategies for Helping Students Learn

So, the next time you work with a difficult faculty member, try out some of these tips. I have found them to be very helpful. Happy designing!

Video - What Does an Instructional Designer Do? 5000 Views

Several months ago I uploaded together a video that describes in basic terms what an instructional designer does. It has been  viewed over 5000 times in the last 10 months, so I thought it would be fun to repost the video here.

New Videos: Explaining Instructional Design

I have been working on developing some multimedia for the IDPT Program at Franklin University. We have put together a couple of videos that introduce instructional design. They should give a nice overview of some of the basic concepts of instructional design. Enjoy!

Instructional Design Process

What is Instructional Design?

 

Article: Applying Merrill’s First Principles of Instruction: Practical Methods Based on a Review of the Literature

Pre-publication draft, reference information at end of post.
To access PDF copies of this and other articles, visit my Academia.edu page.

 Abstract:

Research has shown that when Merrill’s First Principles of Instruction are used as part of an instructional strategy, student learning increases. Several articles describe these principles of Instruction, including specific methods for implementing this theory. However, because teachers and designers often have little time to design instruction, it can be difficult to implement a comprehensive theory like First Principles of Instruction. Therefore, this article provides basic methods for applying First Principles, including several examples from the literature. It also provides a basic template for organizing a module or lesson plan using First Principles of Instruction.

Keywords: instruction; instructional theory; First Principles of Instruction; applying theory; instructional design;

Introduction

The issue of transferring theory into teaching practice is often discussed in the field of education, (De Corte, 2000; Defazio, 2006; Randi & Corno, 2007). For example, a recent study found that most courses in higher education, even those that are award-winning, do not effectively use First Principles of Instruction in their teaching strategy (Cropper et al., 2009). Without using sound theory in the educational practice, instruction can potentially fall short of its power to increase student learning.

Research has shown that the use of First Principles of Instruction in education improves student learning and satisfaction (Frick et al., 2007; Merrill, 2006; Thomson, 2002). However, although several articles describe First Principles of Instruction (Merrill, 2002, 2006), including methods for implementing and evaluating these principles (Merrill, 2009), experience has shown it can be difficult to apply this theory into educational practice. This article therefore describes basic ways for instructional designers and educators to begin using Merrill’s First Principles of Instruction, including a template for designing instruction. Specific methods for applying each principle are also provided.

First Principles of Instruction

A principle describes a relationship that is always true under appropriate conditions, regardless of program or practice (Merrill, 2002). Principles are different from methods, which are “ways to facilitate learning” (Reigeluth, 1999). For methods to effectively bring about student learning, they must be based on principles that describe a true relationship.

Principles are often included in instructional theory, which “offers explicit guidance on how to better help people learn and develop” (Reigeluth, 1999). Merrill emphasizes that instructional design theory should address what actions to take and how and why we should take those particular actions (Merrill & Twitchell, 1994). Instructional theories describe how to teach effectively. They identify methods of instruction, which can be broken into detailed steps, and the situations in which those steps should be taken (Driscoll, 2005, p. 352; Reigeluth, 1999).

In presenting First Principles of Instruction, Merrill (2002, 2006) provides very powerful instructional methods based on five foundational principles of instruction. He writes that learning is promoted when: 

• Instruction is in the context of real-world problems or tasks and students are engaged in solving a sequence of increasingly complex problems or tasks. 
• Students activate relevant cognitive structures and recall or acquire a structure for organizing new knowledge, which structure is used for instruction, coaching, and reflection activities. 
• Students observe a demonstration of skills to be learned that is consistent with the content type, guides students to relate general information to specific instances, and uses media that is relevant to the content and appropriately used. 
• Students engage in application of new knowledge that is consistent with the type of knowledge being taught, receive intrinsic or corrective feedback, and receive coaching that is gradually withdrawn for each subsequent problem or task. 
• Students integrate their new knowledge or skill by reflecting on, discussing, or defending the new knowledge or skill, and exploring personal ways to use it and displaying it publicly.

These five principles can be converted into four phases of instruction, occurring in the context of a real-world problem or task. See Figure 1. This four-phase process guides instructional designers and educators to bundle their teaching and learning activities in a way that improves student learning and that makes it easy to incorporate new methods within that process. The process begins with activation of students’ prior learning, followed by demonstration of new knowledge, student application of knowledge, and student integration of knowledge, all based on the real-world problem or task.

Figure 1. Merrill’s First Principles of Instruction.

Several research articles provide significant empirical and anecdotal support for First Principles of Instruction (Frick et al., 2007; Merrill, 2006; Thomson, 2002). Thomson (2002) showed how these principles were used to teach a potentially drab spreadsheet course. By using real-world scenarios and following the four-phase cycle of instruction, students achieved a 30% performance improvement over the traditional instruction, including a 41% improvement in time performance (p.8). In another study, Frick et al. (2007) found strong correlation between the use of Merrill’s First Principles and student satisfaction and perceived and actual performance in the class. In addition, several authors show how these principles have been applied in educational and corporate settings (Collis & Margaryan, 2005; Gardner et al., 2008; Gardner & Jeon, in press; Mendenhall et al., 2006).

While the results of these studies and cases are impressive, it can be difficult to apply this theory. To help transfer these principles from theory into educational practice, this article will provide prescriptions based on a review of several instructional theories and case descriptions.

Applying First Principles of Instruction

This section describes instructional methods and strategies based on First Principles of Instruction. Several questions are asked followed by practical answers for applying First Principles of Instruction. Figure 2 is a worksheet for planning how to use these principles in a lesson or unit.

How can I base my instruction on real-world problems or tasks?

Real-world experience is the bedrock of all learning (Dale, 1996). The goal of the instruction should be to have students solve problems (Jonassen, 1999), so have students do performances that matter in the real world (Gardner, 1999). Make sure the problems are authentic (Nelson, 1999), useful (Dale, 1996), meaningful (Mayer, 1999), and intrinsically motivating to the student (Schank et al., 1999). The challenges should be easy at first (Burton et al., 1984) but be increasingly difficult as you move through the materials (Gardner et al., 2008; Perkins & Unger, 1999; Schwartz et al., 1999). Make sure your problems and tasks safely allow the practice of skills and subskills (Burton et al., 1984) and try to make them physical, tangible activities (Collis & Margaryan, 2005).

How do I activate my students’ prior knowledge? 

• Have your students relate or recall what they already know about the subject (Gardner et al., 2008; McCarthy, 1996). Try to choose subjects the students will relate to (Schank et. al., 1999) and build on your students’ relevant prior knowledge (Collis & Margaryan, 2005).
• Allow your students to “look ahead” and preview what they will learn (Schwartz et al., 1999). Let them see the problem(s) to be solved and the subjects they will learn (Mendenhall et al., 2006). Also, show them the process they will go through to solve these problems (Nelson 1999). Try to make the structure of the information and knowledge obvious by using a model to organize instructional materials (Darabi, 2002).
• Give your students a foundation to build new knowledge on. Give them a good reason for engaging in the problem (Jonassen, 1999). Tell stories, give them statistics, and provide hands-on activities (Gardner, 1999) upon which to build new knowledge. Discuss the fundamentals of the topic or give a simple analogy upon which to build the new knowledge (Mayer, 1999).

How can I effectively demonstrate new knowledge to the students? 

• Your students will learn a lot by watching you work, so model performance of the task as you teach (Collins et al., 1991). Teach and model the entire task (Gardner et al., 2008; Mendenhall et al., 2006). Give varied examples of the topic (Gardner, 1999), and related cases and information sources (Jonassen, 1999), including multiple expert perspectives (Schank et al., 1999; Schwartz et al., 1999). This will broaden your students’ understanding.
• Be sure to make the structure of the knowledge clear (Mayer, 1999) by following and referring to the organizing model for the knowledge. Be sure to have students relate new knowledge to old knowledge (McCarthy, 1996) to promote encoding of new knowledge.
• Encourage your students to ask questions during the demonstration (Gardner et al., 2008) and give them instruction as they request or need it (Nelson, 1999).
• To broaden student understanding, tell analogies and metaphors (Gardner, 1999). Focus your students’ attention by asking questions (Nelson, 1999) and summarizing your instruction (Mayer, 1999). Make your thinking obvious to the student (Collins et al., 1991).

How do I have students apply this new knowledge effectively? 

• Have your students use what they have been taught (McCarthy, 1996) and spend significant time on practice (Schank et al., 1999). Your students’ activities should include problem-solving activities and you should have them apply new skills in a realistic setting as soon as possible (Keller, 1987). Students should solve as much of the problem or task as possible at each stage (Mendenhall et al., 2006). Problems and tasks should be done in the actual environment using real workplace situations and resources (Collis & Margaryan, 2005).
• Help your students be cognitively active (Mayer, 1999) by having them solve problems. You can even encourage them to solve problems as a group (Nelson, 1999). Have them recognize and articulate the elements that are common across the differing problems and tasks you have them solve (Collins et al., 1991).
• Give your students coaching and feedback (Burton et al., 1984; Collins et al., 1991; Nelson, 1999; Perkins & Unger, 1999). Feedback should occur frequently (Darabi, 2002; Perkins & Unger, 1999). Your feedback may need to be visually demonstrated so that students can see their error (Burton et al., 1984) and should be based on clear criteria (Perkins & Unger, 1999). Help your students use your feedback to bring their performance closer to the level of an expert (Collins et al., 1991) and to plan future performance (Perkins & Unger, 1999). When you praise successful work, be sure to attribute the students’ success to their effort, not luck or ease (Keller, 1987). Provide more guidance initially, reducing it as expertise is developed (Gardner et al., 2008).

How do I encourage students to integrate this new knowledge into their everyday life? 

• Have your students reflect on what they learn (Collis & Margaryan, 2005; Gardner et al., 2008; Jonassen, 1999; Nelson, 1999; Perkins & Unger, 1999; Schwartz et al., 1999), describing their experiences and challenges in applying what is taught (Darabi, 2002). Have students relate their new knowledge to future goals (Keller, 1987). As well, have students leave tips and ideas for future students (Schwartz et al., 1999).
• Have your students take part in a culminating performance that includes students and parents outside the class (Perkins & Unger, 1999). Afterwards, show the students a recording of their performance (Jonassen, 1999).

Subject of Lesson or Module:
Principle of Instruction	Your instructional plan
Problem-Centered What real-world, relevant problem or task will the learner be able to perform when we finish this lesson or unit?
Activation How will you activate the learner’s prior knowledge about this subject and prepare them to learn? How will your students preview what they will learn?
Demonstration How will you show the learner how to perform the real-world problem or task? What various examples of the problem or task will you give your students?
Application How will your learner practice solving the problem or task? How will you give them feedback on their performance?
Integration How will you encourage your learner to integrate this new knowledge and skill into their life? How will they reflect on, discuss or debate this new knowledge?

Discussion and Summary

The diverse ways that First Principles of Instruction are used in these theories and cases is refreshing, and one can recognize the abundant theoretical and anecdotal support for First Principles of Instruction in the articles cited. By understanding the purpose of the principle and using it in a way that matches design style and personal preference, instructional designers can apply these principles in natural, meaningful ways.

This article is designed to provide teachers and instructional designers with ideas for creating effective instruction. The goal is to provide a framework for organizing teaching and learning activities in a way that is easy to implement and beneficial to students. Designers are encouraged to use the worksheet provided in Figure 2 to plan how to apply these principles. By doing so, one can expect an increase in student learning and satisfaction.

It is often difficult to transfer theory to practice instructional design. This description of how several theorists and designers use Merrill’s First Principles of Instruction should generate ideas for applying this theory in design practice. As well, the template found it Figure 2 provides structured, basic methods for application.

Merrill has synthesized and distilled First Principles of Instruction through a lifetime of research, practice and synthesis. Using these principles increases the efficiency and effectiveness of instruction. Most importantly, instructional designers and educators who use these principles will increase student learning and satisfaction by engaging them in solving meaningful problems and tasks.

 

References

Burton, R. R., Brown, J. S., & Fischer, G. (1984). Skiing as a model of instruction. In B. Rogoff and J. Lave (Eds.), Everyday cognition: Its development in social context (pp. 139-150). Cambridge, MA and London , Harvard University Press.

Collins, A., Brown, J. S., & Holum, A. (1991). Cognitive apprenticeship: Making thinking visible. American Educator, 15(3), 6-11.

Collis, B., & Margaryan, A. (2005). Merrill plus: Blending corporate strategy and instructional design. Educational Technology, 45(3), 54-58.

Cropper, M., Bentley, J., & Schroder, K. (2009). How well do high-quality online courses employ Merrill's first principles of instruction? In M. Orey, V. J. McClendon, & R. Branch (Eds.), Educational media and technology yearbook (Vol. 34, pp. 121-140). New York: Springer Publishing Company.

Dale, E. (1996). The "cone of experience." In D. P. Ely & T. Plomp (Eds.), Classic writings on instructional technology (Vol. 1, pp. 169-180). Englewood, CO: Libraries Unlimited.

Darabi, A. (2002). Teaching program evaluation: Using a systems approach. American Journal of Evaluation, 23(2), 219.

De Corte, E. (2000). Marrying theory building and the improvement of school practice: A permanent challenge for instructional psychology. Learning and Instruction, 10(3), 249-266.

Defazio, J. (2006). Theory into practice: A bridge too far? AACE Journal, 14(3), 221-233.

Driscoll, M. P. (2005). Psychology of learning for instruction (3rd ed.). Needham Heights, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.

Frick, T., Chadha, R., Wang, Y., Watson, C., & Green, P. (2007, December 11). College student perceptions of teaching and learning quality. Educational Technology Research and Development. Retrieved June 19, 2009, from http://www.springerlink.com/content/722jm250401j7l77/fulltext.pdf.

Gardner, H. E. (1999). Multiple approaches to understanding. In C. M. Reigeluth (Ed.), Instructional-design theories and models: A new paradigm of instructional theory (Vol. 2, pp. 69-89). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.

Gardner, J., Bentley, J., & Cropper, M. (2008). Evaluating online course quality: Teaching evaluation using first principles of instruction. Midwest Journal of Educational Communication and Technology, 2(2), 1-7.

Gardner, J., & Jeon, T. K. (in press). Creating task-centered instruction for web-based instruction: Obstacles and solutions. Journal of Educational Technology Systems.

Glesne, C. (2006). Becoming qualitative researchers: An introduction (3 ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc..

Jonassen, D. (1999). Designing constructivist learning environments. In C. M. Reigeluth (Ed.), Instructional-design theories and models: A new paradigm of instructional theory (Vol. 2, pp. 215-239). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.

Keller, J. M. (1987). Development and use of the ARCS model of instructional design. Journal of Instructional Development, 10(3), 2-10.

Mayer, R. H. (1999). Designing instruction for constructivist learning. In C. M. Reigeluth (Ed.), Instructional-design theories and models: A new paradigm of instructional theory (Vol. 2, pp. 141-159). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.

McCarthy, B. (1996). About learning. Barrington, IL: Excell, Inc.

Mendenhall, A., Buhanan, C. W., Suhaka, M., Mills, G., Gibson, G. V., & Merrill, M. D. (2006). A task-centered approach to entrepreneurship. TechTrends, 50(4), 84-89.

Merrill, M. D. (2002). First principles of instruction. Educational Technology Research and Development, 50(3), 43-59.

Merrill, M. D. (2006). First principles of instruction: A synthesis. In R. A. Reiser & J. V. Dempsey (Eds.), Trends and issues in instructional design and technology, 2nd Edition (Vol. 2). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill/Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Merrill, M. D. (2009). Finding e3 (effective, efficient, and engaging) instruction. Educational Technology, 49(3), 15-26.

Merrill, M. D. & Twitchell, D. (1994). Instructional design theory. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Educational Technology Publications.

Nelson, L. M. (1999). Collaborative problem solving. In C. M. Reigeluth (Ed.), Instructional-design theories and models: A new paradigm of instructional theory (Vol. 2, pp. 241-267). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.

Perkins, D. N., & Unger, C. (1999). Teaching and learning for understanding. In C. M. Reigeluth (Ed.), Instructional-design theories and models: A new paradigm of instructional theory (Vol. 2, pp. 91-114). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.

Randi, J., & Corno, L. (2007 ). Theory into practice: A matter of transfer. Theory into Practice, 46(4), 334-342.

Reigeluth, C. M. (1999). What is instructional-design theory and how is it changing? In C. M. Reigeluth (Ed.), Instructional-design theories and models: A new paradigm of instructional theory (Vol. 2, pp. 5-29). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.

Schank, R. C., Berman, T. R., & Macpherson, K. A. (1999). Learning by doing. In C. M. Reigeluth (Ed.), Instructional-design theories and models: A new paradigm of instructional theory (Vol. 2, pp. 169-181). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.

Schwartz, D. L., Lin, X., Brophy, S., & Bransford, J. D. (1999). Toward the development of flexibly adaptive instructional designs. In C. M. Reigeluth (Ed.), Instructional-design theories and models: A new paradigm of instructional theory (Vol. 2, pp. 183-213). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.

Thomson. (2002). Thomson job impact study: The next generation of learning [electronic version]. Retrieved June 13, 2009 from http://www.delmarlearning.com/resources/job_impact_study_whitepaper.pdf.

This is a pre-publication draft of an article published in Educational Technology Magazine in 2010. Please feel free to refer to and use these materials, just be sure to use the reference below when citing the publication:

 Gardner, J. (2010). Applying Merrill’s First Principles of Instruction: Practical Methods Based on a Review of the Literature. Educational Technology Magazine. 50(2), pp. 20-25.

Why I Teach and Practice Instructional Design

Originally posted on the EdTech Dojo on Jan 24, 2012

I LOVE INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGN. I love thinking, reading, writing about, and doing it. I love talking about it with my designer friends and I have chosen to spend my career as an instructional designer and as a teacher of instructional design. But why is instructional design so important to me? Why am I so excited about it? Here are several reasons:

I believe in human potential.
 I believe that people have the power to learn, grow and become better. I believe that every human has the capacity to learn and to contribute to society in meaningful ways. Education gives people the power to contribute to society. We all have within us the “seeds of greatness.” We have the capacity to grow, expand, develop and become something incredible.
I believe in education. 
My experience is that education can absolutely revolutionize an person’s life. Through gaining a high quality education over the last decade of my life, I have come to view the world in totally new ways and I have a sense of personal empowerment that I would likely never have known without that education. Education breaks the bonds of ignorance, stupidity, and narrow-mindedness. It opens opportunities that were never available before.

I believe in self-improvement.
I have spent many hours listening to self-help audio programs by success speakers such as Stephen Covey, Anthony Robbins, and Zig Ziglar. This form of education has helped me build a positive attitude and to set and reach difficult goals. This experience has shown that I have the ability to do difficult and rewarding things, and it fuels my belief that education and learning can change lives.

I love to see people succeed.
I have known some personal success, and it has been rewarding. But I receive as much or more gratification when I assist others in their success. I have worked with individuals and classes over the years and find deep satisfaction when I see my students succeed.

Knowledge empowers.
Underlying all of these is the certainty that knowledge gives people power. Knowledge lifts us, ennobles us, and makes us better. Providing an individual with knowledge through effective instruction is a noble, just, good act, and is something that is worthy of my time and energy.

So, this is why I love instructional design. As an instructional designer and an educator, I am participating in work that empowers people, that gives learners the capacity to grow, to succeed, to take control of their lives more fully. I am giving people tools that can totally change their lives. This is why I have devoted my professional life to teaching and doing instructional design.

New Video: What Instructional Designers Do

It can sometimes be difficult to explain what an instructional designer does. I made this video which describes clearly (I hope!) what most instructional designers do. I hope it is helpful.

What do you think? If you are not an instructional designer, does this explanation help? If you are an instructional designer, does this description make sense?

Skills for Success in the Knowledge Society

The work of the instructional designer is crucial in the emerging knowledge society. We are knowledge workers- processing information and sharing knowledge in the form of instruction. But how can we anticipate the best way to prepare for work as instructional designers in the future? What general skills and abilities will be relevant and meaningful to instructional designers in the future? (For more field-specific competencies, there are many lists of competencies described by different professional organizations and societies, and these lists are crucial. I now refer to general skills pertinent to successful work in the knowledge society.)

Related Post: How to Become a Successful Lifelong Learner

The Institute for the Future recently published a list of 10 skills for the future, which is reviewed nicely here. I list below the few (in my own words) that I find most interesting:

• Gain competency in many disciplines - in the knowledge society, people must see how things connect and work together. I have found that as an instructional designer, I design instruction more efficiently when I am competent in (or at least understand) the subject matter. In addition, being able to see the connection between what I am doing and the rest of the organization increases my value, purpose, and ability to act effectively.
• Be able to process and make sense of information - there is so much information, we must learn how to draw coherent conclusions from the deluge of information. This includes understanding and coping with information from multiple sources and media. As an instructional designer, making sense of a topic or a field is crucial, and those fields grow and change, being able to make sense of and design around that field becomes crucial.
• Be able to communicate effectively - this includes communication across cultures and using many different media. It also includes a sense of social intelligence. Instructional designers communicate endlessly with peers, students, subject-matter-experts, management, and many others. Having social intelligence and the ability to communicate effectively and efficiently is vital, and cultural competence in our global economy is also crucial.
• Be able to design and create - as knowledge workers, we must be able to create knowledge and tools that are useful and help others to succeed and find meaning in the future. Clearly this relates directly to instructional design- we translate information into instruction so that our learners can use that knowledge- and we must learn to do it as efficiently and effectively as possible.

What do you think? Will these competencies be important to instructional designers of the future? Or have they always been important to instructional design? Does this partial list give us guidance on how we might develop ourselves as designers and plan for the future?

Ideas for Instructional Design Professional Development

I am writing this post on New Year's Eve, the time at which many begin thinking of New Year's Resolutions. I have been reviewing my personal goals and resolutions and thought it would be interesting to write about instructional design professional development goals.

Change Is Constant
No matter what we do, the world is constantly changing. Our roles as instructional design professionals is changing, and we must continually acquire and expand our knowledge and skills to improve ourselves and make ourselves valuable.


Professional Development Ideas
So, how can we develop ourselves as instructional designers? Here is a list of ideas for professional development in instructional design. If you are now an instructional designer or want to make a career change into the field of instructional design, this list will give you ides for developing your knowledge and skills in meaningful ways:

1. Earn the degree- if you haven't already earned a degree in instructional design, this is perhaps the most important. Earning the degree will improve your credibility, knowledge, and abilities in very important ways. There are dozens of program options. Franklin University where I am currently a faculty member has a good online program that provides excellent training in Instructional Design and Performance Technology.
2. If you are already working in instructional design, consider expanding your knowledge by developing yourself in a related and useful area. This could mean project management, technology management, human performance technology, human resource management, or any other related skill or discipline.
3. Refine and extend your expertise in instructional design. Consider doing one of the following:
1. Read 1 or more new books on instructional design.
2. Go to a new conference or workshop that you have not yet attended.
3. Learn and use one (or more!) new design or development technologies.
4. Get into academia - read the current literature on a given instructional design topic. Or write and submit an article to an instructional design journal or magazine.
5. If you want additional insights, ask a trustworthy coworker or associate for areas you could work on or improve in.

My Professional Development Plans
Here is my own plan for developing myself as an instructional designer (and as a scholar) for 2012:

• Attend the Principles and Practices of Human Performance Technology Workshop at the ISPI Conference, this year.
• Attend and present at the Annual Convention of the Association for Educational Communication and Technology (AECT).
• Find and attend a workshop on Project Management.
• Publish at least 2 articles in peer-reviewed journals.
• Teach at least 2 courses in the  IDPT program at Franklin University.
• Post to this blog weekly.

This is my current list and I am sure I'll add more goals next year. I plan to continue to develop myself as an individual and a professional so that I am more valuable to my organization and can learn more about the things I am interested in and excited about. I am especially blessed to work in an organization that provides me with funding and support for professional development activities, and I am grateful to enjoy this benefit as a faculty member at Franklin University.

What about you?
So, what are your professional development goals? How do you want to improve yourself over the coming year? What have been your most positive past experiences improving your skills and knowledge in the field of instructional design?